Rachel Neylan's passion for the Australian national championships and the green and gold is no secret. In 2018, though, there is a blue tinge to Neylan’s aspirations of converting past silver and bronze medals into gold on Sunday.
Created in 1980 under the Reynolds team, Movistar launched its first-ever women's team late last year with Neylan selected as one of the 10 riders in its inaugural roster. While a full team debut will have to wait until the 35-year-old returns to Europe, the honour of being the first rider to pull on a race number for the team is not lost on Neylan.
"It is a little bit of a different element because it is a new team but it is not just about me," Neylan told Cyclingnews ahead of the 104.4km. "It is about sending a message to the whole world that one of the world's biggest sporting brands has adopted a women's team and that has come from every facet of the organisation, including the biggest multimillion-dollar sponsors.
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“Tomorrow, pulling on the jersey and getting on that start line wearing Movistar is not about Rachel Neylan. It is about sending a message to the world about the progression of women's cycling and progression of women's sport on the global stage."
Silver in the 2015 road race and a string of early-season results saw Neylan ink a contract with Orica-AIS. After a little over two and a half seasons though, Neylan couldn't turn down the opportunity of becoming a member of the new Movistar team. The opportunity to be the first rider to race in the team colours was another important factor in putting pen to paper.
"The main thing everyone is looking at is the new kit, the big M and the bright blue and I am extraordinarily proud to be the first woman in the 38-year history of the team to wear this jersey," she said. "I am going to wear it with pride tomorrow and I see it as the first step of the next chapter of my career."
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