Shock INEOS Strade Bianche selection: no Egan Bernal and no Thymen Arensman

Bernal finished on the podium in Strade Bianche back in 2021, and he was also prominent on the gravel stage of last year’s Giro d’Italia. Even so, he is not in the INEOS selection for this weekend. That comes despite the Colombian taking a top ten last weekend at the Ardèche Classic. At this stage, it is still unclear why Bernal will not start in Siena.

Not only Bernal, but also “shadow leader” Thymen Arensman will not be on the start line. The Dutchman had been listed on the provisional start list until recently, but he is now absent too. Normally, the pair would share leadership duties at Tirreno-Adriatico, which begins on Monday.

With both planned leaders missing, it looks like the British team will line up with a younger rider as its main card: Axel Laurance. He is also the only rider in the squad who has already won this season. The 24-year-old Frenchman finished fifth last year at the gravel race Clásica Jaén, so he should be well suited to this kind of terrain — even if the absence of Bernal and Arensman is a significant blow for INEOS.

INEOS Grenadiers will also start with Australian climbers Jack Haig and Lucas Hamilton. Kim Heiduk, Artem Shmidt, Connor Swift, and Colombia’s national time trial champion Brandon Rivera complete the line-up for the sterrato Classic. Swift rode to an impressive 13th place from the breakaway last year.

Jack Haig
Lucas Hamilton
Kim Heiduk
Artem Schmidt
Connor Swift
Brandon Rivera
Axel Laurance