From the array of young talent that Team Sky signed in the off-season, Egan Bernal stood out as the jewel in the crown. The Colombian had an outstanding 2017 season with impressive rides at Tirreno-Adriatico, Settimana Internazionale Coppi e Bartali and the Tour of the Alps, before a string of GC wins that culminated in victory in the Tour de l’Avenir in August.
By that time, Dave Brailsford had already waved his considerable check book in the direction of both Bernal and his then manager, Gianni Savio, but according to the rider, it was his mother who had the most significant say in where he ended up in 2018.
“We talked at the Giro and I talked with Dave. That was my first experience and my mom was with me,” Bernal told Cyclingnews on the eve of his debut with Team Sky at the Santos Tour Down Under.
ADVERTISEMENT
“She talked with Dave too. It was in English but we had a translator and my mom was really happy. She helped me decide to go to Sky. They were really friendly with her and you don’t expect that from the management of a team like Sky. It was nice.”
The deal was announced soon after Bernal’s victory in the Tour de l’Avenir and Team Sky certainly has a talented rider on their hands. Bernal made his start in mountain biking before Savio snapped him up and dropped him into the deep end at his Androni-Sidermec team.
In truth, Bernal could have picked from a number of WorldTour team, but his agent has placed a number of riders at Team Sky in the past. Bernal admits that the team comprises of a number of his heroes but his primary target this year is to develop and not become too wrapped up in the pressure and level of expectations on him.
You can read more at Cyclingnews.com
via Cyclingnews Latest News http://ift.tt/2mE2xCm
No comments:
Post a Comment