No Tour de France for outspoken Kiwi rider
Bennett: It’s a hard one to sit out but best for the future of achieving long-term goal
George Bennett’s career is set to keep Kiwi cycling fans absorbed for years. However, they might need patience before he fully blooms. The 28-year-old rider was underwhelmed with his eighth placing on the Giro d’Italia, despite the result being the country’s best Grand Tour finish.
“Originally, I had bigger plans, especially with how I rode in the first week when I thought something bigger might be possible. But some factors were out of my control with a few mechanical problems. We could say it’s par,” Bennett told Radio Sport.
“The last three weeks we went all day, every day. I’ll look back fondly, but it does a bit of damage to the body.”
Bennett surpassed his 10th on the Vuelta a Espana in 2016. He has now competed on nine grand tours and completed six.
But a warning for insomniacs captivated by Tour de France action in July: Bennett will be absent as he plots a training path to the Vuelta, starting August 25.
“It’ll be hard to sit that one out, but as a long term goal [for 2019] it’s the best option.
“This year I decided it’s better to do the Giro and Vuelta, but the Tour de France is why I ride a bike. What I’m learning in these races will be invaluable for what we’ll need on that tour.
“I had no trouble high in the mountains, but I was bleeding time in sprints which you can’t do if you want to be a serious Grand Tour contender.”
Bennett says they have gained key knowledge on his capabilities over the last month.
“It’s good to know you can suffer when every part of your body’s saying you shouldn’t be doing it.
“In the non-cycling world there’s so much focus on the Tour de France but the Giro field was a lot stronger than my two Tours de France. It just doesn’t have the same media exposure from the outside world.
“I particularly enjoyed racing up Mt Etna in Sicily where I had the sort of super legs and form I had hoped to hold through the whole tour . . . and the crowds — you couldn’t see anything but people.”
In addition to pedalling power, Bennett’s chutzpah helps him appeal to a fan base which embraces his callit-as-he-sees-it attitude.
In the first week riding in Israel his antitheist views loomed large when he expressed disappointment at the lack of Palestine recognition on the tour, given both countries assert claims over Jerusalem.
That included describing the Bible as “just a storybook that got out of hand”.
Then, when Bennett was informed by a team cameraman during a warm-down that Chris Froome had launched an attack 80km out and never got caught on the 19th stage, he quipped “did a Landis”. That referenced American Floyd Landis’ feats on stage 17 of the 2006 Tour de France when he won the stage with a breakaway from 120km out. Landis subsequently tested positive for a banned drug.
After a rest, Bennett will begin his Vuelta build-up. His aim, if everything “goes perfectly”, is a top-five finish.