SA cyclist hopes to win Tour de France for Israel

South African cyclist Daryl Impey has signed on to join Israeli cycling team Israel Start-Up Nation (ISN) in 2021, with plans to help the team win the Tour de France.

“Our goal is to win the Tour de France [TDF] with [fellow future ISN new team member] Chris Froome. That’s our primary objective,” said Impey, speaking to theSA Jewish Report from Poland on the last day of the Tour de Pologne, where he was cycling with his current team, Mitchelton-Scott.

ISN announced on 9 July that four-time TDF winner, Froome, will lead the team, starting next season.

“The Israeli team and the legendary champion will sign a long-term contract on 1 August that will see Froome wear ISN’s blue and white until the end of his illustrious career,” said ISN. “This is an historic moment for ISN, Israel, Israeli sports, our many fans all around the world and, of course, for me personally, a moment of enormous pride,” said the team’s co-owner, Sylvan Adams, when Froome signed.

Impey quickly followed in his footsteps. The first rider from South Africa to wear the yellow jersey in the TDF, he signed a two-year contract with ISN on 5 August.

“I will be a road captain, and use my experience of racing the TDF to help guide the team as best I can. Apart from the Tour and chasing my own goals, we are also trying to develop cycling in Israel,” Impey says.

The move is all the more meaningful in the face of constant pressure from Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) movements to convince South Africans to avoid joining hands with Israel in any way. Africa4Palestine (formerly BDS South Africa) has been unusually silent on the matter, and Impey also chose not to comment on this.

“I decided to make a fresh start,” he said in a statement, when asked what drove him to make the move to the Israeli team. “I feel like I need to step out of the comfort zone of Mitchelton-Scott. I had great success with the team, formed many strong friendships, and made amazing memories. I can’t thank them enough for getting me this far in my career.

“Although the team is relatively new on the scene, they are building a really strong team for next season. With ambitions of winning the TDF with Froome, it won’t be seen as a start-up team,” he says. “It’s not a risky move. I was looking for a new challenge and a change. It’s a fantastic opportunity.”

In his official statement, Impey said, “It certainly wasn’t an easy decision. I gave it a great deal of thought. But it’s exciting to work with a new team, with new energy and new ambitions. The most crucial reason is the challenge that is waiting for me at ISN. After speaking to ISN co-owner Adams and the team’s management, I got the sense that they see other aspects of me as a bike rider. I will have the opportunity to play a leadership role, and as team captain, I’ll be given more responsibility and a huge challenge at the same time.

“Team ISN has moved through the ranks quickly. Now, it’s about trying to create a winning culture. I will use my experience over the past decade to instil this in the younger guys, and make sure we are always progressing. I’m excited about it.”

Adams pursued Impey after the dramatic move to sign Froome.

“Impey is a strong rider who has won big races, twice conquering the Tour Down Under. We also expect that given his experience, he could be our TDF road captain. He started his career riding with his friend, Froome, on Barloworld, so we’re hoping that Impey will be a trusted ally for Froome as we race to make history together at the Tour,” he said.

Impey has made no secret of how Froome’s decision to lead ISN starting next season played into his own decision. “It’s not often you get to race with one of the greats in our sport, so when Chris called me and said he trusted me, and would like to have me by his side, I appreciated it, and knew he meant it. I’ve known him a long time, and our careers have come nearly full circle. We started out together at Barloworld, and we are continuing at ISN. I know he can win another TDF, and it will be great not only to be part of that team, but to play an important role.”

ISN was founded in 2014 by Ron Baron and Ran Margaliot to elevate and popularise the sport of cycling in Israel. It began as Israel Cycling Academy (ICA), and grew to become a WorldTour team under the name Israel Start-Up Nation. With its goal of developing Israeli cycling talent, ISN/ICA operates two teams: the Israel Cycling Academy development team for younger riders which races at continental level, and the senior Israel Start-Up Nation team that competes at the highest level of the sport, the WorldTour.

The ISN team includes riders from 16 nationalities, making it one of the most diverse in the world of pro cycling. The team’s riders have been designated ambassadors of peace and sport by the Peres Center for Peace and Innovation, founded by late Israeli president and Nobel Peace prize winner, Shimon Peres. This designation requires that riders race with exemplary sportsmanship and act as ambassadors for Israel.

The Giro d’Italia opening stage took place in Jerusalem on 4 May 2018, the first time in the Giro‘s 101 years of existence that it has started outside of Europe. Adams was the driving force behind the Giro’s “big start” in Israel, having financed a significant part of the race budget.

Impey told the SA Jewish Report that he had never been to Israel before. He expects to have a training camp there sometime soon. “It’s all new to me. All the racing happens mainly in Europe, so I will still be living in Spain. Nothing really changes for me other than new sponsors, new goals, and new team mates.”

His time on the bike started in 1997, “when I was asked by my father, Tony, to join him and my brother, Grant, on a mountain-bike ride. I was busy playing soccer at the time, but decided to try out mountain biking for the first time. Negotiating tricky descents, single-track riding, and the sudden pain in my legs was quite appealing, and I decided to prove to my dad that this was what I wanted to continue doing after playing soccer.”

He hasn’t stopped since then, in spite of many ups and downs in his career. He started his professional career in Team Barloworld, and raced for RadioShack and MTN-Qhubeka. In 2012, he joined Green Edge (now Mitchelton-Scott). In 2013, he became the first South African to lead the TDF. In 2015, he had to abandon the race after being involved in a massive crash, He bounced back in 2019, winning his first stage. He has won four other tour races – the Tour of Turkey in 2009; the Tour of Alberta in 2014; and the Tour Down Under in 2018 and 2019. Now, with the world at his feet, he’s ready to get Israel to victory.