DEFENDING HIS TITLE
Robert Stannard ready for Gravel and Tar Classic
CYCLING: Wearing the yellow jersey on the final day of competition, Robert Stannard hoped it would be his to keep.
But it wasn’t to be. He now turns his sights to the Gravel and Tar Classic in Manawatu¯ on Saturday, a race he won last year.
Stannard was riding in the New Zealand Cycle Classic last week, a late entry into Team Skoda following the withdrawal of Joel Yates, when Yates was named to ride in the NZ National team.
Working diligently in each stage of the five-stage race, by the end of stage four, he was the tour leader. The 19-year-old from Palmerston North had one stage to go – 12 laps of a 10-kilometre circuit where each lap could look like Groundhog Day.
With his team staying close, protecting the leader, they ‘‘ran out of legs’’ early and pushed hard, but the NZ National team pushed harder.
Not a man of many words, Stannard picked up the general classification under-23 win and this week ‘‘restarts’’ his focus. ‘‘I was a bit annoyed at losing the yellow jersey, but this is a different race and I’ll have to play it completely differently having seen how strong the NZ team are.’’
He is defending his title as winner of last year’s Gravel and Tar race and it’s a race he knows well. ‘‘Everyone from Palmy trains round there. The gravel adds a different element, but it’s enjoyable – a fun race and good atmosphere’’.
Riding for the Cyclista team under an Australian flag, he is riding alongside fellow Australian Tom Green and New Zealanders Keagan Girdlestone, Roman van Uden and Oliver Young.
Although he knows all the riders in the team individually, they’ve never ridden together as a team before.
Underplaying how this might affect team tactics, he reckons they’ll ‘‘have a bit of a team talk before the race’’. ‘‘We’ll work out our own personal goals and combine them alongside our team goals.’’
With UCI 1.2 status, he is pleased with the prestige now afforded the event and the drawcard this has for riders. ‘‘It’s good for New Zealand cycling and brings stronger teams to the race,’’ he said.
Stannard is obviously a workhorse who quietly gets on with the job. He will soon head back to Australia and training with Continental team Michelton-bike Exchange, an under-23 development team for the World Tour. Meantime, there’s a team talk to have and a title to defend.