TOTPOD 1: SEAN QUINN
Sean Quinn turns season altering injury into triumph
For riders, the weeks immediately before the Tour de France are filled with a mixture of anticipation, excitement and anxiety. For European riders the National Championships the week before the race offer riders a final chance to impress their teams and earn selection to la grande boucle. Sean Quinn had no opportunity to impress his selectors, the American had secured his national title back in May, but when he joined Bobby Julich and Jens Voigt it was still unclear whether the LA born rider would make the final EF Education Easy-Post roster…
Overcoming adversity
The headlines in the aftermath of the Tour of the Basque Country surrounded injuries to Jonas Vingegaard, Primoz Roglic and Remco Evenepoel, but while Sean Quinn’s injuries didn’t draw the column inches of his more illustrious colleagues, the consequences to his season was no less damaging. Sean had fractured his sternum, his plans for the Giro were cancelled and as he told Bobby and Jens, he’d hit “rock bottom”. But he explained how he turned that low point into a career highlight at the US Nationals: “When you're at such a low point, every step, you just build a ton of momentum. And by the time I got back training, which luckily was super fast, I mean, I was just doing everything right… but yeah, it didn't seem like that crazy to me, to be competitive right away.”
Dreams of the Tour de France
After making the startline at the US Nationals Sean was able to work with his EF Education Easy-Post teammate Neilson Powless to secure the victory over Sean’s junior teammate Brandon McNulty. Sean, unaware of his impending selection, was cautious on what his role in the team would be, should he make the EF Tour team: “I think a lot of it hinges on how Richard Carapaz after his crash in the Tour de Suisse because I think, realistically, he's the only guy who would go for GC,” he said, before adding his role would either be supporting Carapaz as a mountain domestique or joining the breakaway in pursuit of stage wins.
The Rest…
To hear more about Sean’s story including which pro has become his housemate, how he prepares to take on cycling’s megastars and how he views his rivals in the peloton.. check out the full podcast below!
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