"I’d love to do the Giro but I’m on a French team and the Tour is super important" - Ben O'Connor hoping for a change in 2024

With preparation for the Tour de France having taken priority in Ben O'Connor's past three seasons, the 28-year-old Australian is keen to try his hand elsewhere in 2024.

“I would like to do a change," the two-time Grand Tour stage winner admits in conversation with Cycling News. "I’d love to do the Giro but I’m on a French team and the Tour is super important. I’m definitely going to do two Grand Tours next year, but I’m not sure which ones. I’d love to do the Giro again, that’s for sure, but the Tour is the Tour…”

Read also

"It would be nice if Primoz Roglic found his top form again" - Carlos Sastre hoping 2024 Tour de France will be more than a two-horse race

Although he did take on the Vuelta a Espana in 2022 after being forced to abandon the Tour de France a few months earlier, the last time O'Connor rode the Giro d'Italia was back in 2020 whilst still riding in the colours of NTT Pro Cycling. With 2024 being his fourth season at Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale Team, O'Connor insists he's still more than capable of competing in the biggest races.

“You always think the grass is greener on the other side, but you also sign a contract and that’s where you are,” he says. “My team was really, really good coming into the Tour this year. I just didn’t perform and that was the shitty thing about it – I didn’t just let myself down, I let the whole team down.”

“I don’t go into races worried that I’m not good enough. I think I can perform with the best under pretty much any circumstance, except punchy technical courses," he concludes. "I’m not a worn-out stone. I still feel like I’m young enough, even in an age of very talented young guys, I don’t think I’m behind them. I kind of feel I’ve reached a level and I’m still only 28.”

Read also

Lance Armstrong: "Jan Ullrich, Marco Pantani and myself were treated differently. This is the price to pay when you are the best in a sport"