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With less than a month remaining until the start of this year's Tour de France, Hindley is Australia's main hope for success.
Last year, the 27-year-old became just the second-ever Australian to win one of cycling’s Grand Tours after taking out the Giro d’Italia and moving himself into the record books alongside Cadel Evans’ 2011 Tour de France victory.
The Giro is recognised as the second-biggest race in the world, but the Tour de France dwarfs it in terms of mainstream and casual sports fans' attention.
Ahead of the current Criterium du Dauphine, Hindley spoke to SBS Sport about his ambitions at the Tour.
“It would be a dream to be on the Tour podium one day,” Hindley said. “That’s not to say it’s easily done or will happen overnight, it’s a long-term dream of mine.”
That dream may become a reality for Hindley sooner rather than later, with this year’s course well-suited to the abilities of the Western Australian who rides for German team BORA-Hansgrohe.
“This year’s route is as good as it gets for a rider like me,” Hindley said. “There’s lots of climbing, a hard first week so already the GC (general classification) is pretty well-established after the first week of racing. There’s only one time trial which is also not super long and is a bit lumpy.
“For me, I was super excited when I saw the route and I’m really keen.”
The growth of Hindley has been one of determination to get to the top of the sport, from going to Europe on his own as an unproven junior, to his emphatic assertion that he prepare as if he were a Grand Tour leader in his first professional season.
“It’s crazy self-belief I guess. It was what I was born to do whether it was realistic or not,” Hindley explained. “I didn’t want to ride Roubaix or do the Tour of Flanders, I wanted to be a Grand Tour rider, I wanted to ride GC at Grand Tours.
“That’s always been what I wanted to do and basically I’ve worked my ass off to get towards that opportunity and be in the position to be able to do that.”
Hindley has a laid-back personality and relaxed outlook on life; he’s very dedicated to his career and love of cycling, but he’s not out there to flaunt himself and cash in on his image as one of the top Australian athletes at present.
“I’m not really the type of guy that looks for the media attention and the spotlight, so it’s nice to keep it low-key,” Hindley said.
“I did get recognised when I was riding about in Perth. Fortunately, in Oz, cycling isn’t the biggest sport, so it’s nice to come back to Oz and just chill out and live low-key basically.
“It’s crazy to look back at the path over the years and think of how it’s all developed. I remember when I was in Italy watching the Giro being raced on TV, while I was racing on that Italian team, and it’s crazy to think I would one day win it. All the support and help I’ve received along the way, it’s really incredible and humbling in a way.”
With Hindley now alongside Evans as the only Australians to win a Grand Tour, the Perth-born rider spoke of his connection with the 2011 Tour de France champion and the advice he's received.
“He’s a super-good guy, he keeps in touch," Hindley said of Evans.
"What can you say? He’s Australia’s best-ever cyclist in my opinion and it’s cool that he gives his support and advice, it’s really nice.
“I saw him at his race (Cadel Evans’ Great Ocean Road Race) and sent him some messages later on when I was back in Europe, but it was just like, general stuff.”
That line into Evans may prove important during the Tour, when the pressure kicks in as the world turns its eyes to France, with Hindley one of those being studied with microscopic focus over his every action.
“I’ve heard a lot of the stories from people around how much pressure there is at the Tour,” he said. “It is just the biggest race in the cycling world. With that comes a lot more pressure, more attention… it’s a massive event.
“I’ve been preparing for that, but at the end of the day, it’s a three-week event, a Grand Tour is a Grand Tour and they’re all hard. It doesn’t matter what country it’s in, I’ll take it as it comes.”
Few have the humble appreciation of the sport like the Australian does. One of his first actions after winning the Giro d’Italia was to time off his holiday in order to make a pilgrimage to the Church of Madonna del Ghisallo and donate his jersey to the shrine for cycling heroes that sits atop the mountain.
Hindley spoke of his joy at that moment, before making a promise for any yellow jerseys that come his way in the future.
“For sure, if I have a maillot jaune (French for yellow jersey) I will for sure give one to the museum, definitely,” he said.
And if Hindley’s place in history indeed extends to that fabled yellow jersey on the Champs-Élysées, it would be filled by a real Aussie who doesn’t carry big tickets on himself, works very hard and appreciates his position in cycling history.
“It would be pretty epic. To be on the podium in Paris, it’s not something that many guys ever do,” he added.
“It is the pinnacle of the sport, the hardest race in cycling and the biggest. To be able to step on the podium, to wear the yellow jersey or to win the race, it’s the stuff of dreams really.”
SBS will broadcast the Tour de France exclusively LIVE and FREE, with live streaming and full catch-up available soon after the completion of each stage via SBS On Demand.
