A collection of 38 young British cyclists - 35 men and three women - have been chosen for Rayner Foundation funding for 2025.
The charity, entering its 30th year, supports young Brits hoping to forge a racing career abroad, and is named after Dave Rayner. Many former recipients have gone on to have professional racing careers and win the biggest bike races, from David Millar to Oscar Onley.
The 38 riders will mostly ride for club teams in France and Spain, but some are on WorldTour development teams, such as Seb Grindley at Lidl-Trek, and others are at Continental squads, like Awen Roberts at Canyon-SRAM Generation.
“I found out about it through Instagram, just other riders posting it,” Ben Chilton, who heads into his second year of funding, explained. “When I thought about moving to France, I thought I should try and get on Rayner, and I did. The grant itself takes a bit of pressure off you, and then also there’s a community of riders around. Even if you don’t know them personally, at races there’s someone you can speak to, it’s a common ground really. If anyone is thinking of moving abroad to race, the Rayner is a very key part of making that step.”
The 21-year-old will switch teams next year, heading to Brittany, where he says racing suits him better: “My style suits the aggressive nature and punchy climbs of the north, not the bigger ones you get in the south of France or Italy.”
Ella Jamieson, 19, will race for Massi-Baix Ter next year after the collapse of Lifeplus-Wahoo. She wants to use the Rayner platform to ensure there are more than just three women in the future.
“I was the only girl supported last year, which was an honour,” she said. I don’t think that many girls have been supported by the fund, so it’s nice to change that, encourage female cyclists to apply. We just have to keep working at it. I think it’s not only been about the grant money, but about building confidence in the female community as well. That’s been the really important thing for me this year.
“Being part of the Rayner Foundation is big for your image as well, so I think it’s created a lot of support and help in the female community. A couple of girls came up to me at the Rayner dinner a couple of weeks ago saying it was nice to see a female rider up there as well. The grant money is a huge help. It’s not enough for me to just survive, but it’s a huge help, what with all the costs that come with living abroad. I definitely wouldn’t be able to do what I’m doing now without their help.”
