As Team Sky hold their first get together to prepare for the 2018 season, 20-year-old Egan Bernal will get his first taste of life at the most successful team in the peloton. The Colombian climber is part of a new generation of riders joining Team Sky for 2018 that also includes Russian-born, France-based phenomenon Pavel Sivakov, 2016 under-23 world champion Kristoffer Halvorsen, and British sprinter Chris Lawless.
Bernal stands out from his young peers thanks to his victory in the Tour de l'Avenir while riding for the Colombian national team. He is the sixth Colombian to win the French race that often identifies future Grand Tour contenders, following on from Nairo Quintana, Esteban Chaves and Miguel Angel Lopez.
He also has had two successful seasons with the Androni Giocattoli squad, winning the Sibiu Cycling Tour this season and finishing as best young rider in half a dozen stage races. Bernal also showed his talent in one-day races, taking second at the Giro dell'Appennino, third at the Memorial Marco Pantani and 13th in his first Classic, Il Lombardia. His points in the season-long Ciclismo Cup series in Italy helped secure Androni Giocattoli the team ranking, earning them an automatic wildcard invitation to the 2018 Giro d'Italia.
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Bernal accomplished all this before turning 21 on January 13 next year but told La Gazzetta dello Sport that he is not concerned about stepping up to WorldTour level with Team Sky or about comparisons on social media to Quintana.
"Writing on Twitter that Bernal is the next Quintana is easy. Doing it is a whole lot different. But I've faith in my ability and that I can become a good rider," he told Italian journalist Ciro Scognamiglio during an interview.
Bernal's big numbers
Androni Giocattoli team manager Gianni Savio spotted Bernal in South America after noting his results in the junior mountain bike world championship. He is convinced that Bernal can develop into a Grand Tour contender.
'Team Sky aren't extraterrestrials'
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