Manager convinced the British team is on an upward curve
David Brailsford was on hand at the Tour team launch at Kew Gardens. (Image credit: Jeff Moore)
Dave Brailsford admitted that Team Sky has learnt valuable lessons during the last 18 months and used those experiences to make them stronger and more successful at this year’s Tour de France.
The Team Sky manager spoke to Cyclingnews after Edvald Boasson Hagen took the team's first ever stage win at the Tour de France.
Boasson Hagen in many ways personifies Team’s Sky development. The Norwegian was signed for the team's inaugural year in 2010 but struggled during that first season, as they collectively found it hard to keep pace in the world's biggest race. However a year on and the British team is unrecognisable to the one that started last year in Rotterdam with Boasson Hagen far more confident and assured of his ability both on and off the bike.
Brailsford highlighted that the team had been on an upward curve in recent months and came into the race in high spirits after Bradley Wiggins won the Criterium du Dauphine and the British national road race title.
With their first Tour de France stage win under their belt, Geraint Thomas still in the best young rider’s white and Wiggins sitting comfortably near the top of the standings, Brailsford also believes that the pressure for the team to prove themselves has eased.
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Daniel Benson was the Editor in Chief at Cyclingnews.com between 2008 and 2022. Based in the UK, he joined the Cyclingnews team in 2008 as the site's first UK-based Managing Editor. In that time, he reported on over a dozen editions of the Tour de France, several World Championships, the Tour Down Under, Spring Classics, and the London 2012 Olympic Games. With the help of the excellent editorial team, he ran the coverage on Cyclingnews and has interviewed leading figures in the sport including UCI Presidents and Tour de France winners.
