Radio Cycling has reported that the road programme of the men’s Great Britain Cycling Team (GBCT) Senior Academy will close from 2024. The British Continental has heard similar reports from sources close to the team in recent days and weeks, coming at a time when British Cycling faces financial pressures across the board.
The closure of the GBCT road programme would in effect mean no Great Britain team at important Nations Cup races such as the Tour de l’Avenir, and it could also prevent Great Britain from fielding a team at races such as the Tour of Britain.
Geraint Thomas, Mark Cavendish, Ian Stannard and a number of British treasures are all products of the GBCT Senior Academy programme. Until recently, the GBCT Senior Academy’s men’s team’s road programme was as good, if not better, than any development team. In 2019, for example, the team did 59 UCI road race days – including the Baby Giro, the Tour de l’Avenir, and the Tour of Britain – as well as running European training camps, and competing in domestic races and Belgium kermesses.
Ethan Hayter wins stage 3 of the 2019 Tour de l’Avenir. Image: Tour de l’Avenir
We dubbed the squad ‘the seventh team‘ that year because its programme and resources were as good as any trade team around. That season the squad included Ethan Vernon, Fred Wright and Matt Walls – all now WorldTour riders. Ethan Hayter, who was on the British Cycling Podium Programme, was also a regular on the team, while Tom Pidcock – a TRINITY Racing rider at the time – was drafted into the GB squad for key races such as the Tour de l’Avenir.
In short, the men’s GBCT Senior Academy team played a central role in the development of the current crop of British road talent in the WorldTour. The squad lived, trained and raced together as a team. The riders forged close bonds which will last a lifetime. Just look at Geraint Thomas leading our Cavendish in the last stage of the Giro this year for evidence of that.
This year, though, the status of the team ‘evolved’. Riders on the Senior Academy were asked to find their own road teams, while the road programme was also cut back, according to Cycling Weekly. The rationale was that today’s young talents would prefer – and benefit from – a set-up which allowed them to ride with top development teams like Groupama-FDJ and Development Team DSM (á la Jake Stewart), while still enjoying support from GBCT and having the opportunity to race in Nations Cup races.
The result was that the six riders on this year’s programme are now scattered across different trade teams. Josh Giddings is with the Lotto DSTNY Development Team, Jack Brough is in France with the amateur team AVC Aix-en-Provence, Josh Charlton is at Saint Piran, Noah Hobbs joined the Groupama-FDJ Continental team, and Dylan Hicks signed Development Team DSM. Ross Birrell, meanwhile, found himself teamless after his AT85 Pro Cycling team folded.
2022 AJ Bell Tour of Britain – Stage 4: Redcar to Duncombe Park, Helmsby, England – Team Great Britain with Connor Swift, Josh Charlton, Bob Donaldson, Josh Giddings, Jake Stewart and Sam Watson at the team presentation. Image: Alex Whitehead/SWpix.com
And 2024 looks set to be an even starker set-up. The GBCT is funded by UK Sport to win Olympic medals, but the road side of the GBCT Senior Academy typically also receives financial support from the British Cycling side of the business too. But we understand that because of British Cycling’s own financial pressures, the road programme faces a reported shortfall of £120,000-£150,000.
The road programme, therefore, looks likely to be closed completely, with the track side of the programme – where the medal focus is – continuing to be the priority for the GBCT. This would mean no Tour de l’Avenir, no Nations Cup races, no composite Great Britain at the Tour of Britain, no repeat of Bob Donalson’s and Lukas Nerurkar’s recent stage wins at the Orlen Nations Grand Prix.
We understand that no final decision has been reached yet, but it looks likely. One hope is that British Cycling might be able to meet the shortfall through alternative budgets. But the governing body is facing financial pressures across the board at present. The British Continental understands that staff at British Cycling are bracing themselves for a round of redundancies this year, and other programmes are facing cuts. In short, it is difficult to envisage a better outcome for the GBCT Senior Academy’s road programme at this stage when cuts are required across British Cycling.
In response to this story, Tom Stanton, Head of GBCT Performance Pathways, said:
“Within the Great Britain Cycling Team, we are currently finalising plans to evolve the existing Senior Academy Endurance Programme in response to the changing sporting landscape, and move to a model that forges stronger relationships with pro teams to effectively develop our country’s best riders both on the road and on the track.
“The proposed framework aligns with what we are already seeing across other nations, to positive effect, and the work we have done to support our men’s and women’s Podium Endurance Programme riders to explore extended road programmes with domestic and pro teams.
“While we are still working through the final details of the 2023/24 programme, we expect to continue to send British riders to the UEC Under-23 European Road Championships and UCI Road World Championships, and will confirm additional race opportunities in due course. Our Junior Academy programme will be unaffected by the changes.
“Along with many other national governing bodies, British Cycling is facing an incredibly challenging financial landscape which is impacting all areas of our work. However, we remain as committed as ever to supporting the development of talented bike riders across the disciplines, providing them with the best possible platform for successful careers riding for Great Britain, professional teams, and at the Olympic and Paralympic Games.”
Updated: 3.21pm, 30 May 2023
Radio Cycling has reported that the road programme of the men’s Great Britain Cycling Team (GBCT) Senior Academy will close from 2024. The British Continental has heard similar reports from sources close to the team in recent days and weeks, coming at a time when British Cycling faces financial pressures across the board.
The closure of the GBCT road programme would in effect mean no Great Britain team at important Nations Cup races such as the Tour de l’Avenir, and it could also prevent Great Britain from fielding a team at races such as the Tour of Britain.
Geraint Thomas, Mark Cavendish, Ian Stannard and a number of British treasures are all products of the GBCT Senior Academy programme. Until recently, the GBCT Senior Academy’s men’s team’s road programme was as good, if not better, than any development team. In 2019, for example, the team did 59 UCI road race days – including the Baby Giro, the Tour de l’Avenir, and the Tour of Britain – as well as running European training camps, and competing in domestic races and Belgium kermesses.
We dubbed the squad ‘the seventh team‘ that year because its programme and resources were as good as any trade team around. That season the squad included Ethan Vernon, Fred Wright and Matt Walls – all now WorldTour riders. Ethan Hayter, who was on the British Cycling Podium Programme, was also a regular on the team, while Tom Pidcock – a TRINITY Racing rider at the time – was drafted into the GB squad for key races such as the Tour de l’Avenir.
In short, the men’s GBCT Senior Academy team played a central role in the development of the current crop of British road talent in the WorldTour. The squad lived, trained and raced together as a team. The riders forged close bonds which will last a lifetime. Just look at Geraint Thomas leading our Cavendish in the last stage of the Giro this year for evidence of that.
This year, though, the status of the team ‘evolved’. Riders on the Senior Academy were asked to find their own road teams, while the road programme was also cut back, according to Cycling Weekly. The rationale was that today’s young talents would prefer – and benefit from – a set-up which allowed them to ride with top development teams like Groupama-FDJ and Development Team DSM (á la Jake Stewart), while still enjoying support from GBCT and having the opportunity to race in Nations Cup races.
The result was that the six riders on this year’s programme are now scattered across different trade teams. Josh Giddings is with the Lotto DSTNY Development Team, Jack Brough is in France with the amateur team AVC Aix-en-Provence, Josh Charlton is at Saint Piran, Noah Hobbs joined the Groupama-FDJ Continental team, and Dylan Hicks signed Development Team DSM. Ross Birrell, meanwhile, found himself teamless after his AT85 Pro Cycling team folded.
And 2024 looks set to be an even starker set-up. The GBCT is funded by UK Sport to win Olympic medals, but the road side of the GBCT Senior Academy typically also receives financial support from the British Cycling side of the business too. But we understand that because of British Cycling’s own financial pressures, the road programme faces a reported shortfall of £120,000-£150,000.
The road programme, therefore, looks likely to be closed completely, with the track side of the programme – where the medal focus is – continuing to be the priority for the GBCT. This would mean no Tour de l’Avenir, no Nations Cup races, no composite Great Britain at the Tour of Britain, no repeat of Bob Donalson’s and Lukas Nerurkar’s recent stage wins at the Orlen Nations Grand Prix.
We understand that no final decision has been reached yet, but it looks likely. One hope is that British Cycling might be able to meet the shortfall through alternative budgets. But the governing body is facing financial pressures across the board at present. The British Continental understands that staff at British Cycling are bracing themselves for a round of redundancies this year, and other programmes are facing cuts. In short, it is difficult to envisage a better outcome for the GBCT Senior Academy’s road programme at this stage when cuts are required across British Cycling.
In response to this story, Tom Stanton, Head of GBCT Performance Pathways, said:
“Within the Great Britain Cycling Team, we are currently finalising plans to evolve the existing Senior Academy Endurance Programme in response to the changing sporting landscape, and move to a model that forges stronger relationships with pro teams to effectively develop our country’s best riders both on the road and on the track.
“The proposed framework aligns with what we are already seeing across other nations, to positive effect, and the work we have done to support our men’s and women’s Podium Endurance Programme riders to explore extended road programmes with domestic and pro teams.
“While we are still working through the final details of the 2023/24 programme, we expect to continue to send British riders to the UEC Under-23 European Road Championships and UCI Road World Championships, and will confirm additional race opportunities in due course. Our Junior Academy programme will be unaffected by the changes.
“Along with many other national governing bodies, British Cycling is facing an incredibly challenging financial landscape which is impacting all areas of our work. However, we remain as committed as ever to supporting the development of talented bike riders across the disciplines, providing them with the best possible platform for successful careers riding for Great Britain, professional teams, and at the Olympic and Paralympic Games.”
Featured image: Alex Whitehead/SWpix.com
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