Tadej Pogačar, Mathieu van der Poel, Toms Skujiņs; these are riders we might have expected to see at the pointy end of the World Championships. Proven talented one-day racers – Pogačar a three-time Il Lombardia champion, Van der Poel a three-time Tour of Flanders winner, Skujiņs a podium finisher at Strade Bianche this year – the fact that they relished Zurich's punchy, attritional course comes as no surprise. Ben O’Connor, on the other hand, has never finished a World Championship road race and, as a seasoned general classification rider, came close to winning the Vuelta a España just over a month ago. How did the Australian rider end up with a silver medal?
“I guess it was just timing, which was my only plan to get on the podium here,” a bemused and delighted O’Connor commented after the race. “I picked a good moment as my only big shot off the front of the race rather than chasing, sometimes it works like that in cycling, you can call it lucky or smart but it paid off and I’m a happy man.”
While television pictures didn’t quite catch the moment of O’Connor’s last minute attack to break away from the group of chasers behind eventual race winner Pogačar, it’s clear that the Australian rider’s tactical instinct paid dividends after a gruelling, long day on the bike. Perhaps thanks to his engine and endurance as a Grand Tour rider, the 28-year-old managed to keep a clear enough head to play his trump card in the final throes of the 273 kilometre race.
Image: Zac Williams/SWpix.com
“If you put your nose in the wind on that course, you have to be sure you're actually doing damage as you get quite a lot of draft,” O’Connor explained. “Jai [Hindley] and myself played it out well on the last few laps as I didn’t have to chase. We’re not a favourite and in the end we played our cards really well. I tried to ride to my strengths and recover and only played a card when I really had to.”
O’Connor’s excitement about the potential doors this result opens for him as a one-day racer in the future was palpable as he spoke about his ride in Switzerland. Historically, his Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale Team has backed O’Connor as a general classification rider, sending him to ride for leader’s jerseys in races like the Giro and the Vuelta. However, with a move to Team Jayco Alula in 2025, is it possible that we’ll see O’Connor tackling a slightly different calendar next season?
“I’m in pretty good company. I've done plenty of races with these guys in the past and will do more in future as well,” the Australian rider smiled. “I'm happy to be there with them on the podium and put together a really good one-day race as I haven't done it a lot, it's opening a whole new can of worms.”
Image: Chris Auld/SWpix.com
In his characteristically understated tone, O’Connor described his thought process simply when asked about how he rode throughout the race.
“Pogačar’s move was earlier than I thought but not unexpected. Belgium took control, so credit to Tadej for holding the gap as it was a really hard race,” O’Connor said. “For me, coming across with Mathieu [Van der Poel] and Remco [Evenepoel] was the hardest moment of the race from my side. The final was just timing, using all you have left for one kilometre to get the gap and bob’s your uncle.”
While O’Connor played down the tactical brilliance of his move in his press conference, his smile at the finish line said it all about what this race meant to him. To be sandwiched in between Pogačar and Van der Poel on the podium (the current and former world champions) shows clear promise for the future, and it’s likely that Jayco will want to capitalise on this next season. For now, however, O’Connor seemed intent on living in the moment after one of the most impressive rides of his career.
“I’m so happy to come second,” he grinned. “I’m just gonna enjoy it.”
Cover image: Zac Williams/SWpix.com
