Sam Bennett on the road to achieving Tour de France dream

Irish rider Sam Bennett moved a step closer to realising his dream of riding the Tour de France in July when his team were yesterday granted a wildcard invitation to the world’s biggest bike race.

The Carrick-on-Suir sprinter is one of the top riders in his German-registered Bora Argon-18 team and they, along with 21 other squads were confirmed for the three-week race in six months’ time.

It’s huge news for Bennett, and indeed Irish cycling, as it raises the possibility of the country being represented by four riders in the Tour, something which has never happened before.