LUKE PLAPP

The Australian time trial sensation who has thundered onto the cycling scene

Who’s Luke Plapp? He’s a 20-year-old from Melbourne, Australia, who stunned the field at the Aussie National Championships time trial, beating defending champion Luke Durbridge by 43 seconds on the 37.5km course. At the road race days later, he put in a serious attack that put Team BikeExchange’s riders in trouble, before he eventually finished 17th.

Wow! Has he come from nowhere?

Luke has been riding for the Australian track cycling team for the past couple of years, and should be going to the Tokyo Olympics this summer, if everything goes to plan. He also won the National Champs time trial at both junior and under-23 level, so this is just the latest step in a promising career.

How has he performed on the road?

He has been racing in the Australian National Road Series for InForm TMX Make, along with his track training. He impressed at the Santos Festival of Cycling, the domestic replacement for the Tour Down Under, where he finished second overall. The young Melburnian attacked alone on stage 2 and soloed to a good victory, having been on his own for 10km. On stage 3, when Richie Porte took his usual victory on Willunga Hill, Luke was the only rider who could stick with Porte, the man who came third at last year’s Tour de France.

What’s next?

Tim Decker, his coach, told Procycling that they have discussed going professional next year, following this year’s Olympics. In an interview with CyclingTips, Luke said that he’d had interest from five WorldTour teams following his performance in the Festival of Cycling, so one can only imagine how much interest there is in him now. Post-Tokyo, if it happens, it is not beyond the realms of possibility that we will see Luke riding professionally this year.

What kind of rider is he?

Well he’s obviously good at endurance and time trial events, but he might be more than that. Luke has said that GC riding is on his radar, and his ride at the Festival of Cycling hints that he could be more than just a flat-track bully.