I'm not sure which was bigger news, Team Sky's official launch or news that Bradley Wiggins has been getting in extra training during the recent cold snap by bashing away on his Wattbike.... both revealed in central London today.
The great and the good of British cycling were at Millbank Tower this lunchtime serenely overlooking the Houses of Parliament, the Eye and all the sights of London on a glorious blue sky day in Central London. They were there to witness the eagerly anticipated unveiling of Team Sky, the brainchild of David Brailsford and his British Cycling team and SKY TV.
Kicking off with an early morning city centre bike ride that included all but 3 of the Team Sky roster, 300 lucky cyclists joined the team as they met up and cyled through the streets of London together for the very first time. With the team jetting off to training in Valencia tomorrow and then onto the Tour Down Under, there was just enough time for Dermot Murnaghan to introduce the masteminds behind the team, David Brailsford, Shane Sutton etc... and then the team itself headlined by Bradley Wiggins.
In a packed out studio this was possibly the busiest media event that British cycling has seen barring their victorious return from Beijing. And, no one was left in any doubt as to their intent. They purposely didn't say they would win anything but it was abundantly clear that the team that have been assembled are there for just one thing - to win the Tour de France. A number of the riders were quizzed as to why they had joined Team Sky and they all were attracted by the scope of the new project, the professionalism of the team management and the chance to ride in what they believe is 'the best team in the world'. To a man they see Team Sky as the start of an amazing journey that will at some stage (sooner rather than later was the lasting impression) culminate in world domination. All very good!
The really good news though came from none other than team principal, David Brailsford himself, who confirmed (what we knew from twitter) that in spite of the freezing conditions Bradley's training was continuing unhindered as he has been hammering away on his Wattbike over the Christmas break as he starts to gear up for the forthcoming season.... Now that is good news!
