Watch the Critérium du Dauphiné LIVE and FREE on SBS VICELAND and SBS On Demand with Stage 1 getting underway on Sunday evening from 9.05pm (AEST).
In the wake of his Tour de France success, O’Connor talked about there being a lot of improvement in him, as well as a lot of improvement necessary if he wants to take his career to the peaks of a Grand Tour win. The West Australian has taken heart from Jai Hindley’s Giro d’Italia victory, the pair often in competition at a junior level while developing.
“It was encouraging to see my friend Jai Hindley win the Giro,” said O’Connor. “He is also from Perth and we have known each other for a long time. When I saw him win, I told myself I too can do it.
“My Tour adventure last year was extraordinary and I couldn't even begin to imagine what happened. To win a stage and finish fourth overall in Paris is something huge. And I did it! But of course, you always want to do better.
“That's why you become an athlete and why you have to invest so much in this job. So, I have changed my view compared to last year and I feel capable of aiming for the top this summer.”
O’Connor’s successes came in spurts earlier in his career, but his maturation into a full-time GC rider since his transition to AG2R-Citroen has allowed the 26-year-old to discover the consistency worthy of top names regularly part of the general classification battle in races. He has two wins to his name this season, a stage of the Volta a Catalunya that thrust him into the race lead, and at a one-day race, the Tour du Jura.
He hasn’t finished lower than seventh overall in stage races, barring Paris-Nice where he pulled out midway through with illness.
“I am rather pleased with how I have been riding so far, but it could have been even better,” said O’Connor. “For example, I was fifth in the Tour de Romandie but I felt that I could have finished on the podium, and why not win if everything had gone better.
“However, you can't say that I have changed much about how I ride or my training. I'm just maturing, I'm still developing physically and my level is rising naturally. I am 26 years old and the years of hard work are starting to pay off.
“My body is adapting to the demands of these races and is responding better and better to very ambitious goals. I am also becoming more confident. I used to hope to become a general classification rider. Now I am a general classification rider.”
O’Connor continued his serendipitous run of winning on stages that finish at ski resorts, four of his seven wins as a professional have come on finishes at ski resorts, with a victory to La Molina, jumping clear of an impressive field and holding them off to the line at the Volta a Catalunya. The West Australian revealed the importance of that moment as he bounced back from having to withdraw from Paris-Nice two weeks prior.
“On Paris-Nice, I was both very proud and very disappointed,” said O’Connor. “I had to pull out of the race because I got sick but there is no doubt that the form was there. So, when I arrived at the Volta a Catalunya, I wanted to get some revenge.
“And when I won the La Molina stage, I got the validation I was waiting for and that all the work I put in over the winter paid off. In terms of confidence, of course, it is one of the important days of this year.”
O’Connor is coming off a three-week block of altitude training at Sierra Nevada and has ambitions to achieve something he has yet to do at WorldTour level when he takes to the Dauphiné start line.
“The time has come to go for a podium in a major World Tour event,’ said O’Connor. “It would be my first and I know that it is now possible for me to win these types of races.”
The varied parcours of the Critérium du Dauphiné seem to lend itself to attackers and breakaways early in the race, with some serious climbs in the Alps to finish proceedings. O’Connor also highlighted the importance of the Stage 4 flat time trial over 31.9 kilometres.
“I have some ideas in mind but, for example, I am not sure that it is necessary to push on the Sancy stage. Clearly it is a challenge but the last climb is not steep enough to make a big difference. On the other hand, the time trial will be crucial. I haven't done many this year and I am eager to see where I stand in this respect.
“I believe that the days when climbers were inevitably bad on flat roads are over. I can also do well in time trials.”
O’Connor will need all his strength, as he’ll be battling with a strong field for the overall win, with the likes of fellow Australians Jack Haig (Bahrain-Victorious), Rohan Dennis (INEOS Grenadiers) and Michael Storer (Groupama-FDJ), joined by an impressive group of pre-race contenders including Primož Roglič, Jonas Vingegaard (both Jumbo-Visma), Juan Ayuso, Brandon McNulty (both UAE Team Emirates), Enric Mas (Movistar), Miguel Angel Lopez (Astana-Qazaqstan), Wilco Kelderman (BORA-hansgrohe), Tao Geoghegan Hart (INEOS Grenadiers), Pello Bilbao and Damiano Caruso (both Bahrain-Victorious).
Watch the Critérium du Dauphiné LIVE and FREE on SBS VICELAND and SBS On Demand with Stage 1 getting underway on Sunday evening from 9.05pm (AEST).
