Ben Swift ready to return at RideLondon-Surrey Classic

Ben Swift is looking forward to riding for Team Sky again after three months out with a shoulder injury.

Ben Swift makes a welcome return to action at the RideLondon–Surrey Classic on Sunday after three months on the sidelines following his crash at the Tour de Yorkshire.

Swift required shoulder surgery after coming down on a wet corner on the opening day of that race and has spent the time since then battling back to full fitness as he aims to put a difficult period behind him.

The 27 year old was narrowly pipped to victory by Adam Blythe at the same race last year, and is not ruling out the prospect of putting that right on Sunday, despite his lengthy layoff.

When we caught up with him he was excited by the prospect of riding for Team Sky again in the British capital, and hopes it can mark the start of a productive run of racing:

Team Sky: How is your condition heading into the RideLondon-Surrey Classic?

Ben Swift: I’d like to think it’s pretty good. Although I didn’t have the best preparation going into the Tour de Yorkshire [Swift had pulled out of the Vuelta al Pais Vasco three weeks earlier due to fatigue], I’d been feeling fit and riding well in the race, so that meant I had a good base to build on during my recovery from the crash.

Unfortunately, my injury was a serious one which needed immediate surgery, so I took a week to get over the operation and I’ve been gradually building my form ever since. I’m feeling fully fit now, with no pain or discomfort at all. My rehab has gone really well so we’ll just have to see what happens.

TS: How mentally tough has it been for you over the last three months, as well as pysical? This injury is the latest in a long line of setbacks you’ve had over the last few years.

BS: I think like anyone, you go through the full range of emotions. Immediately after the crash you’re taking the seriousness of the situation on board, and only after that do you think to yourself ‘Oh no, not again’. That’s the worst stage - when the frustration creeps in because you can’t start your recovery straight away due to the pain.  

With a shoulder injury, you are able to get on the turbo relatively quickly though, and as soon as I got back on my bike I began looking forward and working hard on my recovery.  I still had my bad days during that stage, it’s hard when you’re sat stationary for hours at a time, but you have to focus on the end goal of racing again in the peloton.

I’ve learnt to split my recovery into stages, first is doing the turbo work, then it’s getting back on the road, and then it’s about joining up with your team-mates and getting ready to race.

TS: You did just that at the team’s training camp in Sestriere earlier this month, how was that?

BS: It was brilliant to get back with the guys, and just what I needed. I was there for two full weeks and it was actually a new experience for me because I’d never done an altitude camp before. We’ll just have to see how I’ve come out of that in this next block of racing.   

I’m really looking forward to getting stuck in at RideLondon, and then I have the Tour of Denmark immediately after that.

TS: Are you aiming to come back with a bang in London, or will it be more a case of easing yourself back into the racing?

BS: I’ll follow whatever the team instructions are for me, and we’ll discuss those between now and the start of the race. We’ve got a very strong team – one which is very sprint focused with CJ [Sutton], Elia [Viviani] and Andy [Fenn] all there with me – but I’ll certainly be looking to ride an aggressive race, and if the opportunity arises, I’ll obviously try and take it.

I’m excited to get stuck in, and to see how I feel in that race environment after such a long spell on the sidelines. That’s always so hard to predict and I’m looking forward to seeing what the sensations are.

TS: What are your feelings when you look back on last year’s race?

BS: Obviously, it’s always disappointing to be beaten by such a thin margin, but if there was anyone I’d have taken to be beaten by last year, it would have been Adam because he’s a really good friend. I’d love to put that right this time around, but we’ll just have to see what happens. There are a lot of variables this year, and one-day racing is always hard to predict, but we’ll give it a good go.

TS: Can you tell us more about what those variables are?

BS: With the course, the weather, and the mix of teams who have entered, it promises to be a really aggressive race, and that always makes it very hard to read tactically.

Being consistently near the front in those types of situations is vital, and having only six riders per team also adds an extra dimension of unpredictability.

You then have to factor in that they’ll be a huge variance in the condition of different riders. You’ve got some guys who’ll be flying after the Tour de France, and other who are tired. Some guys will be returning from mid-season breaks, and others like me who have been out through injury. It’s going to be such an open race, and that should make for an exciting one as well. We have a lot of options in our team and we’re definitely looking forward to it.

TS: Alex Peters will be riding with you for the first time on Sunday after signing as a stagiaire, how well do you know him?

BS: The first time I met him was at our training camp in Sestriere. Coming into that type of environment as a stagiaire can be a little intimidating, but he was really polite and seems like a nice guy. I’m looking forward to working with him and we’ll all make him feel really welcome.

TS: Straight after RideLondon, you fly out to the Tour of Denmark. Are excited about that race?

BS: Definitely. I’ve looked at the route and it has a little bit of everything over the five stages. I’ll just have to see how my legs are feeling after RideLondon though before I make any predictions on my progress there.

The RideLondon-Surrey Classic takes place on Sunday 2 August, with the Tour of Denmark running between 4-8 August.