Jai Hindley is a professional cyclist from Australia who is a member of UCI WorldTeam Bora-Hansgrohe. The 27-year-old from Perth is the only Australian cyclist to win the Giro d’Italia, doing so last year. He is also one of only two Australians to win a professional cycling Grand Tour event.
Hindley is currently competing in the 2023 Tour de France, his first appearance in cycling’s most prestigious race. He entered the tournament as the third favourite behind former champions Jonas Vingegaard (2022) and Tadej Pogacar (2020-21). After winning Stage 5 of the Tour de France, Hindley took the yellow jersey as the race’s general classification ladder. He is eyeing to become only the second Tour de France winner from Australia after Cadel Evans in 2011.
In this Jai Hindley story…
Jai Hindley Quick Facts
| Name | Jai Hindley |
| Age | 27 |
| Date of Birth | May 5, 1996 |
| Place of Birth | Perth, Australia |
| Nationality | Australian |
| Occupation | Cyclist |
| Current Team | Bora – Hansgrohe |
| Height | 1.75 m (5 ft 9 in) |
| Weight | 60 kg (132.2 lbs) |
| Net Worth | $1 million |
| @jhindley 63.9k followers |
Jai Hindley Personal Life
Jai was born in Perth, Australia to Gordon and Robyn Hindley. His father, Gordon moved to Australia from Manchester, UK, in 1989 where he met his wife Robyn from the Hunter Valley in New South Wales. Jai has one brother, Kaly.
Jai’s father owned a bicycle shop in Manchester between 1966 to 1983 and was the one who first introduced him to cycling as a child.
In an interview with ridemedia.com.au, Gordon said that he first took Jai to the velodrome in Midland when he was seven years old. At that time, Jai’s dad took over as head coach for a program developing kids on the track and he enrolled his son. According to Gordon, Jai was a “natural” cyclist, and save for one year when he played rugby, Jai was putting in serious work on the bike.
Ever since he started pedalling, Jai had entered cycling competitions. Aged just 16, Jai earned a contract with an Italian Racing Team but knew that if he wanted to make it big in the sport, he needed to come to Europe. Jai raced in Europe for the first time in 2017 and later moved to Girona, Spain to focus on his training.
“It can be difficult sometimes, but I love what I do, and the fact I get paid to do it is just the icing on the cake,” said Ja Hindly via bora.com.
Jai Hindley’s Girlfriend
Jai Hindley is currently in a relationship with Abby Chandler. Hindley and Chandler have been together since they were teenagers and according to a post from Jai’s Instagram account, they have been a couple since September 24, 2012.
Not much is known of her personal life, except that Abby Chandler was born on March 31, 1996. But what is clear is that she is very supportive of Jai’s cycling career as she was with his parents when Jai won second at the Giro d’Italia in 2020. Chandler has been living with Hindley in Girona where the Aussie cyclist also trains.
Jai Hindley Cycling Career
Jai Hindley turned professional in 2016 and quickly turned in two victories at Toscana-Terra di Ciclismo and Tour of Fuzhou in 2017. After several Top 10 finishes in the next two years, Hindley started to emerge in 2020 when he won the general classification and two stages in Australia’s Herald Sun Tour. Up next was the Giro d’Italia where he shocked the world.
After moving to third place in the general classification after Stage 15, Hindley won the 18th or Queen Stage of the race to move up to second overall and first in the young riders classification. He moved to a tie for the lead after finishing second to Tao Geoghegan Hart in the mountainous Stage 20. However, he finished 39 seconds behind Hart in the 15.7 km time trial finale and settled for second place overall.
2021 saw Hindley withdraw from the Giro d’Italia after 14 stages due to a saddle sore. At the time he pulled out from the race, he was in 25th place and more than 17 minutes off the leaders. Later that year, Hindley suffered a broken collarbone after crashing during the Tour of Slovakia. At the end of his contract, Hindley left Team Sunweb to sign with Bora-Hansgrohe.
Even before his move, Hindley already liked Bora-Hansrohe’s racing style. They had grit and rode with passion, once describing the team as a “Band of Brothers” who give their all and supported their teammates. According to Hindley, this togetherness is what sets the team apart and the reason why he chose to sign there.
His arrival coincided with Sergio Hugita and Marco Haller joining the team to give boss Ralph Denk more depth on his squad. Hindley had a good start to his tenure with his new team as he finished 5th overall in the Tirreno-Adriatico. That was a sign of what was to come next.
Jai Hindley wins 2022 Giro d’Italia
Hindley looked to build on his strong finish at the 2022 Giro d’Italia, a race he had been so desperate to win. Hindley rode solidly during the first two weeks of the race and won the high mountain Stage 9. After sitting in second place for most of the third week of the tour, Hindley dominated in the mountains during the penultimate stage to create a sizable distance between him and the other general classification contenders.
Two years after losing the Maglia Rosa in the final Giro’s time trial, Jai Hindley made sure that he didn’t let another one slip away from his grasp. Building a 1:25 margin for error on the Marmolada in the previous stage of the race, Hindley conceded just 7 seconds to Ineo Grenadiers’ Richard Caparaz to win the 2022 Giro d’Italia.
He became the first Australian to win the race and only the second cyclist from the land Down Under to win a Grand Tour, after Cadel Evans who won the 2011 Tour de France.
Evans also became the first Australian cyclist to wear the Maglia Rosa in the Giro d’Italia.
Hindley is currently racing in the 2023 Tour de France – his first appearance in the race after electing to skip it last year to prepare for 2023. No Aussie cyclist has won the Tour de France since Cadel Evans accomplished the feat in 2011.
Jai Hindley Cycling Style
Jai Hindley is known as a mountain rider, as evidenced by where the big performances of his career took place. During his early years however, Jai’s role models were Australian cyclists Stuart O’Grady, Baden Cooke, and Robbie McEwen – all sprinters.
He credits Brad McGee’s Stage 1 victory in the 2003 Tour de France as the moment that changed his life as a cyclist, claiming:
“I watched the Tour like most people do and was pretty hooked on it. From that point on I just wanted to be a professional cyclist. For a young Aussie guy to watch that race it was pretty inspirational, when you see these guys from the same continent as you racing over in Europe at the highest level.
When it comes to preparing for races, however, Jai loves to train in the mountains. He transferred to Girona, Spain when he started competing in Europe and we all know that several of the best professional road cyclists in the world also train there. For altitude training, Jai Hindley heads to nearby Andorra, adding:
“I love it. Cycling through the mountains, out on the pass, being in nature and practically living a hermit’s life… It can be a strange way to live but it’s perfect for a cyclist.”
Jai Hindley Net Worth
According to popularnetworth.com, Jai Hndley’s net worth is at $1 million. That amount is also his estimated value according to gossipgist.com. Meanwhile, allfamousbirthdays.com says that the Australian cyclist has a net worth of $5 million.
Of course, cycling is Hindley’s main source of income. His current contract with Bora – Hansgrohe is for four years and is reportedly paying €500,000 per year. Hindley won €133,412 for his second-place finish at the 2020 Giro d’Italia, and made around €265,000 winning the same race in 2022.
If Hindley goes on to win the 2023 Tour de France, he will take home $545,257.