Julien Vermote
Belgian rider Julien Vermote may be out of contract at present but the 31-year is not giving up on his hopes of securing a new pro deal. Indeed, he is now embarking on his second one-man independent warm weather training camping in Calpe, southern Spain; staying in an Air BnB and looking after himself. Vermote has decided to keep acting like a pro rider, and doing everything he would be doing if he was part of a team. He believes one he stops acting like a pro he’ll stop being one. His hope is to plough on with his pre-season preparation so he’ll be picked up by a team for this year. It is also not unprecedented for pro riders to lose their place in the sport but to race on as an independent rider, in national events, and then secure another contract for the following year. Vermote began his pro career in 2011 with Quickstep Cycling Team ad he remained with the Belgian WorldTour squad for seven years before moving to Dimension Data for 2018 and 2019. Last year he secured a one-year contract with Cofidis but when the Spanish team did not renew him he found himself without a place in a team for the coming season. He’s currently in Calpe doing his two-week training camp having already been there last month for a first solo camp. "It has been a long road and a long search," Vermote told Sporza after that first camp. "It's not nice if you're still looking for a team at the end of December. But look, that's the situation now and I have to deal with it."
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Sam Bennett
Sam Bennett has been setting out his plans and hopes for the year ahead at his team’s training camp in Spain, telling journalists via a video link team interview that Milan-Sanremo and the Tour de France were high on his agenda for the coming year. Bennett took two stages and the green jersey at the Tour last year and with more opportunities for sprinters in this year’s edition of the race, he can feel confident of taking more victories. Milan-Sanremo is also an obvious fit for him as it is the monument that sprinters have the best chance of winning; Mark Cavendish and Arnaud Demare both having previously won the race. However, Bennett has also revealed he will aim for Gent Wevelgem; the Belgian classic set to be contested on March 28th, the weekend after Milan-Sanremo. The fact the Carrick-on-Suir man has his sights set on both races will give the Irish plenty of interest for the spring classics, with Ryan Mullen also set to form an important component of his Trek-Segafredo team’s classics line-up.
Stephen Clancy
Limerick’s finest, Stephen Clancy, is preparing for his
ninth season in the pro peloton with US ProContinental team Novo Nordisk.
Clancy’s career has taken him all over the world, riding pro races in Asia, the
US, Europe and Africa. His schedule in the last few years has been tilted a bit
more towards Asian stage races and the Covid-19 pandemic hit him and his team
hard last season. The Irishman only got to ride two UCI-ranked races, both in
Greece. He’s made a good start to the New Year already, unveiling his team’s
nicest kit to date – a darker blue and new yellow replacing the older white and
blue kit. We’ll catch up with Clancy shortly for an interview.
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