ONE Pro Cycling have announced that their application for a Pro Conti licence has been successful. This will see the team move into the second division of the sport and racing across the world in 2016.

Following confirmation from the UCI, the team set up by former England cricketer Matt Prior and Yorkshire businessman Simon Chappell have been granted their licence and will become the first ever Professional Continental team to come out of Britain.

CEO Matt Prior said, "We’re incredibly excited to finally have confirmation that ONE Pro Cycling will be racing on a Pro Conti licence in 2016. It’s been a whirlwind journey from when we first initially decided to set up the team to then get to where we are now. As most people will know, we’re an ambitious team and after a strong debut season racing in Britain we were in no doubt of where we wanted to be next season.

We’ve spent the last few months carefully selecting new riders to join the squad preparing us for what will be a huge step up. We have a great balance of talented up and coming riders who are hugely motivated to fulfil their potential, as well as experienced riders who have already tasted success at the top level. This mix of experience and youthful exuberance will stand us in good stead.

"It has been equally important for us to ensure we have the right performance and support staff in place creating a culture that will give us the best chance of success. The staff have been selected not only based on the skill they bring but also their character and outlook on the world of professional sport."

General Manager, Becky Frewing commented, "A lot of hard work has gone on behind the scenes to make our ambition become a reality and I’m immensely proud of what the team have managed to achieve in such a short period of time. Plans are already in place for our first training camp in December, and having overseen each of the new rider signings it will be very rewarding for all of us to finally see the whole team come together."

ONE Pro Cycling’s successful application will see the team build an impressive race calendar as they are already accepted into a number of UCI races across the world. The newly appointed Pro Conti team will enter their first season with a twenty rider roster which includes eight riders from this year’s founding team providing a dynamic squad for an exciting year ahead. 

Team for 2016:

Yanto Barker

Tom Baylis - Development Programme

Marcin Bialoblocki

Karol Domagalski

John Ebsen

Matt Goss

Richard Handley

George Harper

Kristian House

Josh Hunt

Sebastian Lander

Hayden McCormick

Martin Mortensen

Chris Opie

James Oram

Glenn O’Shea

Dion Smith

Steele Von Hoff  

Pete Williams

Sam Williams - Development Programme