The proof will come over the next three years but Cycling Australia (CA) might have solved one of the key reasons for their Beijing Olympics disaster.
Rising star Jack Bobridge will join compatriot Cameron Meyer at American professional road cycling team Garmin Slipstream
The proof will come over the next three years but Cycling Australia (CA) might have solved one of the key reasons for their Beijing Olympics disaster.
Rising star Jack Bobridge will join compatriot Cameron Meyer at American professional road cycling team Garmin Slipstream, who now also have a formal partnership with the Australian governing body.
The deal means that riders such as Bobridge and Meyer can turn professional, but the national track endurance program will have better access to them in the lead-up to major events.
Professional road commitments severely compromised the preparation of the teams pursuit squad in the lead-up to the Beijing Games and CA are determined that there will be no such problems ahead of the 2012 London Olympics.
After breaking the teams pursuit world record and winning the gold medal at the Athens Games, Australia faded to fourth last year. Overall, Australia only won a silver medal in cycling at Beijing - the sport's worst Olympics result since Moscow 1980.
"This is a fabulous opportunity for our riders and for our program," said CA's national performance director Shayne Bannan.
"The team is well respected and they understand how important it is for us to have access to riders such as Cameron and Jack at critical periods to prepare for Commonwealth Games, world championships and Olympic Games."
Bannan has said several times in the wake of Beijing that there will be no more compromises in how the national team prepares for major events.
Former Australian professional cyclist Matt White is a manager on the Garmin team. He already coaches Meyer and will now be in charge of Bobridge's training.
Bobridge, 19, is one of the hottest young road talents in the world, while Meyer won the points race at this year's world track titles.
Seven-time Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong continually praised Bobridge during January's Tour Down Under in Adelaide, where the home-town youngster frequently went on the attack.
Bobridge also won two silver medals this year at the world track titles and is the Australian under-23 road time trial and road race champion. Meyer joined Garmin earlier this year and other young Australian road riders are now likely to join the team.
Roger Vaughan
AAP
