"I think it was a surprise for everyone and I'm still rolling off of that momentum" - Riley Sheehan makes professional debut with Israel - Premier Tech

The list of previous Paris-Tours winners features household names of the cycling world such as Arnaud Démare, Soren Kragh Andersen and Matteo Trentin... and Riley Sheehan? The 23-year-old American was just an amateur racing with Israel - Premier Tech as a trainee at the time when he shocked the cycling world with a victory in one of the oldest one-day races on the UCI calendar.

What were the emotions ahead of Sheehan's professional 'debut'? "I've been quite excited actually," he tells Cyclingnews. "Omloop wasn't such a warm welcome but it was good. I'm definitely learning all the roads and whatnot because it's all a first time for me. I think each day I can progress a lot. I already found some good points yesterday where I could find my rhythm and feel myself in the race. Hopefully, I can keep that trajectory on the up."

"This time last year I was in Arizona doing a training camp and now I've already been racing which is incredible. So just to be here is a super special feeling. A year ago today I was getting ready to race some smaller criteriums in the US. This is the biggest it can get and it's super special to be here."

But how did even Sheehan get in contact with a ProConti team in the first place? "It was around this time last year. I remember I was working with Svein Tuft, my director, doing some power testing and he came to me with the question 'Hey, do you want to try going pro?'. So he used his connections and got in contact with the team."

There was no way a Paris-Tours champion would go back to racing US crits for NCL Denver Disruptors in 2024, as the Israeli team quickly found a spot on their roster for the talented American. "I had it sorted out, but Paris-Tours, of course, changed things a bit. I think it was a surprise for everyone and I'm still rolling off of that momentum. But it's great to start my pro career with already some success."