Egan Bernal signs new five-year deal with Ineos Grenadiers - and targets tilt at 2022 Tour de France
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Updated 10/01/2022 at 15:45 GMT
Egan Bernal will remain with Ineos Grenadiers until 2026 where he will look to build on his two Grand Tour wins at the Tour de France 2019 and the Giro D'Italia 2021. Bernal has struggled to keep pace with the emergence of Slovenian Tadej Pogacar in the last year, but the Colombian will hope his injury troubles are behind him as he heads into the 2022 season.
Egan Bernal
Image credit: Getty Images
Egan Bernal has signed a new five-year deal to keep him with Ineos Grenadiers until 2026.
The Colombian, 24, already has two Grand Tour titles to his name - the Tour de France in 2019 and the Giro D'Italia in 2021.
The new contract will see him remain a key part of the British team as he chases more big titles to add to his palmares.
There has been disappointment amongst his successes over the past two years, as he has struggled not only with a recurrent back condition but also with the emergence of Slovenian Tadej Pogacar, whose brilliance has set a new benchmark for Grand Tour contenders to chase.
Bernal is clearly up for the challenge though and a key part of the announcement from his team highlighted his determination to win another Tour de France title, having missed the event in 2021 to be at the Giro.
“It’s really important, signing this new contract," said Bernal .
"I am really happy in this team. I am really proud of the team, the staff, and I’m signing now for my most important years.
"It will be my best years and I want to spend this time with this team.
I really want to go back to the Tour. I skipped last year because of the Giro, but it feels like it’s been a long time since I was at the Tour.
"So I am really excited about this year. I want to go back having prepared really well, taking a good team, and being there to really enjoy the race.”
Ineos' deputy team principal Rod Ellingworth made it clear that Bernal has the full backing of the team's management to rediscover his best form.
“We have seen Egan really grow over the last four years with the team," said Ellingworth.
"He’s demonstrated time and again that he is a phenomenal talent. He has also shown that, in the challenging moments, he has a huge amount of courage to pick himself up, lay himself on the line and go again. As a Grenadier and as a team-mate, you can’t ask for much more than that.
"This season is going to be hugely competitive. Egan and the whole team are motivated to go all in and come out fighting.”
Bernal will expect to be team leader as Ineos set him up for cycling's biggest events in 2022, but with Richard Carapaz, Geraint Thomas and Tao Geoghegan Hart all competing alongside him, there are a posse of other riders ready to step in should he not perform.
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