Ben O'Connor

Ben O’Connor entered the sport of cycling relatively late: at the age of 17, he raced a criterium in Perth, which he won. 

He was noticed by Wayne Evans – manager of a Perth-based National Road Series team – at a state time trial event. In 2015, O’Connor joined Evans’ Navitas Satalyst Racing Team and began racing in Asia. 

The next year, he moved to Avanti IsoWhey Sport – then Australia’s best domestic team. The Subiaco rider impressed on the Continental circuit, winning the New Zealand Cycle Classic and earning other podium results. 

That garnered him his first WorldTour contract with Team Dimension Data in 2017. O’Connor stayed with the team for the next four seasons, winning stages of the Tour of the Alps, Tour of Austria and Etoile de Bessèges as he developed into a top-class mountain climber. 

2020 saw O’Connor achieve a breakthrough stage victory at the Giro d’Italia. He had made the breakaway on a lumpy stage 16, but finished second. The very next day, on the mountaintop finish of Madonna di Campiglio, the West Australian was again in the breakaway. This time, O’Connor rode away from the competition and soloed to victory. 

The next year, O’Connor was recruited to the French team AG2R Citroën. On his Tour de France debut, his career stepped up another level when he won stage 9 to Tignes. It was a familiar path to victory: on an alpine stage, O’Connor made the breakaway, then rode his rivals off the wheel before the summit finish. 

O’Connor’s stage win propelled him into second overall. He attempted to defend his podium position throughout the rest of the Tour, eventually finishing fourth. 

In 2022, O’Connor won the Tour du Jura and a stage of the Volta a Catalunya, and finished on the podium of the Critérium du Dauphiné. However, his second Tour de France participation was not so successful: an early crash forced him to withdraw before the race reached the mountains. He bounced back to finish seventh at the Vuelta. 

The next year, O’Connor repeated his podium result at the Dauphiné but was unable to fight for a GC result at the Tour de France. 

In 2024, after two less successful Tours, he focused his season around the Giro d’Italia. The year started brilliantly with a win at the Vuelta a Murcia and a stage win and second place at the UAE Tour. O’Connor rode a strong Giro and matched his highest grand tour result, finishing fourth overall to confirm his status as one of Australia’s best GC riders. 

O’Connor will make his Olympic debut in the road race at Paris 2024, receiving a late call-up after Lucas Plapp crashed in the time trial. 

Club: Peel District Cycling Club