George Bennett announces he is going pro

A pose Bennett hopes to have in Europe in the future ©RoadCycling.co.nz

Nov 11th, 11. George Bennett can finally announce he is a RadioShack Nissan Trek rider for the 2012 World Tour - the 21 year old talked exclusively to RoadCycling.co.nz about the news.

He knew a long time ago that Johan Bruyneel was looking at him for the 2012 season, but until today the Nelson rider was asked to keep the news quiet.

"I actually found out way back in July that they were interested in me for more than just the stagiare role, but riding as a stagiare was a great way to finish off the year and it gave me a taste of what is to come.

"It was a very long time to keep it quiet," he shared.

Bennett is quite different from New Zealand's other pro-tour riders - he is only 21 years old, a climber, and did not come to road cycling through a track programme.

The closest he has been to a track is warming up for Tour of Southland stage starts at Invercargill's ILT velodrome.

"I think it's good because there's no real pathway for guys who only ride road, but it's slowly forming. Young guys just need to roll the dice a little bit and get to Europe."

His own route to Europe and into the World Tour has been relatively short. In 2008 Bennett was riding on NZ's roads with local club Tasman Wheelers while also representing New Zealand at the UCI Mountain Bike World Championships.  

The following year he took off to France to race with amateur road team VCCM Morteau Montbenoit and earned a few French wins at Cat2 level - generally up the mountains. Bennett stepped up a level in 2010 racing for another French amateur team, CR4C Roanne, and while he did not get an international victory, he turned heads as the Best Young Rider at the Ronde de l'Isard UCI 2.2 tour.

Bennett started the year excited to be part of Trek Livestrong ©RoadCycling.co.nz

The change launched the young Kiwi into the world of pro-tour cycling. After racing alongside pro-tour teams in mid-season races, he was racing for them by season's end as a RadioShack stagiare. Now he is a full member of RadioShack Nissan Trek for 2012.

"I never really set time specific goals but I guess I had planned on doing two years with Livestrong. 21 is young to be there, but I won't be the first 21 year old in the pro tour.

"I'm happy, it means I have a lot of time to achieve my goals," he said about his own expectations.

On December 3rd, Bennett is joining his teammates for a ten day training camp in Spain. He is living the dream of so many Kiwi cyclists, something which is just starting to sink in.

"Being asked these questions is really the first time I've thought about it. To me it's huge and I am really proud of it, but it's hard to stop and feel all of the excitement at once.

"Coming home has made me feel a little bit more buzzed about it as well. I'm really happy, especially because there are so many people that have helped me so much over the years."

Along with the excitement comes some nerves, with Bennett saying he has had to move his sights up a little higher.

"I'm working on stepping up because getting a contract is only step one of being a professional," he acknowledged.

The contract with RadioShack Nissan Trek was not the only offer Bennett had to consider, he also had opportunities present themselves from old and new teams. To him, however, there was only one choice.

"At the end of the day I couldn't look past RadioShack Nissan Trek. They gave me such a good opportunity with Livestrong this year and I have already worked with a number of the staff and know what a well drilled outfit it is.

"I think loyalty may be a rare thing in professional cycling and Radioshack showed loyalty to their development team and vice versa.  

Bennett warming up on his Trek at the PowerNet Tour of Southland ©RoadCycling.co.nz

"Between the mechanics, directors and other staff there are so many yellow jerseys and world titles and I think that is the kind of guidance a guy like me will need to help me step up.

"I also believe we have the best equipment and support staff to make me go fast."

With team mergers and demises, 2012 has proved to be one of the hardest years to get a pro-contract but Bennett's age worked to his advantage.

"Being a neo-pro helped me a lot. Each team must have two new riders and so the other collapses didn't have too much effect on me.

"Being a climber and coming through the Livestrong programme meant I wasn't such a gamble like some other neos. The RadioShack / Leopard Trek merger made me a little bit nervous, but they were true to their word."

As a neo-pro, Bennett will take whatever race opportunities he is given as he learns the pro-tour ropes. He expects to focus on week long stage races, ones with mountains and time trials where he can excel. 

Bennett is not getting ahead of himself, he did not want to put a timeframe on when he might be on the Tour de France start line.

"To be honest, with the current roster to get on the Tour de France team you need to be amongst the best tour riders in the world. The Tour de France is my dream and a goal on the 'one day' list but I'm not putting a timeframe on it, it's not even on my radar at this stage.

"I have other goals that I need to focus on, mainly settling in well and establishing myself as a good teammate and making steady progress as they teach me the ropes."

When asked if there were one or two riders in the team he is particularly looking forward to working with and learning from, Bennett singled out Andy Schleck and Jens Voigt.

"I think Andy Shleck is obviously an amazing rider and a nice guy from my experiences, and Jens Voigt - seriously funny guy with so much experience and wisdom that I can learn from."

After the training camp in early December, Bennett will be back in New Zealand for Christmas before heading to Europe in mid January. He has not yet confirmed where he will be based, either Girona in Spain, or perhaps Southern France.

Although he is in New Zealand for the Elite Nationals, they will not be a focus this year.  As a pro-tour rider Bennett is no longer eligible to race U23 and while he feels he will be in an 'ok' condition, he does not think he will be strong enough to win, especially if he wants to survive the rest of the season.

Congratulations George!

Related - 2011/2012 team roster transfers and announcements