Connor McConvey goes back to where it all started when he joins An Post Chain Reaction for next year. The 27-year-old Belfast man raced for Team 3M this year and says his motivation is greater than ever.
By Brian Canty
Connor McConvey has said his decision to move to An Post Chain Reaction for next season was down to the team’s proper structure, race programme and proven track record.
The 27-year-old Belfast man is one of four Irish men in the squad for next season thus far, alongside David Montgomery, Daniel Stewart and Jack Wilson.
“I actually had a few good offers to go elsewhere but to be honest, I wanted to go to a team with a nice structure and a professional set-up,” McConvey said.
“They’ve a great race programme, it’s a top organisation and it’s going to be great working with Sean (Kelly), Kurt (Bogaerts) and Nico (Eeckhout) again,” he added in reference to two previous stints in the team.
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McConvey raced for Belgian-based Continental squad Team 3M this year and though he performed well, he felt it wasn’t the right place for him to develop himself further.
“I started talking with An Post a couple of months ago at the tail-end of the season and going there was something of a mutual coming together,” he explained.
“It wasn’t an ideal scenario at 3M. There were a lot of politics behind the scenes and it didn’t end up in a good place for me or the team but the bottom line was I knew I wanted to get out of there.
“The programme with An Post is good and its changed a lot since I was there previously; they’re doing a lot of stages races, and good stages races.
“They’ll be the big goals for me along with the spring classics in Belgium. I know what I can and can’t do.
“I’m at the point in my career where I’m mature enough to handle Belgium so to say I’m motivated would be an understatement.”
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McConvey in the colours of An Post-Chainreaction leading the Rás up Mamore Gap in Donegal four years ago (Photo by Sportsfile)
An Post Chain Reaction have seen the likes of Sam Bennett, Matt Brammeier, Owain Doull, Andy Fenn and Gediminas Bagdonas come through its ranks and go on to bigger teams.
And McConvey feels he too can move up a tier for 2017, provided he gets a decent run.
“An Post is a great shop window and I still feel I haven’t got the most out of myself so I just want to try and do that," he said.
“I’ll be basing myself in Girona and training full-time for the winter. I’m at the stage of my career where I know what I need to do.
"I feel I haven’t got the most amount out of myself in races so I’ll just continue to try and get that out.”
With it being an Olympic year next year and the course in Rio suited to climbers, McConvey has reason to believe his long wait for an Irish elite jersey is within his grasp.
“The Olympics and the Worlds are all up in the air. They’re outside my control. All I have to do is focus on myself and the team.
“There’s no use saying I want to go if I don’t compete in the meantime. I have to aim to move up and to do that I need results.”
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