'I have many journeys still to come' - Ben O'Connor reflects on going too deep in 2026

Ben O'Connor was still smiling at the end of the 2026 season. His year did not go as he had hoped, but he dived into the 15-rider breakaway at Il Lombardia and stayed out front for 190km.

It was the Western Australian's last race with Jayco AlUla and he has now been confirmed as a key signing for Decathlon CMA CGM for 2027. He will turn 31 on November 25 and has been a European-based WorldTour rider for a decade, but he is not done yet.

"My career is not over. I have many journeys still to come. I'm pretty optimistic about cracking on to another challenge next year," O'Connor told Domestique in an exclusive interview.  

Decathlon proclaimed that "Ben O’Connor is back home" and his new contract with the French team will be a return of sorts but also part of the team's development into a true super team, probably around Paul Seixas and his Tour de France ambitions.

The Australian's first spell with the French team between 2021 and 2024 confirmed his Grand Tour talents, and he won a stage and finished fourth in the 2021 Tour de France. He then won a stage and was second overall at the 2024 Vuelta a España behind Primož Roglič with Jayco AlUla.

He was also an impressive second behind Tadej Pogačar at the 2024 World Championships in Zurich and won a Tour stage to La Plagne in 2025 but riding the Giro d'Italia and the Tour, for a total of 78 race days in 2026, proved to be too much.

"I think there's a fair few regrets there. Probably on the races that I put myself in and where we lined-up. I think that there's a couple of mistakes there," O'Connor explained, blaming himself before anyone else.

"I don't think I ever really hit my stride at all. I probably had one good day out at the Giro on the stage to Blockhaus but I've struggled a bit ever since then. I think starting the Tour was a bit optimistic as well. I kind of dug my grave there. Nowadays, it's really, really hard to get out of it when you do that."

O'Connor gives his all when racing and training. He has learnt the dangers of modern training techniques and constant high-speed racing.

"The way training is now, the way we can lock in the intensity and get the most out of training, it means you're treading a finer line now than in the past. You almost need to go a bit more of an old school approach and almost be more cautious," he suggested.

"Once you're done, you can't really come back. Also because there certainly aren't any easy races." 

He got in the break of the day on six different days at the 2026 Tour but the moves were always caught.

"The Tour was outrageous for some of those breakaways," he said.

"The fastest stage ever in the Tour was done with a three-man group, a breakaway out front. We almost didn't catch them."

The record of 50.91 km/h was set on stage 11 to Nevers. The break was caught six kilometres from the finish and Søren Wærenskjold (Uno-X Mobility) won the sprint to beat the previous record average speed of 50.356 km/h recorded by Mario Cipollini when he won in Blois in 1999.

O'Connor was in the breakaway of the day before and after stage 11. But he has no regrets.

"Even sprint stages are pretty cooked now, the game's moved on," he said, looking forward, not back, ready for the next chapter of his career with Decathlon.