Team Sky signed a number of the best performing U23 riders from the 2017 season including Kristoffer Halvorsen, Egan Bernal and Pavel Sivakov. Another rider who impressed last year was British under 23 Road Race champion Christopher Lawless who took second at the British Road Race Championships behind Steve Cummings (Dimension Data).
Lawless alongside Halvorsen and Bernal won stages at the Tour de l’Avenir and it capped off a stellar season for the Briton. The 22 year-old, who is signing from Axeon Hagens Berman, also won the ZLM Tour and a stage of the Tour de Beauce in addition to achieving numerous top tens.
“One of my main reasons for joining Team Sky is that I feel it’s going to be the best place for me to develop as a rider,” explained Lawless.
“The overall win at the ZLM Tour and the stage win at Tour de l’Avenir were both really big wins for me. I was happy with the way I won them. It’s not how I usually win races. I attacked instead of waiting for the sprint which I think showed I can do more than just finish quickly.
“The other highlight was obviously the British Nationals and winning the under-23 jersey. I was happy to be able to compete with the other WorldTour guys there and I was still able to attack and show my pace at the end.
“I want to improve in every area. I’m hoping to become a more all-round bike rider and Team Sky is going to be the best place for me to do that”.
