4 months in the past, again in the midst of the biking summer time, Ben O’Connor deserted the Tour de France simply because the race hit the Alps, affected by a torn glute muscle.
The harm, sustained in a crash early within the race and worsening because the levels handed, wrecked the massive aim of the Australian’s 2022 season, a 12 months on from his spectacular fourth place general.
O’Connor, AG2R Citroën‘s GC chief, fought on to the second relaxation day earlier than pulling out, the withdrawal a disappointing conclusion to what had been a profitable marketing campaign in the course of the spring and early summer time. With seventh, sixth, 5 and third general at Andalucía, Catalunya, Romandie and the Dauphiné, all had regarded set for one more top-five combat in France.
Regardless of the frustration, the 26-year-old from Western Australia believes he took one other step up this 12 months.
“I feel it was actually good. I can not fault the season, actually,” O’Connor instructed Cyclingnews on the latest Rouleur Stay occasion in London.
“I feel I did all the pieces I might have for it to be season. I used to be prime 10 in just about each single race I did. That is already fairly achievement.
“Though on the Vuelta I used to be anticipating extra. I actually needed to be within the prime 5. I simply wasn’t ok on the time. I attempted the GC approach and I simply could not attain that peak like I had completed earlier within the 12 months on the Dauphiné and heading into the Tour.
“I am proud of it. I can solely say that I want I used to be extra aggressive at one or two races like on the Tour of Romandie. In any other case, I feel I took my possibilities fairly nicely. Obtained two wins within the 12 months, which is nice.”
O’Connor’s wins got here at Catalunya and Tour de Jura one-day race, but it surely’s his development in stage race GC outcomes that stands out. Now, he stated, he feels he’s a reputation among the many prime contenders, moderately than a rider who will get talked about in passing as a challenger on the fringes of the highest 10.
“You need to do not forget that final 12 months it was solely Romandie, Dauphiné and the Tour that I used to be within the prime 10,” he stated. “Romandie [2021] was my first prime 10 in a WorldTour stage race and now I can do it in each WorldTour stage race. So, I feel that exhibits that I’ve sort of made it.
“Even in a race I DNFed like Paris-Good with no matter that nasty fowl flu was that was going round, I used to be within the entrance echelons and I am happy with that. Even when I did not get the outcome ultimately, these days have been really a hit since you braved it out and really realized a brand new ability actually.”
After the Tour DNF, consideration turned to the Vuelta a España, the place O’Connor was admittedly not at his greatest. He completed eighth general, taking a handful of prime 10s alongside the way in which, although not fairly capable of problem for a stage win as he may need hoped for.
“I went all-in for it and I needed to see with the preparation that I had how I might maximise it,” he stated. “It wasn’t my goal at first of the 12 months after which it turned out to be fairly an enormous goal.
“There have been some days I used to be good. Arensman was so sturdy on the Sierra Nevada stage and that was a day I actually regarded to try to do nicely in. He took the win, and I used to be a bit unhappy that I could not give it a go. On the final day, I used to be actually eager and motivated, however I did not have the legs. That was the essence of it.”
The Tour harm, which he stated left him with an enormous leg power imbalance of 8%, had healed up nicely earlier than he headed to Spain. Nevertheless, regardless of a podium problem ultimately not materialising he might nonetheless finish the 12 months on a excessive at his residence Worlds in Wollongong, the primary time he had visited Australia since 2019.
“I feel we really rode like an ideal race,” he stated of he and his Australian teammates, who helped Michael Matthews to a bronze medal.
“That is really one of the crucial enjoyable group races I’ve ever completed. Each single one in every of us did our job completely.
“On the non-public facet it was a DNF for me, however I left all my playing cards within the first 50km. I used all the pieces early and it felt good to be sacrificial and work the group plan for Bling.
“All 12 months I raced for myself and the group races for me, so it was a very nice change. I can not let you know how a lot enjoyable I had with that group of boys. I liked each second of it, and it was an effective way to finish the 12 months.”
Now, consideration is totally on 2023. O’Connor has returned to coaching, getting in every week’s price of labor earlier than heading over for the transient go to to London. It is no shock that he has one main aim on his thoughts, with unfinished enterprise left from the summer time simply gone.
“I’m on a French group, and I feel that I had a very excellent build-up this 12 months but it surely simply did not work out nicely,” he stated, referring to the Tour.
“So, I am undoubtedly not completed with it. I actually need to carry on smashing it and attempting to relive what occurred final 12 months on the Tour and see if I can end once more within the prime 5.
“That is the place I consider I am sitting at now, however whether or not you possibly can really do it is rather completely different. I am going to set out with that purpose and if you cannot do it, you possibly can’t do it. On the Vuelta I used to be eighth and I deserved to complete eighth as a result of I wasn’t ok.”
The route for the race was unveiled late final month and with simply 22km of time trialling and loads of climbing it is nicely suited to O’Connor. It is no shock, then, that he is eager to get again there.
“It is an excellent route,” he stated. “I feel really in a approach it is unhappy that there is not sufficient time trialling as a result of I do really just like the self-discipline. The time trial is bloody arduous. It have to be round 600 metres of climbing. It is actually, actually arduous.
“I feel the race is basically cool. It really jogs my memory of perhaps a route the Giro would do. Much less conventional as in you do not have these levels by way of the north or by way of the realm south of Paris the place it may be actual straightforward. It isn’t like that in any respect. I like the way in which it seems, although, with the massive mountains. It is kind of like an enormous Dauphine nearly in a approach.
“Clearly for me, I like that massive mountain day, so the Col de la Loze, to Courchevel, shall be actually cool. That is most likely the one I might actually like to do nicely in. Additionally, the stage to Bettex perhaps is not excellent for me however that could possibly be a very good one to be aggressive on.
“After which the stage to Morzine as nicely – I keep in mind the climb from the Dauphine after I felt actually good, and also you descend down in order that all the time adjustments the sport and it opens as much as go for the launch.”
The race shall be O’Connor’s third Tour with AG2R Citroën, having moved to the French squad off the again of his breakout 12 months on the disintegrating NTT group in 2019.
He is now totally settled there on a group which is settled itself with little turnover for subsequent season, and he is already raring to get again to racing subsequent season.
“I feel it is a group of like mates and boys and I feel we have simply acquired a number of neo-pros coming in really. Change is not all the time higher,” he stated.
“I feel we will really work higher as a group and as our group to enhance, to gel after which be much more clear with how every of us go about our roles inside a race. Take a look at who we now have now – we nonetheless have Greg [Van Avermaet], Benoît [Cosnefroy], Ollie [Naesen], Aurelien [Paret-Peintre]… I imply, these are some actually good riders.
“I feel that we’re all the place we must be in a race and there isn’t any purpose why we should not carry out. I am right here to 2024 and I am having fun with it. I am simply prepared to start out subsequent 12 months now.”
