Southlander to make Tour de France debut

Corbin Strong's entry into the Tour de France is another piece of history for Cycling Southland which has an ever-growing list of success stories in terms of junior riders making the elite level.

Southland’s Corbin Strong has reached the dizzy heights of cycling with confirmation he will line up in the 2023 Tour de France.

Strong’s professional road team Israel – Premier Tech has announced its team for the tour which includes the former Southland Boys’ High School pupil.

The selection is another step in an already exciting career for the 23-year-old which included winning gold on the track at the Commonwealth Games.

In 2020 Strong also won a world title in the points race on the track.

He made his mark on the road last year when the Southlander finished sixth overall in the Tour of Britain which included a stage victory.

His entry into the Tour de France race is another piece of history for Cycling Southland which has an ever-growing list of success stories in terms of junior riders going on to the elite level.

The 2023 Tour de France will start on July 1.

Israel – Premier Tech sports manager Rik Verbrugghe was pleased with the team it had assembled.

“We bring a strong team, ready to race aggressively, with the main goal of going for stage wins.”

“We all know that it’s hard to win a stage in the Tour, but I believe that each of our eight selected riders has what it takes to be victorious in this race. I would like to see the team race with the same attitude and eagerness as we did in the Giro d’Italia this year. If we can continue like this, racing opportunistically, I believe we will have a great race.”

IPT lineup: Guillaume Boivin (CAN), Simon Clarke (AUS), Hugo Houle (CAN), Krists Neilands (LAT), Nick Schultz (AUS), Corbin Strong (NZL), Dylan Teuns (BEL), Michael Woods (CAN).