Sam Bennett will join Deceuninck Quickstep in 2020 and 2021.

Bennett, who had tentatively agreed to a contract extension with the German team, met resistance when he tried to move this summer, but the move was finally approved last month.

That paved the way for Deceuninck-QuickStep to finalize a deal with the 29-year-old sprinter, who has 13 wins in 2019.

Shane Archibald, Bennett's lead-out man at Beulah, will follow him on a two-year deal.

"I am delighted to sign with Deceuninck-QuickStep, who had a poster on their wall when I was a kid," Bennett said in a statement from the team.

"I remember going to races with Ann Post and seeing QuickStep at races. I never thought I was good enough to sign with them, so to be able to run for them is a dream come true and I can't wait to start working and racing with the guys. It's going to be tough to race for this team, but it's motivating, it's a challenge after being with my previous team for so long, and I feel refreshed"

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Even with players like Fabio Jacobsen and Alvaro Hodeg on the roster, Descente Quick Step was looking for a lead sprinter as Elia Viviani will move to Cofidis in 2020. Bennett won two stages at this year's Vuelta a España, but complained that he would not be able to compete in the Giro d'Italia or Tour de France because Bora-Hansgrohe has Pascal Ackermann and Peter Sagan.

Interest in the transfer was strong on both sides, but there were considerable obstacles in the form of a "letter of intent" that Bennett reportedly signed with a view to remaining in Bora. The case was sent to a UCI arbitration panel, during which Quick Step boss Patrick Lefebvre claimed that Bora had offered to trade for Hodeg. In early November, however, the German team announced that it was letting Bennett go.

"It is well known that Sam's transfer was long overdue, but we are happy to welcome him to the team," Lefebvre said.

"His palmares alone speak volumes about his talent and determination. We all can't wait to start working with him.

Bennett, who began his career with the Ampost team, turned pro in 2014 with Bora-Hansgrohe (then NetApp-Endura) and has become one of the world's best sprinters in the last few years In 2017, he won his first World Tour-level race at Parisense and in 2018 he took his first Grand Tour stage win with three victories at the Giro d'Italia. Despite not running in either the Giro or the Tour, Bennett ran again in 2019, winning 13 races, 11 of them at the World Tour level.

Archibald has a longtime colleague and friend by his side. The 30-year-old New Zealander was also a member of An Post before joining Bora in 2015. He left after three seasons and was part of the unsuccessful Aqua Blue Sport squad before rejoining Beulah in April of this year.

"It's also great to have Shane here. He hasn't had a chance to play for a few years, so it's special to have the two of us here together," Bennett said.

"Having him here as a friend and business associate makes my job easier," Bennett said.

Readout was a department that needed strengthening at Deceuninck-QuickStep. Michal Morkov will remain, but Fabio Sabatini will follow Viviani to Cofidis and Max Richeze will follow Fernando Gaviria to UAE Team Emirates.

"We know how important it is for a sprinter to have a lead-out man he fully understands and trusts. We already have some excellent lead-out men, but when we realized that we could add Shane to the team to help Sam, it made total sense," said Lefebvia. Bennett and Archibald are the last signings of the transfer period for Deceuninck-Quickstep."

Bennett and Archibald are the last signings of the transfer market for Deceuninck Quickstep, which will end its 2020 roster with 27 players.

In: Bert Van Lerberghe (Cofidis), Stein Steels (Roompot-Charles), Andrea Bazioli (Colpac), Mattia Cattaneo (Androni Giocattoli-Sidermec), Davide Ballerini (Astana), Joanne Almeida (Hagens Berman-Axion), Mauri Vansevenant (EFC-L&R-Wursteke), Jannik Steimle (Vorarlberg), Ian Garrison (Hagens Berman-Axion), Sam Bennett (Bora Hansgrohe), Shane Archibald (Bora-Hansgrohe)

Out: Elia Viviani (Cofidis), Fabio Sabatini (Cofidis), Enric Mas (Movistar), Davide Martinelli (Astana), Maximiliano Richeze (UAE Team Emirates), Philippe Gilbert (Lot Soudal), Eros Capecchi (Bahrain Merida)

Extension: Julian Alaphilippe (2021), Kasper Asgreen (2021), Zdenek Stival (2021), Michal Molkov ( (2021), James Knox (2021), Iljo Keisse (2020), Pieter Serry (2021), Remko Evenpor (2023)