Beast on the time trial bike, yet somewhat invisible on the road racer: How Tarling, with Ganna as a role model, wants more

Joshua Tarling is undoubtedly one of the big surprises in 2023. The mere 19-year-old Brit rode his first season for INEOS Grenadiers amongst the elites in the WorldTour and made a remarkable impression. He bagged three victories on the time trial bike, but he also aspires to lead on his regular Pinarello road racer. A bit like his teammate and model Filippo Ganna... IDLProCycling.com interviewed Tarling and Ganna at the start of the European Championship for elite men.

Tarling became the European champion in time trialing this week, after already achieving a respectable third place at the World Championship. He also became the British champion in time trialing and won a race against the clock in the Renewi Tour. This effort mirrored his previous years' accomplishments in the junior and U23 categories: winning. Anyone who checks Tarling's ProCyclingStats file would see victories on the time trial bike since 2021, though victories on the normal road bike still elude him.

"Our goal is to dig deep into the race and have as many guys as possible in the final," Tarling described his task for the men's road race at the European Championship on Sunday. About an hour after that discussion, he joined the early flight, aligning well with his ambitions. Given such powerful thighs, the British top talent obviously has much more to offer than just winning time trials. A type for the classics, like Filippo Ganna? Tarling chuckles: "There's no one like Pippo. But I am strong and love attacking."

Looking ahead to 2024, one would expect some challenging races. These could be week-long stage races with a time trial, but Tarling nods when the classics are mentioned. He already competed in five this spring, though he only finished in the Brabantse Pijl. In Paris-Roubaix, he was out of time, and in the E3, Amstel Gold Race and La Flèche Wallonne, he retired early. "I always do well when the race is tougher. A classics type, yes."

Although very young, according to his mentor Ganna, Tarling is someone to watch out for in other races in the short term. "He's young, but has an extremely strong engine. He's one of the guys for the future. I'm not specifically focused on him as the young guys at INEOS can learn from many riders. His position on the bike is already very aerodynamic, so I might learn something from him," smiles the Italian. "He's a nice guy."

A duel between Ganna and Tarling didn't happen in the European Championship time trial. Ganna was absent, owing to a grueling Vuelta a España. "I skipped the time trial because I was completely fucked, haha! All those relocations and travel days take a toll, but it's part of the game. I preferred to recover a bit for Sunday's road race."

Ganna and Tarling have faced each other several times this season, and the master was almost always superior to his pupil. In the time trial of the Ethias-Tour de Wallonie, they finished first and second for INEOS, and at the World Championship, Ganna secured silver, behind the unleashed Remco Evenepoel, but ahead of Tarling. How long this hierarchy will remain, only time will tell...