Ben O'Connor experienced a dream season in 2018 when he found himself leading his Dimension Data team at the second-biggest race in the world in what was only his second year racing at WorldTour level.
However, last year's Giro d'Italia would end in devastating fashion for him when he crashed on stage 19 while in 12th place overall, and heading for an almost-certain top-10 position, just two days from the finish in Rome.
While just 22 years old last May, and having first raced a bike at the end of 2013, the Australian had experienced close to the pinnacle of professional cycling only to be brought back down to earth with a painful bump.
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Eight months on, it clearly still rankles. O'Connor comes across as a happy – and happy-go-lucky – young man who looks a little like he'd dream of one day riding for a WorldTour team if he hadn't already been riding for one for two seasons.
And while he chats easily and animatedly with Cyclingnews about his cycling life so far, his smile turns almost imperceptibly gritted when the conversation moves to discussing his 2018 Giro.
"I have massive regrets because it was my fault," he tells us. "I'd started to get really tired the day before, and so it had become – or should have become – about trying to control my decision-making. I didn't need to be that aggressive; Tom Dumoulin, Miguel Angel Lopez and Richard Carapaz were in front, and I'd already made up ground on Rohan Dennis, while Patrick Konrad and Pello Bilbao had been dropped. So I didn't need to panic – but I was still pushing."
Humble beginnings
Opportunities Down Under
Enjoying the off-season
Unfinished business
You can read more at Cyclingnews.com
via Cyclingnews Latest Interviews and Features http://www.cyclingnews.com/features/ben-oconnor-unfinished-business
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