Egan Bernal has signed a new five year deal with Team Sky, extending his current contract until the end of the 2023 season.
21 year-old Bernal has enjoyed a meteoric rise up the cycling ladder in his first year with Team Sky, emerging as one of the brightest young talents in the sport. After winning the Colombia Oro y Paz and the Tour of California earlier in the year, he made his Tour de France debut in July, playing a key role in Geraint Thomas’ maillot jaune success.
Now, having signed a long-term deal with Team Sky, the talented climber is looking towards an even brighter future with the team.
“I’m very happy to sign a new contract with Team Sky,” he said. “It feels like a new stage in my life. I know five years is a long time and that it’s not too common in cycling, but the team has been great for me. They offer me everything I could want and I’m excited about the future.
“I imagined my first year with the team would be different and I was nervous before I joined. But I found great people, a team that was ready to help me, and I enjoyed a good season. It was made easy for me.
“My ambition is to keep developing as a rider – to learn from and help the best and become a key member of the team for many years to come. For me there is no better place to do that than Team Sky.
“I’m really happy here because I have everything I could ask for. It’s a dream team and I don’t see myself anywhere else.”
Team Principal Dave Brailsford welcomed the news of Bernal’s new deal, commenting: “This is an important moment in the development of the team. A five-year deal in cycling is exceptional, but Egan is an exceptional talent. I believe today’s announcement demonstrates three things.
“Firstly, it is the clearest signal of our belief in Egan as a rider, with the potential to win the biggest races in the world in the coming years. Age is no barrier to ability. Egan is part of the next generation at Team Sky, our next big leader for Grand Tours in the years to come, as we continue to build for a bigger and better future. He is a top talent who has already shown his mental and physical strength in recent months. He will only keep on improving.
“Second, it is testament to the staff and other riders at Team Sky who have helped him develop over the last year. This is his first year as a professional and we have always taken great pride at Team Sky on being a team who can nurture and develop young riders. We all know there is much more to come from Egan. He is a big part of the next generation of Team Sky, an incredible crop of young riders, alongside the likes of Tao Geoghegan Hart, Pavel Sivakov and Gianni Moscon. We are all excited about their unique opportunity to continue to learn from the current generation of great champions – Froome, Thomas and Kwiatkowski – as they support them on the road over the coming years, with the goal of helping them to become champions themselves.
“Finally, it is a strong signal of intent from the team about the future. We are proud of what we have achieved together at Team Sky since our formation, but we have even greater ambitions to keep on improving and Egan will be at the very heart of that.”
