'That one's for you, mate' – Australian rider dedicates national title to WorldTour team boss who 'gave me the flick'
Former Picnic PostNL rider Patrick Eddy, now of Team Brennan, pulled off a dramatic victory
Former WorldTour pro Patrick Eddy playfully dedicated his victory at the Australian National Road Championships on Sunday to the Picnic PostNL team boss who he said “gave him the flick” at the end of last season.
Eddy, who now rides for Australian Continental squad Team Brennan, spent the last four years of his career with the Dutch team, riding for their WorldTour set-up in 2024 and 2025. The 23-year-old’s contract was not renewed for this season.
On Sunday, Eddy outsprinted three-time national champion Luke Plapp (Jayco AlUla) to win in Perth, having hunted down the breakaway leader Luke Durbridge (Jayco AlUla).
The victory marked the first of his career at pro level.
“A few months ago, I felt like most of the cycling world gave up on me. But there was just those handful of people around me who just kept believing in me, kept telling me to keep at it, keep hustling. This is for them,” Eddy told Australian broadcaster SBS.
The 23-year-old also made a tongue-in-cheek dedication to his former head coach at Picnic PostNL. “I told Rudi Kemna I’d make him look a bit silly when he gave me the flick, so that one’s for you, mate,” he said, winking to the camera.
After two years on Picnic PostNL’s development squad, Eddy graduated to the WorldTour team in 2024, and went on to compete in marquee races like Paris-Roubaix, the Tour of Flanders, and the Vuelta a España.
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His new national crown comes seven years after he won both the junior road race and time trial titles. His latest win, he told SBS, “means everything”.
“I’ve pretty much won nothing since I won the junior nationals. I lost myself as a rider for the last few years, and just saw this as an opportunity to get back to racing aggressive, having fun,” he said. “I think I’ve found myself again.”
Plapp, the race’s runner-up, said Eddy was a “true champion” who had “gone through a lot”.
Likewise, on Instagram, Eddy’s partner, British Continental rider Libby Smithson, paid tribute to the new Australian champion, who she explained had had a sleepless night during the week caring for her after she was struck by a car driver.
“I have no words for how proud I am,” Smithson wrote. “On Tuesday night Pat slept in the hospital with me and got zero sleep even though his biggest goal of the year was in a few days.
“This is just one example of all the selfless things he does for me and everyone in his life. He's been through so much this year, but he's never stopped showing up for everyone else. No one deserves it more I wish I could properly put into words how f****ing amazing you are.”
Decathlon CMA CGM rider Oscar Chamberlain finished third in the men’s road race at the Australian National Championships.
The women’s elite title was won by Liv AlUla Jayco’s Mackenzie Coupland ahead of her club team-mate and 2024 champion Ruby Roseman-Gannon. Jay Vine (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) and Felicity Wilson-Haffenden (Lidl-Trek) won the elite time trial titles last week.
Tom joined Cycling Weekly as a news and features writer in the summer of 2022, having previously contributed as a freelancer. He is fluent in French and Spanish, and holds a master's degree in International Journalism. Since 2020, he has been the host of The TT Podcast, offering race analysis and rider interviews.
An enthusiastic cyclist himself, Tom likes it most when the road goes uphill, and actively seeks out double-figure gradients on his rides. His best result is 28th in a hill-climb competition, albeit out of 40 entrants.
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