Being a sprinter in pro cycling is a tough job. Besides the power that is required to have and the specific training, and psychological factor is very important as risk taking must be higher in order to be in contention. Sam Bennett talks about some of these issues.
“I still owe a lot to that team, so I don’t look into it too much. I think people think I’m a certain way because I have a soft demeanour, I never come across as too arrogant... But you can’t really do this sport if you’re not a bit more robust than that. Like, that stuff won’t get to you," Bennett told Cyclingnews in an extensive interview.
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Talking about his stint in Soudal - Quick-Step, which ended abruptly as Patrick Lefevere started a feud with the Irishman. A knee injury was at the base of it, with Bennett missing out on the final part of the season. Not only was Lefevere criticizing one of his main sprinters but also online the Irishman was being criticized by some people.
“Throughout my career, when things happen, if I got relegated in a sprint or somebody saw something online and they weren’t happy or whatever, I always kept my mouth shut. I don’t get involved with that, and I just do my own thing. I live in a different world to it," Bennett shares however.
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“In 2021, I injured my right knee at QuickStep, but at the start of 2022, I injured my left knee, I just never spoke about it. When you’re already injured and you’re compensating for one thing, you can end up stressing the other and maybe I ended up doing that," he continues.
A string of injuries led to a lack of form that was not beneficial for the now BORA - hansgrohe rider, who had a difficult start to his return to the German team. “In hindsight, I should really have just trained and not raced until March or April, but that wasn’t how you want to start back with another team," he admits.
The pressure forced him to an early start, which in return saw him miss out on his best form by a long shot. This was evident for several months and inclusively saw him out of the Tour de France where he had a leadout and plans to take part in.
This eventually took a turn towards the end of the year where he won two stages at the Vuelta a Espana. However the 32-year old does not forget the difficulties he went through a year ago: “Earlier in the season, I was already at my limit with 200 metres to go. It looked like I was sitting up, but I had basically already done my sprint just to get there."
"Physically, I’m not a typical sprinter: they can do sprint training and then get by on their high lactate building rate. But I really have to build a big engine, use my endurance, and get to the finish fresher to be able to sprint. Earlier in the year, I just hadn’t that work done.”
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Rúben SilvaEditor-in-Chief
A founding contributor to CyclingUpToDate since its launch in January 2022, Ruben Silva has played a central role in shaping the site’s editorial direction and long-term growth. Before joining the project, he built his experience through independent blogging at Echelons Hub and by producing race previews for Ciclismo Internacional, developing a strong analytical voice rooted in daily engagement with professional cycling.
Beyond editorial work, he has been closely involved in the expansion and coordination of CyclingUpToDate’s wider network, helping establish and support sister platforms across multiple languages. This includes ongoing collaboration with CiclismoAlDia (Spanish), CiclismoAtual (Portuguese), WielrennenUpToDate (Dutch), and RadsportAktuell (German), contributing to a shared editorial vision and consistent international coverage.
He also helps oversee editorial governance across the network, setting standards for accuracy and consistency and coordinating updates or corrections when needed.
Originally from the Porto metropolitan area in Portugal, he holds a bachelor’s degree in Geography. His path into cycling journalism was shaped not through formal media training, but through independent reporting, community engagement, and sustained on-the-ground involvement in the sport.
Over the course of his career, he has conducted approximately 100 interviews across road cycling and cyclocross, ranging from one-to-one conversations and online formats to press conferences and on-site pre- and post-race coverage. His interviews include leading riders, team managers, and prominent figures within cycling media: Tadej Pogacar, Jonas Vingegaard, Mathieu van der Poel, Primoz Roglic, Wout van Aert, Joao Almeida and Tom Pidcock; managers like Patrick Lefevere and Joxean Matxin; and YouTube personality Bryan Kennedy (BKXC)...
Within 18 months of launch, he helped grow CyclingUpToDate’s English-language platform into one of the most-read cycling news websites, built entirely from the ground up. As both a professional journalist and lifelong cycling enthusiast, his focus remains on delivering accurate, timely, and well-contextualized coverage.
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- He is boring
leedorney08-11-2026 - To Twoje przemyślenia te bla, bla :)
Dariusz08-11-2026 - Uwielbiam patrzeć, jak wyjeżdża na czoło peletonu i zaczyna się rzeź...Dariusz08-11-2026
- Yeah, unreal.
parisbound0008-11-2026 - there needs to be space in life for pointless comments!Ketterechts08-11-2026
- That is a very lazy way of putting it but so far on this website it seems like everyone is happy to look at everything lazily, even things that annoy them intensely. All they want to do is state their feeling and position but ask most to analyse a problem or come up with solutions or improvements and you’re stunned by silence. Nobody even really knows how this all happens. It’s very simple and quick to just say the UCI did it but I bet you they didn’t, I bet you not more than 2 people were involved, more likely just 1. The UCI may be ultimately responsible but it is not their decision, this is about hierarchy, power and delegation. The fact that protest is possible also means it isn’t over and that MORE people could get involved for a thorough review which could throw up anything. It is highly likely it was a sole commissar who decided and has that power in a first round. Therein might lie the problem the UCI has to consider, is it acceptable to give so much authority to one single person when it is quite possible for them to have a natural bias or be too easily susceptible to imposed bias. Who is to say an individual in this position isn’t susceptible to collaboration with outside players with interests in the results, nations, families, teams, betting companies, etc. On the one hand we have sports where these problems have been worked on way more to reduce such problems, on the other hand we have sports with far stricter and more draconian rules not even concerning safety or obstruction that nobody really questions like false starts or stepping out of lane or zones in athletics. If cycling hastowork on itself, it would be good if protagonists (all kinds) would start doing a little more than just moaning over outcomes.Jumpyjohn08-11-2026
- Yes, so why not make comments less pointless?Jumpyjohn08-11-2026
- What a race! I didn't expect Vanthourenhout to collapse like that, and Wyseure did take the fight to Nys, but there was no doubt at the end. I also wonder what Aubin Sparfel would be capable of were he to race in the elites now. In the U23 ranks he is making good work of Giel Lejeune, who himself is among the better riders in the elites, and a top 10 contender in the big races (3rd at Kleebergcross, 8th at Berencross and 5th at Heerderstrand). In the French Cup, Sparfel is significantly better than Romain Debord (8th at Koppenbergcross and 10th at the Euros) and Rémi Lelandais (12th at Koppenbergcross and 19th at the Euros).
Rafionain-Glas08-11-2026 - There really was nothing in it. Schreiber was so much faster, and Brand was fighting to stay in the wheel in the sprint. Schreiber did move a bit, but to say she closed the door doesn't make sense because Brand couldn't enter it anyway, abd she wasn't impeded.Rafionain-Glas08-11-2026
- He should have been allowed to go to Movistar. Right now both arent a good fit for each other and are just wasting each other's time and effortabstractengineer08-11-2026
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