Sky To Leave Professional Cycling - The End Of An Era?

Today, Sky announced their withdrawal of sponsorship from professional cycling at the end of the 2019 season. In this video, we'll look back on the team's history and ask whether this spells the end of an era in cycling...

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Team Sky became a reality in 2009, ready to launch the following year. At the helm - British Cycling Performance Director Dave Brailsford, the man behind Great Britain’s rise to the top of the track cycling world.

Their goal? To win the Tour de France with a British rider within 5 years. A lofty ambition, one that few thought was achievable. With good reason - the best British finisher at the Tour had been Robert Millar in 1984. But then, the very same year that the sponsors were put in place, Bradley Wiggins emulated that result, later promoted to 3rd after the disqualification of Lance Armstrong.

At their launch, Wiggins, Edvald Boasson Hagen, Thomas Lowkwist, Simon Gerrans and the relatively unknown Chris Froome were presented to the media. So too was the concept of Marginal Gains, the thin blue line tracing down the team’s jerseys representing the small margins between winning and losing.

Part of those marginal gains, and also revealed at the launch was their team bus. Like nothing that had previously been seen in the world of professional cycling, it was state of the art, aimed at improving the comfort and recovery of their riders, later dubbed the Death Star by David Millar.

Do you think this spells the end of an era for the team? Or can they be saved with new sponsorship? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below. 👇

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Photos: © Velo Collection (TDW) / Getty Images & © Bettiniphoto / http://www.bettiniphoto.net/

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