National Champions: Wiggins and Rafferty Take Victories for Hagens Berman Jayco
It was a banner day for Hagens Berman Jayco at National Championships, as Ben Wiggins and Adam Rafferty each claimed national time trial titles on the same afternoon, thousands of miles apart.
In Lampeter, Wales, Ben Wiggins ended two seasons as runner-up by winning the British U23 National Time Trial Championship and finally landing the jersey after four runner-up finishes across the junior and under-23 ranks. He was the only rider to break the 30-minute barrier, stopping the clock at 29:02.
Not too far from there, in Swinford, Ireland, Adam Rafferty retained his Irish U23 title by 46 seconds. The win came just days after Rafferty's second-place finish on Stage 8 and seventh overall at the Giro Next Gen.
Team director Axel Merckx was proud of both. "Ben has been knocking on that door for years, and today he kicked it down. Going faster on the second lap than the first, that's maturity." On Rafferty: "Adam just keeps winning. Retaining a national title after the week he had in Italy says everything about his character. He's one of the most complete young riders in the world right now."
