Australian climber Ben O'Connor's dreams of finishing in the top 10 of his very first Grand Tour literally came crashing down just two days out from the finish of last year's Giro d'Italia when the Dimension Data rider fell on the descent of the Col de Sestrière, breaking his collarbone and ending his race after almost three weeks of mature, consistent riding that saw him go into that 19th stage in 12th place overall.
Still just 23, and yet to finish a Grand Tour, O'Connor will nevertheless shoulder the responsibility of being the team's main hope for the overall classification at this year's Giro, and tells Cyclingnews from his base in Girona, Spain, that a similar performance to last year – with the added bonus of staying upright and making it to the finish in Verona – would make him very happy, while a top-10 finish would be the realistically achievable icing on the cake.
Cyclingnews: When we last spoke to you, at the Tour Down Under in January, you were still angry at yourself about your crash at last year's Giro, and said that perhaps you'd ridden overly aggressively when it looked as though you would quite easily have been inside the top 10 by the end of that stage, having dropped a number of rivals. Has anything changed?
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Ben O'Connor: I think that has kind of gone now, to be honest. So, no – it doesn't haunt me anymore! It's now completely about looking at what I'm going to do for this year's Giro. That's the only thing you can do, really. And if the best you can do is 10th or 15th overall, then, well, you've done your best. Of course, I still haven't actually finished a Grand Tour, so it would be lovely to actually finish one.
CN: Are you approaching this year's race in the same way as in 2018? Last year your performance seemed to be very much built on consistency, and on still being in contention in the final week.
BO'C: I know that way of riding suits me: that consistency, that longer grind. I would just like to do the same thing as last year, but finish this time. I know that doesn't sound very aggressive, but it's not like I won't try if I see, say, an opportunity to win a stage.
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via Cyclingnews Latest Interviews and Features http://www.cyclingnews.com/features/oconnor-aiming-high-once-more-at-giro-ditalia
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