Wordsley's Ben Healy targets cycling’s biggest races

The 22-year-old, already a breakout star of the season’s early weeks after second-place finishes at Brabantse Pijl and Amstel Gold, registered arguably the finest result of his young career to date in one of the sport’s most celebrated events.

Liege-Bastogne-Liege, which takes place over a gruelling 166-mile course in the Ardennes, is the oldest of cycling’s five one day “Monuments” with a winner’s list which reads like a who’s who of the sport’s all-time greats.

It is a list former Halesowen Cycling club ace Healy now hopes to one day join, having now sounded warning of his considerable potential.

He said: “If you had asked me a couple of weeks ago if I would have been disappointed with fourth in Liege? That is pretty crazy. Fourth is a nice result, I think.

“It would be nice to say that, maybe, I could come and compete for a win at races like this in the future. If you had told me that two weeks ago, I would have bitten your hand off for it.”

In a race dominated by world champion Remco Evenepoel after two-time Tour de France winner Tadej Pogacar crashed out, Healy was typically aggressive throughout and attempted to distance the remainder of the leading group on the second to last climb.

He eventually came home around a minute behind Evenepoel in a three-strong group with Tom Pidcock and Columbia’s Santiago Buitrago Sanchez, missing out on a podium place in the final sprint.

“It was another attritional race,” said Healy. “Maybe I lacked a bit on the climbs but I just dieseled away, I guess.

“I didn’t quite have it to drop the rest (of the bunch). In the sprint I maybe jumped a little too early but I sensed a bit of hesitation and I was hoping they would look at each other. I gave it a go.”

Healy is now preparing to make his Grand Tour debut at the three-week long Giro d’Italia, which starts on May 6.