DEVO: McNulty Nabs Second Straight Podium For National Development Program

  
  


Brandon McNulty basks in the prizes after his third place finish at the 2017 Tour de Alsace
Brandon McNulty basks in the prizes after his third place finish at the 2017 Tour de Alsace.
(August 1, 2017) – The USA Cycling National Development Program keeps churning out the podium finishes. The latest came Sunday at the Tour of Alsace in France as U23’s Brandon McNulty (Phoenix, Ariz./Rally Cycling) finished third in the general classification. McNulty’s podium comes a week after Riley Sheehan (Boulder, Colo./LUX Cycling) won Le Tour de l’Abitibi Junior Nations Cup race in Canada. McNulty finished the four-stage race 20 seconds back of winner Lucas Hamilton (AUS) and 11 seconds behind runner-up Carl Fredrik Hagen (NOR).
 
With all of the American riders either 19 or 20 years old, Team USA fielded what may have been the youngest team in the Tour of Alsace.
 
“The goal going into the race was to win the TTT, and spend the rest of the week aiming to execute excellent process, in terms of racing for GC,” said U23 Manager Nate Wilson. “We had no expectations on results, but went to Alsace in order to build this team of riders that will likely be together a lot for the next three to four years. As we've been saying, this whole year, we are here to excel at development. If we focus on the process, the technique, and the fundamentals, the development will occur - results can be the measure, but this week was not our goal.”
 
The plan of winning the prologue team time trial came to fruition. With half teams of three-rider squads contesting the flat 4.7-kilometer course, McNulty, Michael Hernandez (Clermont, Fla./Aevolo) and Ian Garrison (Decatur, Ga./Axeon Hagens Berman) took first place.
 
“The guys really did their homework,” Wilson said. “We built a plan of how we thought we could ride the course fastest. The guys executed really well, and it paid off.”

 
Team USA cools down after a tough third stage at the 2017 Tour de Alsace
Team USA cools down after a tough third stage at the 2017 Tour de Alsace.
The rest of the week, the team’s focus shifted to giving McNulty the best shot possible at the GC, with every rider on the squad playing a critical role. Hernandez, Tyler Stites (Tucson, Ariz./Aevolo) and Edward Anderson (Richmond, Va./Axeon Hagens Berman) watched over McNulty on stage two in helping him to a ninth-place finish which kept him in fourth place in the GC.
 
McNulty moved up to third place on the fourth stage which featured 4,000 meters of climbing as the young U.S. team learned the importance of staying topped up on nutrition and how to ride in the grupetto. The team aided McNulty in securing third place on the podium during the final stage which ended in a sprint finish.
 
“I was really pleased with how the team rode in the final stage, always together in the field, always thinking about what was coming next,” added Wilson. “The results we achieved this week were nice, but for me the real positives were the progress in executing a clean, GC-focused race, and riding together as a team. That is what will allow this young squad to grow and progress together.”
 
Anderson finished 32nd overall and Garrison, who suffered a crash in stage three, placed 107th.
 
Complete news, results and pictures from the Tour Alsace can be found here.
 
Coming Up
 
The Juniors will race in the Aubel la Gleize in Belgium, Aug. 4-6.
 
The U23 is currently participating in a training camp in the Alps in preparation for the Tour de l’Avenir in France, Aug. 17-27.
 
The women’s team will next be in action at the Boels Rental Ladies Tour in Holland, Aug. 29-Sept. 3.
 
About USA Cycling’s National Development Programs 
USA Cycling’s National Development Programs aim to achieve sustained success in international cycling competition for the United States by providing promising young athletes with a pathway to the top tier of the sport. Our athlete development programs begin with Talent ID Camps and move athletes all the way through to top international competition. Thanks to support from the United States Olympic Committee and to the generous support of our Foundation donors, we’re able to facilitate programs for junior and U23 cyclists in all five discipline of competitive cycling.  If you want to help support the future of American cycling, click here to make a donation now.


This Article Updated August 1, 2017 @ 01:07 PM For more information contact: