Caerphilly-born Manon Carpenter has joined Radon Bikes ahead of the new season.
She has signed a two-year contract with the German team after leaving Madison Saracen at the end of last year.
The 23-year-old had been at the UK-based team since its launch in 2011, during which time she won the 2014 Downhill World Cup, finishing second in 2015 and last season.
Having returned to training after breaking a collarbone in a crash in Val di Sole last September, the Welsh rider is looking forward to the 2017 season, which gets underway in Lourdes, France, on April 29.
She told BBC Radio Wales: “I went over to visit the new team in Germany at the end of last year and it feels like it’s going to be a good year.
“I’d been with Madison Saracen quite a long time really.
“I think with a race team people tend to move around a little bit and I guess I just fancied a change really.
“It was really good being part of Madison Saracen, they kind of brought me up from a junior into the elite ranks and made it possible for me to get where I am today.
“It’s kind of cool being part of an international team – I quite liked the idea of that – and I get to do a few more international races.”