The story of Jai Hindley, an old-fashioned boy

The young Jai Hindley, who hit like a blacksmith at the Giro, ended his stay in Australia early and moved to Europe, giving up on returning home for Christmas. Debut planned at Paris-Nice. Needless to say, this time it is not the return of a promising young player, but of the promising young rider who lost the Giro d'Italia in the Milan time trial, losing by just 39 secondsExpectations will be higher, and with them, pressure will also increase. If you look closely, the game starts now and it will be clear whether last year's wonders were based on solid foundations or whether they were exploits due to various environmental factors.

Zero pressure

His good fortune is that certain pressures will begin here with us, if anything, since In Perth, where he lives, the Giro's impact has been quite limited..

«The only sign that someone in the Australian media was interested in the Giro – his father Gordon told Ride Media – was when we received a phone call from ABC just before the last stageThey asked if they could do a feature and a chat about Jai, what his achievements were and where he came from. Instead The local newspaper, the West Australian, didn't even contact us. to ask something about him. Then, when they actually called me, their journalist asked me if I could help him because he really knew nothing about cycling."

The Year of Rugby

Gordon Hindley is not Australian, but he arrived there from Manchester in 1989. To tell the truth, he has always been the true cycling enthusiast, with a past as a racer. He was the one who put little Jai on a bike and took him to the track, and he was the one who risked a heart attack when for a year his son put his bike away and decided to dedicate himself to rugbyHe wasn't the size, but his mother Robyn had the right intuition to let him try something different to test his passion for cycling. In fact, after enjoying the camaraderie between rugby players, little Hindley took his bike again.

Ephemeral rose

Jai Hindley wore the pink jersey for just 15,7 kilometers: those of the last time trialIn fact, he won it in Sestriere, on the day his teammate Kelderman lost it. On the management of the Giro by Team Sunweb we could talk for a long time. Probably The Australian could have taken the lead from the day at the Cancano Lakes, maybe even trying to detach Tao Geoghegan Hart.

On the sofa

«Physically – he told Cyclingnews – I still felt pretty good in the last week, up until Sestriere. I think that What overwhelmed me was more the mental side than anything else. It's something I've never been through, really. It hit me like a ton of bricks that last week. And when I got home to Girona, it was just nice to sit on the couch and sink without having to do anythingBut now I think it's important to take a step back, not get too caught up in the action, and really enjoy the moment. It sounds cliché, but it's not every day you get to wear the pink jersey, even if it's only for 15 kilometers. It was a life-changing moment for me.».

Track at 7 years old

Growing up with a father like his, it's inevitable that throughout his life he has chased what the 2020 Giro d'Italia put on his plateBeing at the center of operations. Battling with the best on the climbs. Facing interviews. And also enduring the stares of those who didn't know him, who found him underfoot and then watched him win at the Cancano Lakes, thinking he had come out of nowhere. Without imagining that his path had really begun so far away.

«We have it taken to the Midland Velodrome when he was seven – his father continues – where they had built a program for the development of children on the track, which at the time was run by a coach named Rick Lee. When he then left to go work in America, I became an accredited coach, going through the Australian coaching system. In my heart I knew he would lose the Giro in the time trial, but conceding only 39 seconds to Geoghegan Hart, who is bigger and more powerful than him, was a good result. I'm also sure that with time Jai will improve in time trials, he started doing it every year since he arrived on this team."

Old fashioned

It will be this mixture of old English style and lessons learned in Italy with Umbertone which they gave to Hindley a perhaps old-fashioned approach to racing, which however allowed him to compete in the Giro with his head held high.

«It's not true that I came out of the U23s and started winning immediately – he says – I grew a few steps every yearIn 2018, I worked hard and without the spotlight. In 2019, I achieved my first placements. I think our team is really good at developing even the guys who don't win everything in their first year as professionals. When I run I don't want to know my power or heart rateIf you look down and see that you're already making huge numbers, when someone attacks you think you have no margin to follow them. Personally, I prefer to run old style and move forward with the sensations."