BORA – hansgrohe and Red Bull have announced the winners of Red Bull Junior Brothers, a global talent scouting programme aimed at finding the next generation of professional road cyclists.
Patrick Casey from Ireland and Anatol Friedl from Austria will receive a contract with BORA-hansgrohe’s U19 team, Team Auto Eder, and a Red Bull athlete partnership deal. This is the first year the programme has taken place, and will continue to do so in 2024.
At the age of 17, Patrick showed impressive form at the performance camp which he attended alongside other hopefuls. Already racing at an international level as a junior, Partick stood out showing potential as a good allrounder with a strong potential to develop.
Growing up in Yorkshire, it was at primary school that Patrick was introduced to cycling and once he started, he never looked back. Hoping to emulate the success of his sporting heroes Pogacar and Vingegaard, Patrick will hone his craft learning from the very best.
Anatol having come from a cross country background stood out as very experienced and a technically good rider also showing a good development forecast based on his testing.
Growing up in Austria, 16-year-old Friedl started cycling at the age of eleven and had dreamed about turning professional. Looking to make a name for his country, Friedl will be catapulted to the top of the sport where he will learn from the very best at Team Auto Eder.
Patrick Casey said: “”I’m just very proud and really happy to have won it. It hasn’t set in quite yet and it probably won’t until next year when I’m racing with the team and racing in the Red Bull helmet. When I’ve met everyone and experienced it, it will probably sink in a bit more and I’ll probably understand what it means, but for now I’m just over the moon.”
“For me I’d say the end goal is the same as everyone else, I want to do this professionally, be a professional cyclist and race in a World Tour. Race the biggest races at the highest level, that’s why I’m here.”
Anatol Friedl said: “I’m just really happy that the work that I’ve done has paid off. I never really thought I’d make it here but the week of the performance camp was really fun and I had a good time. I’ve done a few strength and performance tests on the bike before, so it didn’t feel unusual to me.”
“I got into cycling through my father and just had great fun. I did my first race when I was five years old which led to me starting to train harder and through the winter as well. I love the feeling you get during training and so I like to train a lot. My goal is to be a professional and win pro races.”
Dr Christian Schrot, Head of Scouting & Development at BORA – Hansgrohe, said; “Patrick and Anatol showcased all round natural talent as individuals and one thing that really impressed us was their incredible determination and stamina. You can see they really want this and have the passion and drive to make it happen, so it made our decision really easy. Cycling is not an easy sport, it takes guts and grit and that’s something that Patrick and Anatol have.”
-Patrick Casey and Anatol Friedl are the two successful Red Bull Junior Brothers candidates of 2023.
Missed out on your chance to make the team this year? Don’t worry, Red Bull Junior Brothers will be back again in 2024.
Keep an eye out for updates on redbull.com/juniorbrothers to find out more.
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Header image: Anatol Friedl of Austria and Patrick Casey of Ireland seen during the Red Bull Junior Brothers Performance Camp at the APC in Thalgau, Austria on September 27, 2023. Credit: Joerg Mitter / Red Bull Content Pool