The Hagens Berman Axeon Cycling Team is excited to add one of Great Britain’s most promising juniors, Matthew Cole, to the 2024 roster. Matty joins the Axeon squad from Zappi Junior Race Team.
“Joining Hagens Berman Axeon is pretty mint,” said an elated Matty. “I first heard about the team back in the U16 category from YouTube and I've followed the team ever since. It was really cool when I was told there was a spot for me - nothing has motivated me more through my physio [three months ago, Matty suffered a crash while racing and broke his left femur in one place and his right tibia/fibula in two places] than the idea of performing for this team on the biggest stage!”
Matty’s Palmares:
2023 Gipuzkoa Klasikoa - 1st place general classification
2022 Hatherleigh Junior Road Race - 1st place
The 18-year-old from Yorkshire, England describes himself as an all-around rider that can “climb well over both short and long climbs but I can also ride strongly on flat or rolling terrain with a strong sprint from a reduced group,” he said. “Next year, my first goal is to return to full strength and fitness after my crash, which I'm already a month ahead of schedule to do so. After that I'm really looking forward to getting stuck into some racing with the team and I hope to achieve some decent results in races towards the second half of the season.”
“Matthew is the type of rider I was looking for in a young rider,” said team owner and director Axel Merckx. “He has good results as a junior but also a clear growth margin. Despite the fact of his bad crash at the end of the season, Mathew has time to come back and continue his development in our structure.”
Matty is the eighth rider scheduled to join the Hagens Berman Axeon Cycling Team in 2024 after Ben Wiggins, Hamish McKenzie, Mattia Sambinello, Adam Rafferty, Samuele Privitera, Evan Boyle, and Darren Parham.
