After a promising year, with ninth place in the annual rankings, Lotto-Dstny wants to raise the bar even higher in 2024. For this, it is counting on Victor Campenaerts (32), among others. The experienced pawn is aiming for the spring and the Tour and is once again beckoning for an old love. “Training on the time trial bike fits perfectly within my schedule.”
Victor Campenaerts, sun-tanned, spoke to our reporter at the Lotto-Dstny media day. The experienced road captain has spent a lot of time in Spain in recent months, where he has been working towards the new season.
“In Spain you are less bothered and it is easier for me to get into bed on time,” says Campenaerts. “One of the hardest things as a rider is to be able to say no to friends and stuff, that goes more smoothly in Spain.”
“I rent a house near Malaga. In February I will ride the Ruta del Sol, which is held nearby. Then I will return home for my spring.”
“I start in the Omloop and then also ride Paris-Nice, the E3, Dwars door Vlaanderen and the Tour of Flanders. Then my spring stops and my focus shifts to the Tour. Winning a Tour stage, that is my biggest dream for 2024.”
With De Lie we have a clear leader, that is important. That also opens up opportunities for riders like Van Moer, Vermeersch or myself.
Victor Campenaerts
The National Lottery team starts again with ambition in the Flemish spring. “We now have a clear leader in our team with Arnaud De Lie, and that is important. That also opens up opportunities for riders like Brent Van Moer, Florian Vermeersch or myself.”
“Putting riders in front, like Van Baarle did last year in the Omloop, that is the way to go. Then you are never put on the defensive. With Arnaud we have a weapon at hand. That is the most ideal plan for us .”
Campenaerts, Kron and De Lie are three of the Lotto focal points in the spring.
Old love
Campenaerts is also looking forward to an old love again next season: time trial. “Not so much to aim for classifications,” he explains, “but in stage races of a week there are always time trials in which you can score.”
“Within the perfect training conditions that I have, it doesn’t require any extra effort to ride the time trial bike. It fits perfectly within the schedule and it can work out well for the time trials on my program.”
“In the spring we will have to start earlier and earlier. Nowadays the big guns attack at 100 km from the finish, so we have to start at 120 km. That is why I now train a lot on a flat level and less on explosiveness, and time trial training fits in there. good at.”
I have built up my own time trial expertise throughout my career and have achieved success with it. I have become too gray to innovate now.
Victor Campenaerts
With Loïc Segaert, a coach with a lot of time trial expertise left Lotto-Dstny. “That’s a shame, but I have built up my time trial expertise throughout my career and have achieved success with it,” says Campenaerts.
“I am now copying what I used to do and it still seems to work. Because in Luxembourg I won a time trial ahead of Brandon McNulty, who had just finished fourth at the World Championships. To renew my time trial approach, that is why I am I’m getting a little too gray.”
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2024-01-07 07:34:42
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