Sky Procycling coach assesses Swift, Appollonio and Boasson Hagen
Describing Mark Cavendish as the fastest rider in cycling, the Manxman’s coaching advisor Rod Ellingworth has emphasised that he wants to do much more in the sport than winning bunch sprints.
He said that because of this, Cavendish is likely to be very careful in relation to his decision about which team to compete for in the future. He is currently reaching the end of a multi-year contract with HTC Highroad, and must decide whether to stay there or to head to one of the many others who want his signature.
“He wants to do so much more in cycling, making a long-lasting name,” said Ellingworth, who has worked with him for many years. “Not just a case of , ‘yeah, he was a good sprinter.’ That is why he rode Roubaix and Flanders. It may be a dream, but he would love to perform in those sort of races in the future.
“It may be dream, but we’d like to follow our dreams. If they have got the passion for it, then that is the first ingredient we need, isn’t it?”
Cavendish has long be said to be a target for Sky Procycling, which has the stated ambition of winning some of the sport’s biggest races with British riders. As the most successful of the current batch in terms of the number and quality of his victories, the Manx rider is clearly very high on the wish list. However Ellingworth makes it clear that other teams have also been chasing him and that he is in demand.
As he is currently part of the coaching staff with Sky Procycling, he said that he needs to strike the right balance in his work with Cavendish. “I try to stay out of it with Mark and his actual contracts… as I keep saying to him, just do what is best for you. Don’t rush into anything…think about what you are doing, think about what is best for your future.”
Ellingworth spoke about the team’s GC rider Bradley Wiggins, Geraint Thomas and others in part one of this VeloNation intervew. He believes Wiggins can realistically target a top ten finish in this year’s Tour de France, and that Thomas is a strong contender to wear the white jersey for several stages.
In this second part of this interview, he speaks about Cavendish, his form, his approach to the Tour and how he compares to some other sprinters. He also discusses the finishing speed of Ben Swift and David Appollonio, two of Team Sky’s fastmen, plus the highly talented 24 year old Edvald Boasson Hagen.
The latter has been affected for the past two seasons by an Achilles Heel problem; fortunately it is something that Ellingworth believes is coming under control. The rider’s excellent showing thus far in the Critérium du Dauphiné underlines that; he was sixth on yesterday’s first mountain stage, and is a dangerous fifth overall.
Given that Ellingworth believes he is still some way off top form, it’s clear that the Norwegian could have a big summer in store.
“Whatever happens with Edvald, he has got the right approach,” he said. “If he wins, he is great. If he doesn’t win, you know for sure he gave his best. He never gives up, he has got a great attitude.”
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VeloNation:: Rod, apart from your role with Sky Procycling, you also work with Mark Cavendish. He had a successful Giro with two stage wins, and has shown his form is on the up. How has he been since then…is everything still moving forward nicely?
Rod Ellingworth: Yes, he is okay. He just finished a training camp with his team and I think things are okay. Mark certainly won’t be firing 100 percent going into the Tour, but give him a couple of days and he will soon be on it. He is deliberately holding back at the moment, deliberately not stressing too much, not overloading too much. He has got the Tour de Suisse to come yet. So that is going to be a good hit out for him, some good opportunities to win there.
That will be pretty good, it will be good to see him against Ben Swift, two British guys. I don’t know whether Ben will get the full run-out there, as I think Henderson is meant to be riding there. It just depends on how he is after today’s illness. But that would be quite interesting, I am quite looking forward to see them racing out.
VN: The fact that Ben is progressing and clocking up wins, does that make it any more or less likely that the team would be interesting in Mark for the years ahead?
RE: Well, Ben for sure is moving on and he is showing that. I think he is not an out and out sprinter like Mark. He is a different bike rider…I think the style of racing that Ben will eventually earn his money at is the races that come down to twenty or thirty man group finishes.
For sure, Ben is not as quick as Mark, still. I think the fastest man in the world is still Cav. But Ben is getting there. I think the closest person I have seen to Cav is Appollonio, in terms of ability, actual flat-line speed.
So, perhaps not answering your question directly, but I think they are different bike riders. I don’t think its unrealistic that it could work with Mark and Ben. They are both good bike riders, but for sure they are different.
Ben is coming along massively, he is really putting in some good work. He just wants to be consistent for the rest of the year, to hold consistent form for a while.
VN: Is it fair to presume the team will speak to Mark about a deal for the years ahead?
RE: Well, I try to stay out of it with Mark and his actual contracts, but I do know there are a lot of teams interested in him. As I keep saying to him, ‘just do what is best for you. Don’t rush into anything…think about what you are doing, think about what is best for your future.’
The think with Mark, and it is a good thing, is that it is not all about the money for him. He really does want to move on his career and move on his wins. It is not just about money, to go for the big contract but be in a sh*t team. He needs to be able to move forward.
He wants to do so much more in cycling, making a long-lasting name. Not just ‘yeah, he was a good sprinter.’ That is why he rode Roubaix and Flanders. It may be a dream, but he would love to perform in those sort of races in the future. It may be dream, but we’d like to follow our dreams. If they have got the passion for it, then that is the first ingredient we need, isn’t it?
VN: How is Edvald Boasson Hagen shaping up?
RE: Good, really good. He had the Achilles problem again this year, which was on the opposite Achilles to last year. There are a few things around that which we think it is. Then had that bad crash in Scheldeprijs, which really knocked him and broke a good few ribs. It was very painful.
He had to take literally two weeks completely off the bike… it was the case that he could have ridden, but he could have damaged things for longer and prolonged his comeback. So it was two weeks off, let everything head properly, then we crack on.
To be fair to him, as always with Edvald, he has a fantastic attitude. Even though he was in a big, black hole, he actually keeps positive things about upbeat. He did a month of really good work, slightly changed his training from what he used to do…we’ve given him a lot more ideas on types of training and different aspects of the sport that he needs to look at. We got him thinking about bike racing, and he did a really job.
I think he proved that coming back as he did. He rode Picardie, going fairly well there…he didn’t get any results, as such, but rode well. Then in Bayern he was going well.
VN: So does he have a particular target in the Dauphine?
RE: Not really, no. I don’t think he’s 100 percent at his best, but he’ll get out there and race. That is the thing with Edvald, he’ll race everything. He’ll do exactly what he’s asked to do. If he’s asked to be in the break and it’s the ideal day for him, he’ll go for it.
Whatever happens with Edvald, he’s got the right approach…if he wins, he is great. If he doesn’t win, you know for sure he gave his best. He never gives up, he has got a great attitude.
VN: Do you think he is likely to be ready to chase goals like a stage win in the Tour?
RE: Yeah, I think so. The Tour will be a big thing, stages and that. Again for Edvald, he is such a diverse bike rider, he can do a bit of everything. At times that’s the problem as a lot of people expect him to… ‘ah, it’s Edvald, he can do it.’
I think we want to get him to look at stages on particular days and think about what he wants to do. Potentially there will be a good sprint group there with him in mind on some days, somebody else on other days, and they will all work well together. It could be quite good, I think.
VN: Who do you see as being the protected sprinter – is it Greg Henderson for the Tour, or is that still being finalised?
RE: Well, it is still not one hundred percent finalised. But we are definitely thinking that rather than just Edvald, we are thinking of taking another sprinter as well. I don’t think it will be Appollonio, it would be Greg or Swifty, for sure.
VN: Is Edvald’s Achilles problem completely sorted out, or is it something that you are still working out the cause of?
RE: We think we have the back ground to it. I think it could be training styles during the winter, cross training, a few different things that possibly flared it up. He’s obviously got a bit of a weakness. You don’t know until these things happen, do you? At least now he knows how to manage things a bit better.
It is definitely not just one thing…you can’t say, ‘okay, it is definitely that, stop doing that and it will solve the problem.’ It is potentially a collection of things together. For sure we think this year it was a crash in Kuurne and his shoeplate moved. We think that is what triggered it this year.
It was early on in the race and he rode the rest of the race with it. He got home, didn’t ride the next day, then the day after that got out and said, ‘bloody hell, my foot’s a bit sore.’ He continued to do the ride, then got home and then looked, and said ‘shit, my shoe plates..’ It only changed a little bit, but he is quite sensitive there. We think that is what triggered it, but it is due to a collection of things why he has the problem.
VN: Looking at the team in general, there is a sense that things are on the up now. It appears quite different to last year, and to be gaining momentum…
RE: It is a lot more enjoyable this year. I think everybody is enjoying the trip. It is a nice journey, the team is moving on…we can sit back a little bit more rather than being the bright, fresh new team and everyone looking and saying things.
It definitely has a different feel to it this year… It is good.
Ellingworth speaks about Bradley Wiggins, Geraint Thomas and more in part I of this interview. You can read it here.