Dutch squad signs talented Australian
Following a similar path as to world under 23 champion Michael Matthews, Rohan Dennis will don the blue and orange colours of the Rabobank team next season. The 20 year old is, like his compatriot, moving from the Jayco team to the Dutch squad, although he will compete with the Continental team rather than the Elite setup.
The 20 year old Australian talent is regarded as a big bet for the future, with many strong performances to his name thus far. He clocked up fifth place in the under 23 world time trial championship last September and was part of the victorious team pursuit squad at the track worlds in March. In addition to that, he also took a number of other good results, including victory on two stages plus the overall in the Tour of Geelong, best young rider in the International Thuringen-Rundfahrt, plus second in the time trial and fourth overall in the Oympias Tour.
Performances such as those attracted Rabobank’s attention and the technical director Erik Breukink believes that he is a very good acquisition. “Rohan Dennis is an exceptional talent with potential,” he said. “He will get the time to progress in the Continental Team.” That’s reassuring for Dennis as it shows that there won’t be pressure put on him right away.
Dennis had originally been expected to be part of the Pegasus Sports team in 2011, having signed a deal with the squad vying to land Australia’s ProTeam licence. However it was turned down for both a ProTeam and Pro Continental team licence, shaking things up.
That was bad for Pegasus, but has worked out well for Rabobank’s continental squad. Director sportif Piet Kuijs is pleasantly surprised that he came on board at this late stage. “This is unexpected addition to the team,” he said. “We expect to give Rohan the right environment and program to develop himself.”
The Continental squad is a feeder team for the Elite Rabobank setup and if Dennis rides strongly, he could well find himself with a ProTeam contract for 2012.