"Don’t be two minutes late"; Winter with Van der Poel was reality check for Philipsen

With third place in the Omloop Het Nieuwsblad and especially his victory in Kuurne-Brussel-Kuurne, Jasper Philipsen was the man for the opening weekend. After a disappointing start in the UAE Tour, things are looking up for the Belgian from Alpecin-Deceuninck, who attributes his form to a good winter. And that successful winter was possible thanks to his teammate and friend Mathieu van der Poel.

Philipsen was focused throughout the entire race during the Omloop: he was constantly at the front and among the best five to climb the Muur van Geraardsbergen. Although he did not win on Saturday, he got revenge on Sunday - his birthday. The sprinter has made significant physical progress over the winter. "I trained for many hours with Mathieu van der Poel in Spain," Philipsen told Het Laatste Nieuws.

This work with the former world champion is now paying off. The work ethic of the classic king was a new approach for Philipsen. "Mathieu kept pushing me: 'Be there at ten o'clock,' 'Make sure you're ready,' 'Don't be late.' He also often wanted to do extra kilometers. That works. I need people to motivate me. It was fun to train with him. Jonas Rickaert was usually there, too."

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Two years in a row, Philipsen and Van der Poel occupied the top steps of the podium in Paris-Roubaix.

"In recent years, our best form always came later"

And so Alpecin-Deceuninck ends the opening weekend on a high note. It has been different in the past: last year, Gianni Vermeersch was the team's best man in the first two classics, with an 18th place in Kuurne. "In recent years, our best form has always come later," sports manager Christoph Roodhooft explains. "Our planning is still on track, and we are not peaking too early. Of course, the most important races are still to come, but I am glad that the opening weekend was successful for a change. We have been here for years without a result, and now it is a top weekend."

Van der Poel was absent in the Omloop and Kuurne; he would not start road season until Monday, March 10, in the Tirreno-Adriatico. But a week before that adventure, he suddenly announced that he would compete in the Walloon semi-classic Le Samyn. Partly due to bad weather in the training location in Spain and a dropout in the Alpecin selection, the 30-year-old world cyclo-cross champion suddenly had an opportunity, which he accepted enthusiastically. So today marks his return to the road.  

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