Having made a much bigger impact on the home scene this year, Mitchell McLaughlin has decided to race abroad next season and has landed a place with an international team.
He will swap his Four Masters CC colours for those of the Zappi Racing Team; a British squad with an international reach and Italian base.
Junior Irish riders Archie Ryan and Shay Donley have been riding for the squad this year.
It also has an U23 team and competes in races up to and including the Baby Giro.
Irish rider Ben Healy is another who has ridden for the team, spending his junior years there before moving to Le Col Wiggins this season.
Securing a place on the team for 2020 will involve McLaughlin relocating to Europe.
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And while aiming for a ride in the Baby
Giro, he will get a full year of international racing with his new team.
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That will see McLaughlin give up working
for the year and turn his attentions full time to racing for the first time.
His additional focus on the bike and a
higher standard of racing should combine to progress his form as he targets
international selection in his final year ay U23 level.
McLaughlin told stickybottle that along
with coach David McCann, the former pro rider and three-time Olympian, he sent
CVs to a number of teams and secured a place with Zappi Racing after approaching
that team.
The 21-year-old said he was looking
forward to stepping up to UCI races and also switching to full-time cycling for
the year.
McLaughlin began his season this year as
an A2 and took victory in the Cycleways Cup. He has since progressed to A1 and
has ridden well at that level.
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