Australian sprinter rides remainder of season as stagiaire before joining full time in 2020
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Kaden Groves of the Mitchelton-BikeExchange (Image credit: Tour of Fuzhou)
Kaden Groves of the Mitchelton-BikeExchange won the final stage at the Tour of Fuzhou(Image credit: Tour of Fuzhou)
Kaden Groves (Mitchelton-BikeExchange) hits the line first (Image credit: Tour of Fuzhou)
Having so far spent the 2019 season with SEG Racing Academy, Kaden Groves will return to the GreenEdge fold next month as a stagiaire for Mitchelton-Scott, before starting his first full season with the Australian WorldTour team in 2020.
Groves rode for the Continental development team Mitchelton-BikeExchange for the second half of 2018, winning stages of the Tour of Qinghai Lake, the Tour of Quanzhou Bay, and the Tour of Fuzhou, all in China, having started the season with the St. George Continental Cycling Team.
According to Mitchelton-Scott, the 20-year-old Australian sprinter from Gympie, in Queensland, is likely to head to the environment of a WorldTour outfit for the first time at UCI-ranked 1.HC race the Brussels Cycling Classic on September 7.
"After experiencing new challenges and a European calendar with SEG Racing Academy, I feel ready to develop further in the professional peloton and learn from the experience of the Mitchelton-Scott riders and staff," said Groves, who only took up cycling seriously in 2015 following a motocross injury.
"I really enjoyed my time in the [Mitchelton-BikeExchange] development team, and I can't wait to be back in that environment," he said on his new team's website.
This season, Groves has won stages of the Ronde de l'Isard, the Triptyque des Monts et Châteaux, and two stages and the points jersey at the Circuit des Ardennes, but is looking forward to now taking the next step in his career.
"I see myself as a sprinter who can lead out and survive some climbs," he continued, "but, above all, I want to develop as a better rider and again learn from the experience of the riders and supporting staff, so I'm excited to work with the guys to achieve the best results possible for the team."
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Head sports director Matt White added: "Kaden spent a year in our development team a couple of years ago and we really saw some talent there. This year, with SEG Racing Academy, he has really hit his straps, won a number of races, and has had some really consistent results in this first half of the season.
"He's only 20 years of age, and a very exciting prospect," White said. "As with any really young guys, we don't know what his full potential is just yet, but he's very versatile, he's obviously very fast, can do a very good prologue [time trial] and can win sprints uphill and on the flat.
"I'm really excited to have Kaden start his journey as a professional with the team. They're exciting times ahead," he said.
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