Wiggle High5’s Lucy Garner On Being Number One, The Women’s Tour And Rio 2016
The womenÛªs road calendar will be truly beginning in earnest in the next couple of weeks, and here at Sportsvibe we had the chance to chat to Wiggle High5’s latest addition, Lucy Garner.
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The 21-year-old signed a two-year deal with Wiggle High5 after leaving her first team Liv-Plantur at the end of last year.åÊ
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The young sprinter from Leicester has had tremendous success at junior level, becoming a double World road race champion.
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But now the aim is to make the step up into the ever competitive world of elite womenÛªs cycling, and hopefully in the next few years consistently challenge for top honours at the major World Tour races.
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In the womenÛªs peloton Wiggle High5 are currently the no.1 ranked team; so Garner has stepped into a team full of quality riders such as Elisa Longo Borghini, Danielle King, Giorgia Bronzini, and Emma Johansson ÛÒ but because of her record at junior level it shouldnÛªt faze the British rider.
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ÛÏI met them all at the end of November, they were all really welcoming and we had a lot of laughs and fun, and training was good, so I feel really part of the team already so thatÛªs really nice,Û said Garner.
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The off-season has also been kind to Garner this year, as last year she struggled with illnesses and injuries in which she mentioned that it was only in the middle of the season she felt strong, where in theory riders want to start the season strong and then peak for the summer months.
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But the Sky Sports Scholar said: ÛÏItÛªs gone well, I feel a lot stronger than previous winters, so thatÛªs pretty good, and touch wood IÛªve not had any illnesses or anything, so IÛªve been in able to crack on with the training and itÛªs been nice to get to know the girls early on and go out training with them.Û
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As mentioned the move to Wiggle High5 is a big deal for Garner; she was at Plantur for a good few years where she really progressed and gained vital experience, but she felt this was the next step in her young and promising career, saying: ÛÏItÛªs just nice to make the step up and have a change, and that can really benefit me and I hope I can help and learn a lot, and it would be nice to get a result as well.Û
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Garner continued on the move from Plantur saying: ÛÏThat was one of the reasons why I thought it was a good move for me, there is a lot of sprinters on here as well that I can learn from.
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ÛÏAnd although I may not get all the opportunities as what I got with Liv-Plantur, IÛªm just really pleased IÛªll be able to race the final kilometres to help the other sprinters.Û
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With Wiggle High5 being a dominant force in the womenÛªs peloton there are plenty of races that they will be targeting this year, and one that is high on the agenda of both team manager Rochelle Gilmore and Garner is the Aviva WomenÛªs Tour in the UK in June.
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ÛÏThe womenÛªs Tour would be a real target; I was really happy to get a good result last year, and obviously itÛªs on home soil so itÛªs really nice to be a part of that team and get a result there, and itÛªs important for me and the team, and I am targeting that race,Û said the 21-year-old.
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As well as there being a packed domestic race schedule, the huge goal for women riders this year is the Olympic road race in Rio ÛÒ in which plenty of top names will be vying for victory, including Great BritainÛªs very own Lizzie Armitstead.
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But when posing the question to Garner about whether she would be included in the squad for Rio, she was unsure: ÛÏItÛªs really hard, and a lot of people are asking me, itÛªs just like, of course going to the Olympics would be amazing, but itÛªs just such a tough course this year.Û
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There is no denying the course over in Rio will not suit GarnerÛªs sprinting abilities, it will certainly suit a pure climber.
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Garner said: ÛÏThe people that have been there, and IÛªve spoke with Lizzie and she said it was one of the hardest courses youÛªll ever ride kind of thing.
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ÛÏYou never know, but if IÛªm not selected itÛªs not going to be a huge shock for me because IÛªm not suited to that course.Û
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But if Garner can produce some showing before the selectors name the squad, there could just be a place on the plane for the youngster.
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At just 21, Garner has her whole career ahead of her, but her rapid rise is a real success story, and the latest chapter in her career at Wiggle High5 could be just what she needs to lay the foundations down for what should be an extremely successful career on the road.
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Wiggle, the world’s largest online cycle and tri-sports retailer are proud sponsors of the Wiggle High5 team www.wiggle.co.uk.
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By Michael Stokoe (@Michael_Stokoe)