The morning sun – the first we've seen in a while – slants through the cafe window and casts an angelic glow across Joe Blackmore's face. And well it might, for this lad from London can, it seems, do little wrong right now.
The 21-year-old, a former dyed-in-the-wool off-road racer, has spent the past season putting the finishing touches on an alchemical progression that has seen him turn mud into road race silverware and graduate from the British Cycling Academy to the WorldTour with Israel-Premier Tech, all while picking up win after win.
