O'Connor, Ackermann and Vendrame - Team Jayco AlUla go all-in for Giro d'Italia success pursuit

Team Jayco AlUla have confirmed their lineup for the upcoming Giro d'Italia, in which they have high ambitions. The team has their GC leader Ben O'Connor at the start as part of a thinned down climber field; whilst at the same time the team has riders who can chase breakaway wins and sprints throughout the 21 days.

In the lead will be the Australia, fourth place back in 2024 at the Corsa Rosa. “This year will be my fifth Giro d’Italia, and I must say I always return with great pleasure," Ben O'Connor said in a press release. Aside from a Tour de France stage win last summer, the 30-year old has struggled to achieve the consistency he's had in the past, but enters the Giro nevertheless as a GC contender after finishing 13th at the Volta a Catalunya and 8th and the recent Tour of the Alps.

"The Giro is a race I’m very fond of, also because it was the first Grand Tour of my career and where I won my first Grand Tour stage in 2020. I also really like Italy; it’s a colourful place with plenty to see along the road from south to north. This year’s route is very balanced, with some key stages in the Alps and the one at the Blockhaus that are very important to focus on, and several tricky stages, such as those in the Marche and Liguria.”

“I’m very satisfied with the team we’ll have at the Giro d’Italia because it’s complete and capable of having a chance at winning every stage," team DS Steve Cummings added. "Ben will be our man for the GC, and all his preparation has been geared towards the three weeks of racing that await us".

For the bunch sprints the team will back up Pascal Ackermann, who is still looking to get his first win since joining the team last winter. Andrea Vendrame can target the hillier sprint stages and breakaways, having had a tremendous spring with several strong results including a sixth place at Milano-Sanremo.

The lineup is guided for breakaways almost exclusively, with O'Connor not having much support in the mountains. Koen Bouwman, Felix Engelhardt, Christopher Juul-Jensen and Robert Donaldson are present whilst Alan Hatherly makes his Grand Tour debut this May.

"Along with him, riders like Andrea, Felix, Alan, and Koen are really good on punchy terrain. Pascal will be in charge of sprinting, supported in this by Bob’s [Donaldson, ed.) lead out and positioning, while Chris will be our director in the race. The 2026 route suits very well a balanced team like ours and I imagine a relatively tight GC until the third week, when the Alps will decide who will be the final winner.”