They’re battered and bruised but ARA Pro Racing Sunshine Coast still expects to be a serious threat at the National Road Racing Championships.
The continental racing squad was rocked in December, when some of their key riders were involved in a serious crash at Tweed Heads.
Cameron Scott suffered a fractured pelvis, while Ryan Thomas and Daniel De Domenico were among the injured.
The departures of Taj Jones and Alastair MacKellar to world tour outfit Israel Start-Up Nation also left the team without two of its rising stars.
But Australian Cycling Academy managing director Ben Kersten said PRSC can still provide a strong showing at the national championships at Ballarat, particularly after a promising display at the Santos Tour Down Under in South Australia last week.
“We lost a bunch of riders with that horrible accident, so we were sort of down to a skeleton crew, but they stood up well at the tour and it was a great warm-up for the nationals,” Kersten said.
“Nearly everyone will be racing, albeit some will be under-cooked.”
Huge crash and riders leaving
Scott won’t be there, while he continues his recovery at home in Adelaide.
“They (doctors) said he won’t be walking for a few months, after he was helicoptered from the crash,” Kersten said.
“But we saw him last week and he’s already walking without crutches, so he’s making a phenomenal recovery. We’re just happy to see him up and about, but it might be a long process before he’s winning again.
“A couple of other guys have had surgeries and will be underdone (for nationals).”
That includes their captain on the road, Ryan Thomas, who just got back on the bike last week after sustaining a fractured wrist.
Kersten said the team almost got through 2020 unscathed.
“We were working well as a team and doing training camps and the guys were excited to race and then all of a sudden anything that could go wrong did go wrong and we lost half our crew,” he said.
Scott, travelling at about 60km/hr, did not have time to avoid a collision with the back of a stopped motorbike and a mass crash ensued, with numerous riders injured.
Meanwhile, the exit of Jones and MacKellar to a world tour team is a double edged sword.
Pro Racing Sunshine Coast’s focus is to develop riders so they do sign with big professional teams, but it’s left them without two of Australia’s best talents.
They’ve joined Israel Start-Up Nation, which also boasts four-time Tour De France winner Chris Froome.
Despite the injuries and departures, Kersten said team riders, including sidelined ones, have remained committed.
“They’ve focused on their studies or rehab and they’re okay,” he said.
“Cam got the worst of it and he’s now more motivated than ever, trying to ride his bike against doctors’ orders.”
The contenders
The team will rely on the likes of Paralympic hopeful Alastair Donohoe and Angus Lyons to shake up the men’s road race.
Lyons is a relatively new addition to the team.
“He specialises in long breakaways and hilly courses and he’s got some good form, so I’m tipping Angus will have a good crack,” Kersten said.
Ruby Roseman-Gannon could press significant claims in the women’s road race and criterium.
She won the under-23 criterium last year and comes into the event having finished third overall in the Tour Down Under. The Adelaide-based rider also claimed the sprinter’s jersey.
“I think with the form she’s got at the moment, hopefully she’ll be wanting to go one better at nationals this year in the criterium, among the elites,” Kersten said.
“And the way she went up Willunga Hill (at the Tour Down Under) she’ll be able to get around Mount Buninyong, so I think she’ll be really focused on the road race as well.”
Anya Louw could fare well in the under-23 ranks.
“She was really good support for Ruby in the Tour Down Under. She was riding for Ruby the whole week and still managed a good finish overall (12th).
“She really stepped up and she’s got the form in 40-degree heat on hilly courses.”
Alexandra Martin-Wallace is one to watch in the criterium.
“She is super-fast,” Kersten said.
The under-23 men’s action should be hotly contested, and ARA Pro Racing Sunshine Coast could be in the mix.
“Especially in the criterium,” Kersten said.
“It’s something we’ve always been good at and we’ve got Matt Rice and Craig Wiggins.”
The latter is a new addition to the team, having moved from Perth.
“And in the road race we’ve got the winner of the under-19 race last year, Declan Trezise, who has moved into the 23s. He’s a bit of a wildcard because of his age but he’s proven on that course and has a good support crew.”
The championships run from Wednesday until February 7.
