Jlt-condor

Great Britain No. of riders: 14 Under 26: 8 Over 35: 0 Key stat: Seven of the team’s 11 wins last year came courtesy of Antipodean riders.

How was the off-season? In terms of transfers, the impressive displays of the team’s Aussie duo Brenton Jones and Alex Frame were enough to earn them promotions up the pro cycling hierarchy, the former to French outfit Delko-marseille Provence KTM, and the latter to the Worldtour with Trek-segafredo, while Russell Downing also moves on.

However, all that was overshadowed in December by the tragic death of Jason Lowndes, who was hit by a car while out on a training ride in Australia, aged just 23. Lowndes had only signed for Jlt-condor a couple of months before as the team’s new sprinter, and will be sorely missed.

Biggest challenge Having won three of the past four editions of the Tour Series, Jlt-condor have long been established as a dominant force on the domestic circuit — the next step will be to see whether they can make an impression at a higher level. Jones managed to do so last year in the sprints of the Tour of Britain, even finishing third on the stage to Cheltenham. With him gone, though, any chance of such repeat success will probably be dependent on the younger squad members breaking through.

Man on the spot The team must not put too much pressure on new signing Ollie Wood. Any young British rider who lands as eye-catching a result as fourth at the under-23 Worlds road race is going to attract a lot of attention.

Ones to watch Germain Burton is another promising young new signing, having only recently returned to cycling after studying biomechanics and personal training for a year. The team can rely on the experienced Ian Bibby for results.