Irishman feeling much better after difficult season
After a frustrating 2010 season, Irish pro Philip Deignan is aiming to get back on track via a contract with the RadioShack team. The 27 year old is understood to have agreed a one year deal with the US ProTour squad, and will start planning his racing programme when he gets to the first training camp.
Deignan has competed with the Cervélo Test Team for the past two seasons. He had a very strong first year, with a number of important results such as fifth on a stage and seventh overall in the Vuelta a Castilla y Leon, fourth on stage one of the Tour of Ireland, fifth on stage 14 of the Giro d’Italia and eighth in the Giro del Mendrisiotto. But the clear highlight came in the Vuelta a España, where he won the stage to Avila and finished ninth overall.
2010 was less impressive, as the Donegal rider started the season behind schedule due to a winter injury, picked up a virus and never got on track. He was forced to sit out what would have been his first Tour de France and while he started the Vuelta a España, he withdrew from the race on stage 11. His frustration was compounded by the news that the Cervélo Test Team was coming to an end, thus rendering redundant the final year of his contract.
Deignan is understood to have agreed terms with RadioShack several weeks ago but, in the absence of a team announcement, he declined to comment on his plans for 2011.
However he told VeloNation that he is pleased with how things have been going for him. Importantly, he sounds increasingly confident that he has turned the page.
“I have just been resting up recently, but I started back training this week,” he said. “I’m feeling a lot better and am looking forward to getting going again. The problem was a reoccurrence of viral infections due to my immune system being so run down. I am feeling much better now.”
Deignan is currently back at home in Donegal and is easing back into activity. “We are still only in October, so there is no point in going crazy,” he explained, when asked about his training plans. “The first couple of weeks will be building up. At the moment I am just riding my bike, really.
“Right now, it’s just about getting back into the rhythm again. When we get into November, I’ll do more strength and endurance stuff and then take it from there.”
Deignan has a place in Girona and will head there if the weather turns nasty in Ireland. There were heavy snowfalls last winter and generally very cold temperatures, so he has the option of flying to Spain if necessary. Right now, he is likely to continue training in Donegal, gradually building up his fitness in advance of the first team training camp.
The RadioShack deal means that he will be one of four Irish ProTour riders in 2011. The others are Ag2r La Mondiale’s Nicolas Roche, Daniel Martin (Garmin-Transitions) and the newest pro signing, Matt Brammeier (HTC). There will also be a number of riders with the Continental An Post Grant Thornton M. Donnelly Sean Kelly team, putting the small country in a good position.