Everything about Sam Bennett

Who is Sam Bennett?

Sam Bennett is a professional cyclist who currently races for Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale Team. He is known as one of the best sprinters in the current peloton, having in his palmarès stages on all three Grand Tours, aswell as having won the green jersey at the 2020 Tour de France. It features aswell over 50 wins including World Tour classics such as the Brugge-De Panne Classic and Eschborn-Frankfurt.

Name: Sam Bennett
Birthday: 16 October 1990
Birthplace: Wervik, Belgium
Nationality: Irish
Turned Pro: 2011
Height: 1.78m

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Sam Bennett was born Oct. 16, 1990, in Menen, Belgium. Despite being born in Flanders, he has Irish nationality. His father was a professional soccer player for the team Eendracht Wervik, but at age 4 Bennett moved to Ireland. In 2007, he joined French Vélo-Club La Pomme Marseille, which had scouted him.

Bennett currently has a contract until 2023 with a salary of about 1 million euros per season. During the 2021 UAE Tour, in stage 4, he had a maximum power output of 1595 watts according to Velon making him one of the riders with the highest power output in the peloton. He married his partner Tara Fogarty in 2020.

In 2008 he became Ireland's junior national champion, and in 2009 and 2010 he won several races in France and Ireland, making him a trainee with Francaise des Jeux at the end of the season, but he did not ride for the French team. In 2011 he turned pro with the An Post team, where he took his first pro victory in the GP of the city of Geel, and rode a mainly under-23 and secondary European calendar.

In 2012 and 2013 , he continued with the Irish continental outfit. In his final season, he won two stages in the An Post Ras, but most importantly, he won the Tour of Britain in addition to two 2nd place finishes, mostly in the hilly stages. Because of this, Bennett was approached and signed with Team NetApp - Endura in 2014, a Pro Continental team that would let him ride a bigger calendar. The change benefited both teams, as Bennett won the Clasica de Almeria, Rund um Köln and a stage at the Bayern Rundfahrt that year, beating World Tour contenders.

In 2015 , BORA joined the team as title sponsor and Bennett was a leading sprinter. He won a stage early in the year in the Tour of Qatar against big names, he also won 2 stages in the Bayern Rundfahrt, Paris-Bourges and another stage in the Arctic Race of Norway. This year Bennett also made his debut in the Tour de France, but he struggled to get results. In 2016 , he picked up victories in the Critérium Internacional, the Giro della Toscana and Paris-Bourges, in addition to another Tour de France period in which he finished in the top 10 only once.

In 2017 , however, they invested heavily in the German team, which not only received a World Tour license but also the presence of world champion Peter Sagan to bolster the sprinters' field. Bennett won Paris-Nice earlier in the year and his presence in the Grand Tours - this year's Giro d'Italia - was quite different, as he rode to a podium finish three times. He picked up additional victories in the Tour of Slovenia (2), Czech Cyclling Tour (2), the Sparkassen Münsterland Giro and 4 stage wins in the World Tour Tour of Turkey.

In 2018 , Bennett returned to the Giro and finally got his first win in a Grand Tour, with a bunch sprint finish in Praia a Mare in stage 7. He later won another stage to Imola. Later in the race, he won another stage to Imola and again the final sprint in Roma. Shortly after the Giro, he won the Rund um Köln and later in the year picked up another 3 stage wins in the Tour of Turkey, which retained its World Tour status, boosting Bennett's value. In 2019 , he maintained his role as a sprinter on the team, picking up victories early in the year in the Vuelta a San Juan, UAE Tour, Paris-Nice and the Tour of Turkey.

It was a very successful year with wins in the Critérium du Dauphiné, national championships and the first 3 consecutive stages in the BinckBank Tour where he also rode in the lead for much of the race. His main goal for the season was the Vuelta a Espana, where he won two stages and finished 2nd 4 times. He attracted attention and was eventually contracted by Deceuninck - QuickStep who wanted to strengthen their sprinters field. The partnership started strong, with a win on the first day of the Tour Down Under - and another at the Race Torquay.

After the Covid-19 break, Bennett picked up victories in the Vuelta a Burgos and Tour de Wallonie before riding the Tour de France, where he was given the role and support as the main sprinter and rode to two stage wins in Ile de Ré and Paris, with the green jersey in Paris. Bennett then also rode the entire Vuelta a Espana, winning the 4th stage. 2021 began with similar success, with 2 wins in the UAE Tour, Paris-Nice and Volta ao Algarve, in addition to another World Tour triumph in the Brugge-De Panne Classic.

Everything would then change, however, when he suffered a knee injury. The injury, along with disputes made public by Patrick Lefevere, caused the Irishman to leave the Tour de France with Mark Cavendish filling in, as well as only riding with the team three times and not completing races. Bennett left Quick-Step on bad terms and signed with BORA-hansgrohe, where he broke through in the World Tour.

However,2022 was a complicated season in which the effects of his injury kept him from riding at his best. Bennett had an incredibly strong leadout special led by Danny van Poppel, who helped him win the Eschborn-Frankfurt classic in May. Bennett had shown some improvements, but he lacked the form, struggling through every type of climb, something that had not been the case in the past. He and BORA decided to skip the Tour de France and focus instead on the Vuelta a Espana.

Bennett finished the European Championship in 5th place, but it clicked in the Vuelta a Espana, with the Irishman winning stages 2 and 3 with bunch sprints. Bennett led the points classification throughout the first week, but was forced to abandon the race before stage 10 because he tested positive for Covid-19. However, he became aggressive and earned a 3rd place finish in Paris. With an aggressive race and a 3rd-place finish in Paris-Tours on the final day of his season, he showed his best form since rejoining BORA.

Bennett won his first race with BORA in 2023, a bunch sprint in the Vuelta a San Juan, but unfortunately that would be the highlight of the season for the Irishman. In the UAE Tour and Paris-Nice, he set strong sprints and finished second in both, but the lack of a confidence-boosting win was apparent. Then he faded during the spring and summer. After the Criterium du Dauphiné, the German team again removed him from the Tour de France lineup and replaced him with fellow sprinter Jordi Meeus. This was a clear sign that his time with the team was over, all chances had been given. Bennett did still win two stages in the Sibiu Tour, but that was a lesser race, the last triumphs of his season.

In 2024 Bennett moved to Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale Team, a new challenge in a team that had a stupendous season. He finished second on the final day of the Tour de la Provence - his first race in his new jersey; but had a modest spring without any meaningful results. He won for the first time in May at the 4 Jours de Dunkerque but once he did so, the wins came flowing. He was the best in four out of the six stages of the French race and won the overall classification. He then finished second on the opening day of the Criterium du Dauphiné: but was unable to carry that form to the Tour de France.