Philip Deignan is back in training after a broken collar bone and sounds ready to go for his first season with Team Sky next year
By Gerard Cromwell
Philip Deignan is back in training following a broken collarbone at the Tour of Britain and the affable Letterkenny rider admits he is chomping at the bit at the prospect of riding with Team Sky next year.
“I’ve had a while to get used to the idea because we tied things up quite early this year,” says Deignan as he sips coffee in a Dublin restaurant.
“It sounds a bit cheesy but it’s always been a dream to ride for them. It’s probably the best run team in the world, the number one team in the world. There’s nothing left to chance.”
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“You’re looked after very carefully and there’s no stone left unturned with any aspect of your training or diet or anything. I did a training camp with them back in July and I know quite a few riders so the set up is not going to be entirely new. I think being so well looked after will be a new thing for me and I think I will improve for it.”
Deignan has had a stellar season stateside this year, winning the Tour of the Gila for his UnitedHealthcare squad before some solid rides against WorldTour opposition at the Tours of Colorado, Utah and the US Pro Cycling Challenge.
His consistency this season will see him step back up to the WorldTour next year and while he hasn’t been given a race programme yet, the experienced climber has his eyes firmly fixed on a fourth ride in the Giro d’Italia when it comes to Belfast in May.
“I don’t know what races I’ll be doing yet but I have a vague idea. I know they’re not going to send me to the Three days of De Panne, the Tour of Flanders or Paris-Roubaix because they know what kind of races suit me.”
“I’ll probably be doing races like Paris-Nice, Tirreno-Adriatico or the Tour of Catalunya or something. Since I first heard about the Giro coming to Ireland last year, it’s been pretty exciting to think about the possibility of riding it, so hopefully the early part of the year will be centred around that.”
“It’s a huge ambition to go and ride, with the first three days in Ireland. That will be pretty special if I get selected. It will be one of the big objectives, if not the main objective for next season.”
“I took up cycling back in 1998 after I saw the Tour de France start in Dublin. It was funny. Four of us went down on the bus, which took four or five hours.”
“I was the only cycling fan, so the lads stayed inside smoking and playing pool on O’Connell Street while I stood out in the rain watching the race by myself. It was just this fascination I had with it. Now they’re all into sport and keeping fit.”
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“They’ve gone through the period of going mad and now they’re all settled down and they appreciate what I’ve achieved. But I could never have imagined then that I might get the chance to ride a Grand Tour in Ireland myself as a professional.”
Deignan knows that if he does go to the Giro with Sky he will relinquish the team leader role he held at UnitedHealthcare, reverting back to domestique duties and riding in support of team leaders Bradley Wiggins, Chris Froome or Richie Porte whenever the road rises.
“I’m actually really excited at that prospect,” he enthuses.
“I’ve ridden in big teams in the past where I’ve been a rider trying to support another rider but it’s very different when you go to the start of a race and your leader is the favourite to win that race or you have the jersey. There’s huge responsibility for a team to try and control a race when you have the jersey.”
“It’s going to be a really exciting challenge, very different to other teams. If I can have another consistent year, be injury free, healthy, and get a solid year under me and find my role in the team, which hopefully will be a good mountain domestique to help the guys in the mountains, I’ll be happy.”
“Realistically, I won’t have the opportunity to win next year but I’ll get more satisfaction out of helping a big rider win a big race than me trying to scramble a top 10 somewhere.”
The one possible downfall on being selected to ride the Giro is that he would then likely miss out on a first start in the Tour de France next July.
“It’s still a big ambition,” he admits.
“It’s the biggest bike race in the world and probably the only one missing from my career so far. It’s huge. I say it doesn’t really matter that much but I think deep down it does, personally.”
“I just want to experience it. I don’t really care what other people think that I haven’t done it. I just want to do it for myself. Hopefully I’ll get the opportunity.”
“It’s not a 100pc success story, just because you join Sky. It’s not a guarantee. You still have to put in the hard work and still have to make the sacrifices but I’m going to go in there and take all the advice they have to try and get the most out of myself.”
“It will be a huge step up to ride for them next year but I feel I’ve matured a lot as a rider over the last couple of years and I’m ready for the challenge.”
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