Neve Bradbury finished tenth in the general classification in her Giro Donne debut following today’s final day in Padova. After ten stages the CANYON//SRAM Racing rider showed her climbing strength to steadily edge into the top ten and with the support of her team, was able to secure an impressive result. The 20-year-old Australian won the Zwift Academy in 2020 and is in her second year as a professional rider with CANYON//SRAM Racing. It was a very different outcome than what Bradbury had expected in her first-ever Giro Donne.
“The Giro went really well for me. My performance exceeded my initial goals which were to get through the tour and help my teammates as much as possible. I didn’t aim for any specific result and was focused on recovery so I could do my best to be a reliable teammate. The team rode really well together, with everyone really getting the best out of themselves and committing to the plan. I ended up with 10th on GC which I am really happy and surprised about! I’m really thankful for the team support in the final days.” said Neve.
While Neve finished tenth in the overall, she also took second in the youth classification. Teammate Elise Chabbey was second in the mountain classification after collecting more points on today’s final stage, and the team finished second in the team classification.
Read the reactions of Neve’s teammates below.
ELISE CHABBEY
“I’m a bit disappointed with the tour overall, as I expected more possibilities for breakaways but in the end, there were only climbers or sprinters that could go for a stage. It would have been nice to get the mountain jersey but Faulkner was too strong, even though as a team we tried hard to defend the jersey. Neve was super strong and I’m really happy for her. She deserved a GC top 10 and to be up there with some very strong riders. I hope it gives her a lot of confidence moving forward. The team worked well together, we had a nice atmosphere, we were motivated, and we tried hard.”
“The Giro went pretty well for me. I am happy that throughout the race, I could perform better each day. I expected, and aimed, for a better result at my home stage in Sarnico on stage 6, but looking back I did a lot of work earlier in the stage. So, I have to be happy with my overall performance on that day.
I really enjoyed how we raced as a team. We tried something each day and though we didn’t get the final top results we wanted, we were a strong team, getting second in the Team GC, second in the mountains, second in the youth and a top 10 in the overall. Maybe we can think about our tactics and how to use our strengths even better. Overall,, a nice Giro together as a team.”
MIKAYLA HARVEY
“I really enjoyed my Giro this year. Everyone, from the staff to the riders, was motivated and the team atmosphere was really nice. I am disappointed that I blew up in the heat on stage 4. However, I was able to overcome this disappointment and change my objectives for the tour. I was motivated to be a strong teammate and I had the freedom to go in a break on stage 7 where I just got caught a few kilometres from the top. I was gutted to not make the podium but proud that I gave it a go. As a team, we fought extremely hard to keep the QOM jersey for Elise. We couldn’t quite secure the jersey but it was a tough battle and everyone gave their all! I am also very proud of our youngster Neve. She showed incredible talent and determination throughout the whole tour. She placed in the top 10 and second in the young rider category!”
SARAH ROY
“My goal for the Giro was to have a really good prologue TT on day one and work on our sprints with the team. Every Giro I do, I always want to contribute as much as possible to help the climbers as well. Unfortunately, I didn’t have a good TT. We could see in the analysis that I went out way too hard, and it cost me a lot in the end. I think this comes down to a lack of experience with time trials. Despite being a cyclist for a long time now I haven’t focused on this discipline so at least I’ve learned that lesson now.
It was good to swap the roles around with sprint stages and by the end of the week we found a pretty good groove. There were a lot of improvements from all of us on the final stage today being another sprint finish. I missed the jump in the end but after our huge efforts as a team on stage 9 it’s no surprise.
Overall there were some ups and downs over the 10 stages. Collectively, we are an extremely strong group that was really committed. We just missed some top end performance when it came to finish line joy. Our MVP (most valuable player) was our little mountain goat, Neve who at just 20 years of age earned 10th in GC in her first ever Giro. I think that’s worth celebrating.”
SORAYA PALADIN
“I was looking for a podium but this year, with the profile of the stages, to achieve a podium you needed to be a pure climber or a sprinter. So I’m a bit disappointed in the personal goal, but I tried to help the team. Overall, I think we had a nice Giro. Our little Neve was impressive. We tried to win the mountain jersey but one rider was just stronger than us. We were also the second best team here, which shows we were always present. We just missed one big result and that’s what we are hungry to achieve together.”