Rebel Sport

As you can probably tell Rebel are no strangers to sport. The most popular sports retail company has gladly agreed to become a main sponsor of our new team, in their bid to include Cycling in their wide range of expertise. Rebel have signed a 2 year deal which means we are reslatively safe in terms of sponsorship until 2016, if all goes well.




Aviva

Again no strangers to world sport, Aviva give their name to the English Rugby Union League (Aviva Premiership) as well as sponsoring several football teams, most notably Norwich City. The British bank is making their first foray into the world of Cycling and we hope it will be a successful one. They have signed a 1 year deal.




Barilla

Unlike most teams, we have a tertiary sponsor. Italian pasta company Barilla don't lend their name to the team, but will be a close affiliate in terms of sponsorship and riders. They also sign for 1 year.

Other Sponsors

Hello and welcome for the inaugral press conference of the new Cycling team in Australia, Rebel-Aviva ProCycling! Thank you very much for coming, and here is the agenda. I will talk briefly about the team's vision, before I introduce spokespeople from our primary sponsors - Rebel Sport and Aviva. We will then take questions from you, the press. But first, what you have all been waiting for... The Jersey!



Many thanks to well known designer Jakstar22 for his amazing efforts. At this team, we want to be like a family. We want the riders and staff to all have good relationships with eachother and the riders should know that they always have our full support. We aim to have two-thirds of the team from Australia & Britain, while another quarter being Italian. Now, Michael Hawthorn from Rebel Sport.

Thank you very much. When I heard that there would be a new Australian-based Cycling team, I was quick to talk to the Rebel executives about a possible sponsorship. Like me, they were eager to make a deal happen. Cycle Man was also keen to strike a deal with a Sports focused group. I didn't take long to reach an agreement for 2 years, and now Rebel Sport can't wait to guide this team to success. Now Samantha Richards from Aviva.

Thank you Michael. We were actually contacted by Cycle Man about a possible contract with the team, but we weren't really to keen. However, after a few long meetings we decided that it would not only be a good investment, but also a pathway for Britain's next generation of Cycling stars. We want this team to be exactly that - a path for the next generation from Australia, Britain and Italy into the world of Professional Cycling.

Now that we have heard from our sponsors, let's take some questions from the press.

How strong will your focus on Great Britain be?

That's a good question. Britain and Australia are our main areas, so we hope to have a nice split between them, as mentioned earlier, but we also understand that there are other teams with primary focus on GB so it could be a tough area to work in. Any talents we can find available from Britain we will try to pick up, and although it could be a fight it's always worth it when you get a huge talent from a Primary Sponsor Country. So in short, pretty high.

Can you confirm reports that you hate Ireland and Irish riders, and will under no circumstances sign one?

I cannot confirm what is not true, and I have no idea where these reports have come from. Aviva is largely Irish as well, so we are certainly looking there, but after initial scouting we realise the fight for Irish talents will be tough, especially with a couple of teams a lot more strongly based there than we are. I see no reason why we would have no Irish riders but I also see no reason why we will, and it won't be a priority unless the unlikely event occurs of our other 3 countries having dried up.

With the knowledge of the recent influx of American based teams, do you have a plan as to how many American riders are you going to snag, if any, since some of your minor sponsors are US based companies?

Despite having American based "sponsors" in Instagram and Adidas, we don't see the need to enter the American market. Instagram isn't really a sponsorship, they just pay us a small amount of money to keep an active account, while Adidas is just our clothing manufacturer. With so many American teams, that is a market not to be contested by outside influences.

Do you intend to sign a sort of superstar to boost the image of the team?

There have been some backroom negotiations - even before the team's official forming - about the possible signing of Danilo Napolitano - the PCT's best sprinter, and we were as much as offered him by what is now La Vie Claire. However, we decided to opt out due to the cost of $400,000 plus, which is too much for a new team who still want to be able to field a competitive team. A marquee signing is unlikely at this time.

Do you intend to have the team focused on a single area, or have it well rounded?

A successful team requires strong riders in all areas. As much as race planning can help, you will still come across all sorts of different terrain. There's no use having a top sprinters' team and scoring tonnes of points in flat classics, but scoring nothing in anything else. A well rounded team is what we want to work towards.

With a large distance between sponsor countries, which geographical areas will you target in terms of racing?

We'll try to compete in the Asia Tour, while also around South to South-Western Europe. So Italy, Spain, Germany, England, and so on.

Thank you all for coming to this Press Conference, and make sure to check out our Team HQ for all the latest news.