Top new Australian squad preparing for debut season in 2011
Former Omega Pharma Lotto director Hendrik Redant and Cervélo Test Team’s Egon van Kessel are amongst four people confirmed today as acting as sports directors for the Pegasus Racing Team in 2011.
The experienced duo will join up with former pro Henk Vogels and Ed Beamon, who both filled that role this year with the Fly V Australia team, the new squad’s successor.
While the Fly V team will continue as a US-based Continental team, must of its structure and many of its riders will move across to the new squad, which has set participation in the Tour de France as one of its main goals.
Consequently, having directors of the experience of Redant and van Kessel is important for the smooth running of the team and best-possible performances in the big races.
“With Hendrik, Henk, Egon and Ed as our sports directors, we are bringing to our team a lot of different characters with different backgrounds, but with a lot of experience,” Pegasus Sports CEO Chris White stated today. “This team of sports directors will work really well together, as we saw already in the first meetings we had.”
Redant’s work with teams such as Omega Pharma Lotto means that he is the most experienced of the four. He believes it was time to move on to fresh challenges, and is looking forward to guiding the Australian squad. “Working on a big new cycling project with a group of very motivated people is the next step in my cycling career,” he said. “As I always wanted to share my experience and because I feel lots of affection for Australia, being able to work as a sports director on the Pegasus Sports project is in a way a double dream coming true for me.
“My ambition is to bring together this young and promising team and help them perform at the top of international cycling.”
Redant previously worked with Robbie McEwen, who is the biggest signing for the squad. Like Redant, he too is motivated by the new challenge and the opportunity to help a new project grow and develop.
White echoes this sentiment, saying that he is peased to step up a level with Vogels and Beamon. “The chance to create something new together with these guys appeals to me, and I think it will also be a lot of fun.”
Thus far, the team has named a number of riders, including McEwen, his Katusha team-mate Serguei Klimov, Svein Tuft and Trent Lowe (Garmin-Transitions), Dominique Cornu (Skil Shimano), Christian Knees, Thomas Rohregger and Luke Roberts (Milram), Clinton Avery (RadioShack stagiaire), Bobbie Traksel (Vacansoleil), Robbie Hunter (Garmin-Transitions), Daryl Impey (RadioShack), Rohan Dennis (Team Jayco Skins) and Jacek Morajko (Mroz – Active Jet).
A number of others are moving across from Fly V Australia, namely Jonathan Cantwell, David Jai Crawford, Ben Day, Aaron Kemps, Darren Lill, Bernard Sulzberger, Jay Robert Thomson and Phil Zajicek.
The final lineup and identity of the main sponsor is expected to be clarified shortly. The team had applied for a ProTour licence but will have to compete on a Pro Continental basis in 2011.