Bennett sets Kiwi fans into frenzy at Worlds

Oct 1st, 10.  George Bennett proved he is one of New Zealand's brightest stars today.  At the Worlds U23 road race the 20 year old impressed with his aggressive style of racing.

Bennett leading the World ©RoadCycling.co.nz

The Kiwis in the crowd were were going crazy, certain media in the crowd were shouting (oops), and after great support from teammate Shem Rodger, Bennett looked fresh and ready for action.  

The Nelson rider was flying.

He came into this race with fine form from a season racing in Europe and with the confidence of a stage win in the recent Tour of Tasmania.  

His plan was to attack the field in the second to last lap, and that's exactly what he did - much to the delight of the throngs of Kiwi supporters.

Bennett attacked again on the final lap, he knew he didn't have as much hope of a top placing in a bunch sprint, and drove hard to create a gap between him and the rest of the field.  

Unfortunately an uncooperative breakaway buddy stalled his chances of staying away.

"We had a really good gap and then he attacked me and shot himself in the foot," Bennett told RoadCycling.co.nz after the race.  

"We had a wicked gap and he ended up getting caught, and I ended up getting caught, but we could have done something good."

With 1km to go, Bennett had worked his way back into a great position and was ready for the uphill haul to the line.  

Bennett - today's Kiwi hero ©RoadCycling.co.nz

Matthews might have had the hometown advantage, but Bennett said his support was incredible too.  

He even went as far as to ask how many other George's there were in the race, he got so many shout outs around the course.  

The answer - there was only one George racing.  The cheers were all for the Kiwi.

"The support was great out there. The whole way I could hear my naming being called out, it was like racing in Nelson," he said.

Talking about the course, Bennett said it was very hard, but not as taxing as he had thought it would be.  He certainly didn't expect to get to the finish line with 46 rider hunting for the finish line.

Ben King's 100km breakaway from the start of the race, and his USA teammate's control of the chasing peloton, meant the pace was not as high as expected in the initial laps, but that just made the final two laps that much harder.

At first the peloton worked together to reel in King and a small group of chasers, but then it was every team to itself.

The NZ team being presented to the crowd ©RoadCycing.co.nz

New Zealand teammate Shem Rodgers (Cambridge) backed up his fine performance in the time trial on Wednesday with a strong ride in support of Bennett.  He finished 65th, +2:40.  

Fellow Kiwi Michael Vink did not finish, he pulled out in the second half of the race.

With many more years in the U23 category, Bennett will certainly be a rider to watch in the coming years.

Unfortunately, the peloton is unlikely to forget him after today's race!