Interview | In-form Eekhoff heads from Belgium Tour to Tour de France: "I'm feeling awesome"

Team DSM, now known as Team DSM-Firmenich following a name change, has multiple assets to leverage in the Baloise Belgium Tour. Fast-paced Sam Welsford focuses on the sprints, while key riders John Degenkolb and Nils Eekhoff take on the role of spearheads in the selective stages. Prior to the start of the Belgian stage race, Eekhoff took the time to chat with IDLProCycling.com!

"Unfortunately, the start to my season wasn't exactly a success," Eekhoff says, starting off his personal analysis of the year he has had so far. "I realized then that I was dealing with a physical setback, especially because I was struggling with a few health issues. I simply wasn't performing at the level that I wanted to." According to the 25-year-old cyclist, he really benefited a lot from a short period of rest after the spring classics - out of which his best result was 81st place in Omloop Het Nieuwsblad. "After that, I trained very hard, and it paid off," he refers to his third-place finish in the Tro Bro Léon, the French one-day race that took place about a month after Eekhoff's last race (Paris-Roubaix) and which was won by Giacomo Nizzolo.

"That victory was a big boost for my confidence," Eekhoff says of his triumph in the ZLM Tour prologue

Eekhoff continued his strong form, as he won the prologue of the ZLM Tour on June 7th. "That victory was a big boost for my confidence," he exclaims. Ultimately, the cyclist from North Holland finished third in the overall classification of the Dutch 2.Pro race. "I'm extremely happy with where I stand right now. I feel good and the form is there." Eekhoff also hopes to make an impression in the Baloise Belgium Tour. "In principle, we sprint with Welsford, but in the challenging stages, I'll see if I can make an attempt myself."

It's not entirely certain yet, but if everything goes according to plan, in-form Eekhoff will be at the start of the Tour de France on July 1st. Although he can't reveal much about his role in 'La Grande Boucle' just yet, he gives us a little glimpse of what to expect. "Most likely, I will fulfill the role of a lead-out rider in the sprint stages. The transition stages are challenging again this year, so I need to carefully consider which stages I could join in a breakaway and in which ones I have a chance of survival," he adds with a smile. "Hopefully, I can occasionally compete for a good result."

Óscar Freire infected Eekhoff with the cycling virus

If Eekhoff's name appears on the final start list of the world's biggest cycling event, he will be racing alongside absolute world-class riders such as Tadej Pogacar, Jonas Vingegaard, Wout van Aert, and Mathieu van der Poel. These are the kind of men that many young cycling enthusiasts hang on their walls in the form of posters. When asked by this website about his childhood idol, the articulate Dutchman didn't have to think long. "That would definitely be Óscar Freire. I was a big fan of his. He was the one who infected me with the cycling virus."

Youri van den Berg (Twitter: @YourivndnBerg)