THE road and the miles to Dundee have served Alfie George well this year. What ought to have been a hectic maiden under-23 season with the GB Cycling Team senior academy dramatically when lockdown descended.

Instead, George left Manchester behind for the comforts of the family home and took the opportunity to see more of Tayside on his bike.

“Dundee is where it all started for me, down on the Caird Park track with the Discovery Junior cycle club,” said the 19 year-old.

“When I’m down in Manchester, I really miss the roads up in Scotland. It’s so quiet and you can get up into the glens for hours. During lockdown I was just putting in the miles to stay fit and was loving exploring over Ben Lawers and around Loch Tay.”

Expectations had been high this year on the back of a stellar 2019 for George that included three British and one European title, and seventh place at the junior world road championships in Yorkshire.

The transition to small fish in the big pond as one of the youngest in the senior academy has been harder due to the lack of racing but George remains largely unperturbed as he aims to continue his fine start to his professional career.

He will have a better idea of what lies ahead when he competes for the British under-23 team in the UEC Road European Championships in Plouay, France.

“I’ve moved up to the under-23 category this year after having a great time as a junior last year,” he added.

“So it’s a big step up. You get four years in this category so this one was going to be all about just gaining experience. It’s gutting to have missed all those races and I’m going into this Euro race not really knowing what it’s going to be like.

“But I would have been in that same position at the start of the season if we had raced as normal. So I’m keen to get back out there and see what the level is at.

“As a first year you’ve never raced at this level or over this distance before. But we’re lucky that in the academy that we have guys with different levels of experience so we’ll have a pre-race plan and everyone will know what to do.

“As a younger rider you’ll do a lot of work for the older ones and by doing that you also learn how a race works. And if we do our jobs well then hopefully one of the older ones can finish it off and get the team a win - which is what it’s all about.”

For the time being he is keen to continue balancing the demands of both track and road, having so far checked every box on his cycling wish list.

“It’s quite funny looking back. I remember when the Yorkshire world champs were first announced I was only 13 at the time but even then I knew I wanted to ride in it. And I’ve always wanted to join the senior academy. So I’m where I wanted to be.

“Now it’s seeing where I can go with that. Ultimately I’d love to step up to the world tour and ride for a professional team.

“What’s really good about the academy is you can combine track and road. As well as this event, the European track championships have been rescheduled for the start of October. So we’re also looking at those.

“Maybe one day I’ll specialise but I’m keeping my options open for now. The Olympics for track cycling is the absolute pinnacle and on the road it’s the Tour de France or the one-day races like Paris-Roubaix or the Tour of Flanders.

“If I had the ability to do both later in my career that would be brilliant. But the next couple of years will be about finding out what kind of rider I am and where my strengths lie.”

And those who helped send him on his way will no doubt be able to give him a push in the right direction if need be.

“In terms of people I looked up to, [Commonwealth champion] Mark Stewart was always brilliant. When I first started in the academy he was here too and has always been really supportive.

“He’s someone I can always rely on to message. And my old club coaches at Discovery, Martin Harris and John Bremner, were the ones who first got me cycling and training properly. Even now I’m still always asking them for advice. That’s been a huge help.”