Eddie Dunbar crashed at Paris-Nice and was forced out of the race, with his return to racing following that crash in mid March still not fixed (Photo: Billy Ceusters)
By Shane Stokes
Eddie Dunbar has been out of action for quite some time, last racing in Paris-Nice in early March and crashing there. Over two months on from that fall, his team has said there is no clear idea of when he will next pin on a number.
“Eddie is training,” Pinarello Q36.5 Procycling’s Head of Performance Kurt Bogaerts told Sticky Bottle in recent days. “There is no set date to return. When he is fit we will make a plan on racing.”
Bogaerts, previously the manager of the An Post Sean Kelly team and then a DS with Team Sky, has a long-running association with Irish cycling. His work with the Kelly team saw the Belgian guide many Irish riders, Sam Bennett included, and he also helped out with some national team campaigns.
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Bogaert’s time with Team Sky overlapped with Eddie Dunbar’s stint there, but their paths diverged when Dunbar moved to Team Jayco AlUla prior to 2023 season.
Bogaerts accompanied Tom Pidcock over to the Q36.5 Pro Cycling Team two years later, having coached the Briton for several years.
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Dunbar moved to that team over the winter after three years with Jayco.
His first two years with the Australian squad featured big highlights, including seventh overall in the 2023 Giro and two stage victories in the 2024 Vuelta, but he was also hampered on several occasions due to crashes.
It was hoped that a change of scene might get his career back up to full speed but he unfortunately fell close to the end of stage 2 of Paris-Nice on March 9th.
While he was able to finish that day and to ride the follow day’s team time trial, Dunbar withdrew prior to stage 4 due to his injuries.
The Corkman would ideally be race fit in time for the Tour de France. However with no events yet scheduled, it is unclear if this is realistic or if the Vuelta a España is a more likely Grand Tour this year.
Either way, he is long overdue some better luck and will hopefully have a strong end to the season.
