Is Segaert the biggest challenger of Evenepoel, Van Aert, and Tarling? "I still compete in U23 World Time Trial"

He secured victories in the prologue of the Giro Next Gen (the youth version of the Giro d'Italia), clinched second place in the Elite Belgian National Time Trial Championship, followed by a second-place finish in the road race of the same championship among the elite. Additionally, he earned a silver medal at the World Time Trial Championships for promising talents and emerged victorious at the European Time Trial Championships for the same category. In summary, 2023 was a remarkable year for the now 21-year-old Segaert, highlighted by his prestigious win in the U23 edition of Paris Roubaix and an impressive eighth-place finish in the U23 Tour of Lombardy.

Without a doubt, Segaert is a versatile rider capable of excelling in various directions. Nevertheless, 2024 appears to be a year of exploration for the West-Fleming. "My absolute priority is the World Time Trial Championship for Under-23s. After all, that one still has to be ticked off."

"It is a significant goal," he emphasized once again, following which he mentioned his intention to gradually reduce his participation in U23 races. "The ambition is indeed to explore as many races as possible among the professionals, particularly focusing on the Flemish races, where I hope to seize opportunities on occasion." Segaert is evidently filled with ambition. "Hopefully, I can already showcase my abilities and make attempts. Perhaps, I can occasionally participate in the finals. While a first professional victory would be a nice bonus, I don't want to rush things. U23 races are seldom on the schedule, with the World Championship being the only certainty. A race like Paris-Roubaix could also be a possibility, although there isn't much information available on that yet."

Of course, competing at the professional level is not entirely new for Segaert. "Last year, I did participate in a few races with the pros. However, it always depends on the participation lists for the Flemish classics to see what exactly will transpire. On the other hand, I don't mind riding in a support role. I am aware that this is often the case. With Arnaud De Lie, we have a true finisher on the team. I believe it will be a positive change. In the youth categories, I have gained ample experience in riding finals and making the right decisions, which has already translated into significant results in recent seasons."

Let's discuss last year's BK, where Segaert was the only one who could keep up with an unleashed Remco Evenepoel. In the end, Segaert was defeated in a sprint-à-deux against the Aerokogel van Schepdaal, but at least the tone was set. "I was amazed that I ended up in Evenepoel's wheel," recalled the time trial champion on June 25, 2023. "I don't think everyone was doing that. I actually knew where Remco was going to start. To my surprise, at that moment, I was the only one trying to be in his wheel."

And so, Segaert appears to be increasingly becoming a man to keep an eye on. Whether he will definitively make his mark by 2024 remains to be seen, but it seems only a matter of time. "It's not only the time trial that I want to specialize in," he says, emphasizing his diversity. "The regular races are also very enjoyable. Those will be the races I mainly focus on, not excluding the time trial world championships, of course. That is almost the only time trial I truly focus on."

"Great, and which races should we be considering for this year? "Kuurne-Brussels-Kuurne is a race that may well suit me. Moreover, it passes less than five kilometers from my front door. Nine out of ten training sessions I do cover the course of that race, so I already ride across the finish line regularly. It is one of the biggest races of my spring campaign, so I am looking forward to it even more. In time, I might be able to compete for a good result, but I emphasize 'in time."

"Kuurne-Brussels-Kuurne remains something different from a national championship, despite the fact that it went so well there last year," he continued his KBK story. "At that championship, everything fell into place, and I had luck on my side. It was one of my best days on the bike, but not the absolute best. After all, I wasn't posting extraordinary values there or anything. In the classics, you can't predict your performance as easily. But that doesn't take away from the fact that I approach the classics with a lot of ambition. Because people secretly expect a lot from me anyway, we deliberately choose the slightly smaller one-day races. We don't want to be premature and rush. After all, there is still a lot of time after this year."