Frenchman Julien Bernard and Italian Leonardo Basso are to debut for Trek Factory Racing at the Tour of Utah from August 3-9. Both young riders will go on to race the US Pro Challenge in Colorado.

23-year-old Julien Bernard, the son of ex-pro Jean-François Bernard, is currently racing with SCO Dijon and has had a prosperous 2015 season, with a win at the Tour Nivernais-Morvan, Châtillon-Dijon and one stage of the Tour du Pays Roannais.

“This is a huge opportunity and honour for me. It’s the dream of every amateur rider and I’m very happy that I’ll have the chance to race in places that I don’t know yet. I will try to make the maximum out of this," he said.

Leonardo Basso is 21 years old and joins the pinstriped team from Team Brilla. He’s a student in Mechanical Engineering at the Padua University and is in his fourth year as an U23. Basso has three wins to his name: the Trofeo Tapparo (2013), the Circuito dell’Assunta (2014), and this season the Trofeo GS Gavardo Tecmor.

“I’m so happy, I can hardly grasp the size of the opportunity I’m getting here. Trek Factory Racing is one of the biggest teams in cycling, and I can't wait to join these guys in two of the most important races of the American calendar. I wish to thank Mr. Luca Guercilena for granting me this chance, as well as those at my Team Brilla who helped me to earn it," he said.

General Manager Luca Guercilena commented: “Both riders are classy, young riders with a lot of potential. They will get their first taste of big-time racing in Utah and Colorado. The rest of their program is still to be decided, but Bernard could race the GP Wallonie, Paris-Bourges and maybe even Paris-Tours. Basso will likely race in Italy after the States in such races as Tre Valle and Milano-Torino.”

“Working talents like Bernard and Basso into our program is a win-win for everyone,” continues Guercilena. “This doesn’t mean they will have a guaranteed place in our team next season, but this is definitely the next step in their development.”