Rodney Francis Ellingworth (b1972)

GRANTHAM-born Rod Ellingworth is the race coach for Team Sky.

He was coach for British Cycling’s U23 Academy ‘100% ME’ team based in Tuscany, Italy.

He followed in his father Jeff’s tyre prints by joining Witham Wheelers at an early age, followed by Cherry Valley.

He competed as a professional cyclist between 1995 and 1997 and represented his country several times at international events. He was the British senior endurance coach.

Mark Cavendish is one of the riders who has been influenced by Ellingworth with Cavendish stating in several interviews that he had learned a lot from Ellingworth, and not only about cycling.

He worked on Cavendish’s hill climbing by motorcycling up a hill and making him chase him to the top.

He was the man beind Cavendish when he sprinted to victory in the World Road Race Championships in Denmark, in 2011.

Ellingworth has also led the National team to several stage victories in the Tour of Britain in 2007.

At the end of 2008 he was promoted to the role of senior endurance coach, with the aim to creating a team and a rider strong enough to win the men’s world road race championships.

He was race coach for Team Sky in the 2012 Tour de France, which was won by the first time by an Englishman, Bradley Wiggins.

He has since been appointed the team’s head of performance operations.