Sky to Sponsor Professional cycling team
The Sky Professional cycling team took to the roads for the first time in London on Monday 4th January, as the riders and management showed off the team’s colours to the world.
After a long time in the planning stage, the team was finally complete, both in the rider line up and in the long list of key sponsors.
Since the launch Team Sky have established themselves as a force to be reckoned with in their debut season on the road, setting out in style with a stage victory at the season-opening Tour Down Under in Adelaide, Australia.
Wins followed in Qatar, Oman, Belgium, France, Italy, Holland and Belgium.
The highlight was Bradley Wiggins’ triumph in the very first stage of the Giro d’Italia, the perfect start to Team Sky’s Grand Tours campaign.
The Grand Tours comprise the Giro d’Italia, the Vuelta a España and of course the Tour de France which are the three biggest events on the cycling calendar.
Wiggins proudly sported the race leader’s pink jersey following that success in the Giro and then in the Tour de France Welshman Geraint Thomas had a spell in the white jersey which is worn each day by the top young rider.
“The level of support the team received in France was a stand-out feature” said team principal Dave Brailsford "My abiding memory of the Tour was the fans, there were an incredible number of Union Jack flags and Team Sky tops. I wasn’t expecting that so early so it was pretty mind-boggling. It’s a huge thing to take away for from the race and bodes so well for the future."
The Vuelta a España rounds off the Grand Tours season and runs from 28 August to 19 September by which time Team Sky will hopefully have notched plenty more victories to add their successes so far.
Team Sky will also make their much anticipated Tour of Britain debut, which runs from the 11th to the 18th September, led by a duo of Olympians in Bradley Wiggins and Geraint Thomas, fitting in a year that sees The Tour finish in Newham, London’s Olympic and Paralympic borough.
For more information on Team Sky visit: http://www.teamsky.com (opens in a new window)
Since becoming Principal Partner of British Cycling last summer Sky has used its relationship with millions of homes to encourage families to get out and ride in order to help their health, their fitness and the environment.
Through the launch of our Skyride campaign we aim to get 1 million more people regularly cycling in the UK by 2013. To find out more about the free cycling events taking place this summer and to get involved visit: www.goskyride.com (opens in a new window)