‘No one asks a fisherman when he’s going to retire’ – Mark O’Brien signs up for Melbourne to Warrnambool defence

It was a last-minute decision for Mark O’Brien to line up for the Powercor Melbourne to Warrnambool in 2024 and after 13 years of trying to move up a step following his second place in 2010, it just happened to be the edition where the pieces of the puzzle all fell together at the 269km race that started more than a century ago. 

Even though 2024 was the year O’Brien had started to pull back a little from cycling, with the priority more focussed on work and family, that breakthrough victory has now made it even harder to skip the race which runs on February 8 and 9 and in 2025 will be part of the new ProVelo Super League.