"I don't know if it's that much fun being a rider right now."
Good morning,
These are today's quotes and interviews worth your time.
Stood out to me today: "Only after the finish did we realize Tadej had ridden the finale on a cracked frame."
¡Vamos!
🎤 INTERESTING INTERVIEWS
"Totally different characters or types are often easier to bring together than two of the same"
Remco Evenepoel and Florian Lipowitz on each other, ahead of their first shared campaign at the Volta Ciclista a Catalunya
The personality portrait in HLN that everyone at Red Bull - BORA - hansgrohe seems to want you to read: two leaders, one training camp on the Teide, and a management team with a clear objective. "It was one of the objectives, to send them on camp together," said assistant sports director Klaas Lodewyck. "Not just from a sporting point of view, but also purely as human beings. So they could get to know each other, understand each other. And above all: learn to accept. Maybe that's the most important part — that they simply accept who and how the other one is, and don't try to change each other's characters."
The character sketch that emerges is deliberate in its contrasts. Evenepoel describes Lipowitz as "pretty introverted — he doesn't say much at the table, quickly looks for a quieter spot. I'm more energetic. I like to have fun. And I'll stick around for a game of darts or Uno." Lodewyck frames it as "a bit calmer versus a bit more intense."
Lipowitz himself confirmed the dynamic: "Remco enjoys being the center of attention. That's not the case for me." On the bike, the gaps are just as clear. "Remco is still a bit more explosive than Lipo. Finishing with a small group and going for the win from there, that's clearly not Florian's strength. But he is a steamroller on the climbs. When he opens a gap, it's very hard to close. Lipowitz can sustain a very high pace for a long time. Those distinct qualities are something we have to use in races."
The piece also quotes assistant sports director Francisco Javier Vila, who ran the joint Teide camp: "I think they can be complementary. Because totally different characters or types are often easier to bring together than two of the same."
Both riders left camp with a reasonable read on each other: Evenepoel knew Lipowitz dislikes stressful moments, once did biathlon, and sings German schlagers with Nico Denz. Lipowitz knew Evenepoel hates losing, used to play football, and is "a pretty decent darts player." On each other's overall quality, they were mutual: "Florian is very professional about his craft," said Evenepoel. Lipowitz returned it immediately: "That's what makes Remco one of the best riders in the world."
"There's one step at the top, then an intermediate one, and then there's the rest of us."
Mikel Landa on his 17th season, Tadej Pogačar's level, and finding a new role
Marca caught up with Mikel Landa at the start of the Volta Ciclista a Catalunya for a wide-ranging conversation on his return to racing, his place in the sport, and what he expects from himself at 36. The headline quote came when asked about the gap to Tadej Pogačar: "He's on another level entirely — there's one step at the top, then an intermediate one, and then there's the rest of us."
On the GC race itself, Landa was realistic: " I'd rather focus on a stage win while still keeping a GC position — but maybe without that obsession with the podium." He acknowledged the competition at the Volta: "There are some very strong rivals, so winning will be difficult, but you have to try to show up."
When the subject shifted to his long-term future, his position was clear. He'll be transitioning into a mentor role at Soudal Quick-Step, guiding a younger generation, and feels the team's philosophy aligns with his own priorities: "The team has always been very much about going for stages, being aggressive. That's what they want: to fight for stages again. Now that Remco isn't there, fight more for stages."
He also addressed the question of what keeps a rider at the top for 17 seasons: "A lot of sacrifice and the ability to recover. Our success, our performance, is based on daily recovery — whether it's to be in the best shape or to recover from injuries. Our heads are simply focused on continuing, recovering, and getting back on the bike."
On the changes in modern cycling, he admitted some adaptations have been harder than others: "Heat training and nutrition have been the tougher ones. But in general, I've managed to adapt as best I can."
"You can't say: riders should just watch out."
The organizers of the E3 Saxo Classic and the Ronde Van Brugge - Tour of Bruges on what it actually takes to run a safer race
Ahead of the Flemish classics week, WielerFlits spoke with race directors Jan Nys of the Ronde Van Brugge - Tour of Bruges and Jacques Coussens of the E3 Saxo Classic about what they're actually doing to raise safety standards. The ambition is explicit: both want to be the safest race of the spring. "The safety story is clearly booming in the last five years, both in the media and among the organizers of major races," said Nys. "That can only be welcomed."
Coussens drew a pointed contrast with other race cultures: "A French organizer sometimes thinks: 'I organize a race, so I don't need to worry about safety. The riders should just watch out.' We are completely opposed to that and want to run a safe event."
He was clear-eyed about the limits: "I'm not saying we guarantee there will be no crashes with us. You can't, when you see what goes on in the peloton. But we see things happen in races in Italy or even the Tour de France where we think: the safety there is not even 25% of what we have. You see so many crashes where you think: that was preventable."
The specifics ranged from marshaling and police coordination to route design, external parcours analysis via Norwegian startup Safe Cycling, and the protective casing of roadside infrastructure. On the growth of street furniture and barriers, Coussens was blunt: "That is going to be one of the most difficult challenges in the coming years. Sometimes you have to send the group through streets where those things are in the way, because — due to construction — you have no choice. Then we look for the safest solution."
Nys acknowledged the support structure that makes Belgium easier to work in than most: "We can count ourselves lucky that all police zones and the federal level cooperate so well in Belgium. Municipalities are very cycling-minded and the process for applying to organize a race always goes smoothly. In other countries that barely exists." He contrasted this directly with the Netherlands, where police escorts have largely disappeared and permitting has become a bureaucratic obstacle course: "It's a political tug-of-war between the government and the KNWU and we're far from the end of it, I think."
"I don't know if it's that much fun being a rider right now."
Tom Boonen on his coaching internship at Soudal Quick-Step, what he left behind, and where the sport went
Tom Boonen is spending Friday in the team car at the E3 Saxo Classic, sitting next to assistant sports director Niki Terpstra, as an intern sports director for Soudal Quick-Step. As he told the Live Slow Ride Fast podcast, general manager Jurgen Foré had already reached out in the winter: "Without putting an official title on it yet. My first reaction was: 'But I don't know anyone anymore.' So now I'm doing a few races, just to see if I still have something for it and feel something for those guys. They've had some bad luck this year, but there are a few good riders. I've reconnected with it a bit."
On whether the job will actually suit him, Boonen was genuinely uncertain: "I have a good life. I try to be happy — and it's working. And I still don't know if I would become happy again in the race environment, which is why I'm doing this now. Maybe I still have some trauma from it or something. I went through a lot... I'm not traumatized by racing, but I was done with it. The last months of my career were so hectic — I just had no appetite for it anymore. I still loved racing and training hard, but all the rest of it... It had also become so incredibly serious."
He offered a pointed observation about the current peloton, framing his generation as a bridge between two eras: "We had riders like Johan Museeuw and Lance Armstrong, who we still raced alongside — and I think we were still fairly clean. And now you have this new approach to the sport. They ride hard, you know. I don't know if it's that much fun being a rider right now." He added: "I still have a very close relationship with Yvan Vanmol, my former team doctor, and he says: 'I don't enjoy coming to races anymore — they're all autists. The only thing they talk about is training, resting, and altitude camps.'"
He made one exception: "I think there's a different atmosphere around Tadej Pogačar and his UAE team. That they still enjoy it. Same with Mathieu van der Poel. So it can still work."
🏆 THE SERGE BAGUET AWARD
"Yeah, about two hours I think, so please don't ask me any more questions — no no, just kidding."
— Remco Evenepoel, to journalist Renaat Schotte when asked about the long transfer after yesterday's finish at Volta Ciclista a Catalunya, Sporza
Wonder what The Serge Baguet Award is all about? Check it out here.
💬 QUICK QUOTES
"But I don't understand that: you've been able to train all winter, haven't you?" — Greg Van Avermaet in the HLN Wielerpodcast, finding it odd that Wout van Aert is skipping the E3 Saxo Classic for another training block.
"It would be nice if the sport were known for something other than a kangaroo jumping in front of the riders." — Jay Vine, as he told Sporza on the freak accident at the Tour Down Under (a kangaroo jumping straight into the peloton) that caused him to crash and break a wrist. He's now back racing at the Volta Ciclista a Catalunya.
"I wouldn't ride Gent-Wevelgem and the E3. Especially with Roubaix and Flanders on the program. I wouldn't risk it." — Tom Boonen in the Live Slow Ride Fast podcast, drawing on his own experience with a hand injury to warn that exposing Mathieu van der Poel's injured hand to wet, manure-slicked Flemish roads risks infection ahead of the cobbled Monuments.
"Only after the finish did we realize Tadej had ridden the finale on a cracked frame. The rear fork was damaged, but fortunately it held together. Had Tadej known the true condition of the bike, he would never have descended so aggressively." — Boštjan Kavčič, Tadej Pogačar's mechanic, on X, making the Milano-Sanremo win look even more remarkable.
"I expect to make my comeback in June." — Maxim Van Gils (WielerFlits), on his recovery after crashing out of the Clásica Jaén with a broken shoulder and pelvis.
"After nearly two months of on-and-off knee pain, we've decided to properly address the issue and schedule a period without racing or training." — Louis Vervaeke of Soudal Quick-Step, on Instagram, announcing he'll be out of competition for the foreseeable future.
"As things stand, this will be my final season. Hopefully I can get a lot of personal satisfaction out of it. But I have to be realistic — you are probably not going to see me crossing the finish line in first place." — Steven Kruijswijk, as he told WielerFlits, confirming this is almost certainly his last season at Team Visma | Lease a Bike.
"The winner threw elbows at me — Magnus — yeah, we touched quite a bit in the last four hundred meters. It didn't cause any harm, it's a sprint, but I think it cost me some speed because I was on the inside and we went very wide through the last corner. And honestly, I don't think I would have beaten him anyway." — Noa Isidore, as he told Cycling Pro Net, on finishing runner-up in the Volta Ciclista a Catalunya stage yesterday.
"I did the Tour de France sick last year, but kept fighting, which turned out to be a bad decision. And then I only raced two days after the Tour and was training a long time but couldn't get it working. So this is actually the first time I've shown I'm good basically since Frankfurt on May 1st." — Magnus Cort Nielsen, as he told Cycling Pro Net, after his Volta Ciclista a Catalunya stage win.
"It has definitely happened that we turned down certain riders because the parents just didn't fit what we're about." — David van der Poel, as he said in the Vals Plat podcast, on working at rider agency Sportsflow and why a parent's behavior can end a promising talent's representation.
That's it for today. See you tomorrow 👋
Jay