LAVERY SIGNED FOR ENGLISH UCI CONTINENTAL SQUAD
NODE 4 GIORDANA RACING TEAM WHICH HE SEES HIS BEST CHANCE OF GETTING TO THE TOP OF PROFESSIONAL CYCLE RACING

He joins the latest squad of larger than life Phil Griffiths, who has been running top race teams for more than 30 years after spending two years in Belgium with the last year with Sean Kelly's An Post squad.

But the 21 year sees the kind of programme being offered by the Staffordshire based squad, with the chance to show in week long stage races all over Europe as the best place to put himself forward, rather than a diet of Belgian semi classics.

And in typical Griffo manner, the team was put together at the last minute after the loss of his major sponsor of the last two years with a number of impressive signings attracted by Phil's legendary passion for the sport and his reputation for looking after his riders.

That and the presence of Tour of Spain points winner Malcolm Elliot and Tour of Britain winner and Tour de France rider Bill Nickson directing from the team car were enough of an incentive for top young Irish rider Phil Lavery.

And he has pulled another rabbit from the hat with the signing of 34 year old New Zealander Rico Rogers,a devastating finisher who recently won a stage in the Tour of China, who will make his debut for the team next month in the Australian Criterium Championships in which he came fourth last year.

Closer to home, the team's current Junior Road World Champion Lucy Garner,17 will be riding for Node 4 Giordana Racing Team in omnium events at the Rotterdam and Bremen Sixes in early January.

It was Phil's passion and at 62, still boyish enthusiasm for being a force in cycle racing which persuaded Andrew Gilbert of Node 4 Data Centre Solutions to step into the breach left by the decision of Motorpoint to pull out of sponsorship after two years.

Gilbert said:' I personally love cycling. It can be an addictive sport. But I particularly love Phil Griffiths' passion for the sport and his total commitment to developing the sport and the team. His zest and enthusiasm after so many years involvement to cycling where enough for us to put our name to his team and I am sure it will be a mutually successful partnership.'

Phil himself, who has been running teams for more than 30 years puts it like this:' Enthusiasm, at 62 I am still a kid, I have never grown up. I still feel I owe a debt to cycling without it I would never have become a successful businessman... cycling has given me everything. Supporting a team helps my business and I still enjoy the buzz of being involved in cycle racing at the top level.

'It is great to have Node4 as our main sponsor as their management are genuinely cycling supporters. We are also excited to have Subaru on board as our vehicle provider with their long previous involvements with the sport.'

It is no coincidence that Phil chose Trentham Gardens in Stoke on Trent with his backdrop of Perseus slaying Medusa as the photoshoot backdrop for his latest team. As he put it:' He will be out to slay some of the other teams with our results in 2012.'

Philip Lavery said:' I felt that An Post was not the right team for me. I wanted to go somewhere with a tighter team spirit. Phil has a good reputation for treating his riders well, everyone knows how he helped Russ Downing.

' The kind of race programme like the Ras, Tour of Britain, Tour of Norway and stage races in France, Spain and Portugal suit me more than a lot of the Belgian races. There are also the Premiers and I will be released to ride the midweek Nation's Cup under 23 races for Ireland. At the start I plan to remain in Dublin but will move across during the season.

'Another big motivation to sign was having a rider like Malcolm Elliot in the team car. I met him several years ago when he rode the Ras and my mother was a masseur on the race. Just seeing how he looked after his bike was an inspiration to me as a young rider.

'A young rider can learn so much from a man with his background and experience, he is the kind of leader riders can respect. It is such a confidence boost have someone like that in the car and you just want to win his approval. I still have plenty of international ambitions and would like to get on a Pro Tour team in the next couple of years.I know I have the ability, it is a question of showing the confidence and getting the right results.'

Elliot, who has still not definitely drawn a line under his riding career said:' We have signed an interesting blend of riders. We are not obviously a super team, so it is teams like Endura, who have upped the anti, and will have the pressure on them.

'The scene is constantly shifting on Rapha have changed their emphasis as have Raleigh. There are now six UCI teams competing on home roads. Every year the competition steps up. Some of our riders have unfulfilled ambitions. Hopefully I can pass on as much knowledge as I can.'

LAVERY & BENNETT RIDE STRONGLY AT WORLDS
AN POST'S FENN BAGS BRONZE MEDAL - Story courtesy of Sticky Bottle

Ireland's Sam Bennett and Philip Lavery both rode strongly at the U23 World Championships road race in Copenhagen today, before being scuppered by a crash-filled fast finale.

The duo's team mate at the An Post-Sean Kelly team, Andrew Fenn took an impressive third for Great Britain in the bunch sprint that settled the title, with the French team filling the gold and silver medal positions.

Lavery was to the fore at the beginning of the race, jumping around at the head of the peloton but opting not to actually follow any of the early moves.

He was less evident at the head of affairs when the speed was ramped up at the midway stage as many teams – including the French and Italians – tried to break up the field. Read More

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