Limerick Teenager Oisin O Callaghan has secured a 2-year professional contract with YT Bikes and The YT Mob.
The 16-year old has been competing in Downhill Mountain Bike races across Europe and the UK – in an attempt to get to the very pinnacle of what is a hugely competitive sport.
Main sponsors Red Bull TV and
Mercedes cover every race and highlight athletes on their channel in the UCI
Race Series of World Cup Racing, allowing O’Callaghan to gain national and
international attention.
Over the last 6 months O’Callaghan has been attending training camps with a German Bike Manufacturer YT Bikes and their team THE YT MOB run by Martin Whitely, one of the most successful managers in the world of downhill racing.
The journey began at the start of 2019
when The YT Mob advertised for applicants from over 6 continents and 550
entries worldwide. The field was then narrowed down to approximately 23 racers
per continent.
Then from each continent the select few would be narrowed down again to just 1 or 2. Only 8 would qualify to finals and receive 1 of the 8 golden tickets to the Team Camp in Grenada Spain in October 2019.
The final shortlist of riders included
four from Europe, one each from New Zealand, North America, South America and
South Africa. The team camp was akin to a week-long interview process to
examine how the new riders would complement the current team.
Despite the training camp not going to plan with a wrist injury after day 2, it appears that O’Callaghan’s reaction to the injury impressed the team management. The Limerick racer made the cut having been given the nod from senior racer Angel Suarez and Team Manager Martin Whitely.
“When I was told that I’d been selected, I could only describe the sensation as overwhelming. At the start of this process I guess it didn’t really sink in when I got picked for the Fort William Young Talent Camp but I knew it was going to be exciting to spend 3 days of riding with Angel and the team.
” It was unreal when my Dad told me I
was selected for Finals Camp. It was probably the first time that I really felt
what it would be like to be a pro racer with mechanics, team truck, hotel etc.
We were like Kings for the week!
“I’ll be aiming to get some good
results next season with podiums and to build on every race to get more
experience. It’ll be important to try and soak up and enjoy all the advice from
the team and to become a better racer, and really enjoy the atmosphere of
World Cup racing.”
Óisin O’Callaghan, YT Mob Junior 2020
2020 and 2021 will be exciting times for the
Limerick teenager as he steps into the mix with some of the fastest elite
racers from the World Downhill Circuit.
You can follow and track the progress of Oisin
and the YT Mob on the social media channels below.