Jorgenson will continue to be Vingegaard's super-domestique as long as the "supermen" are at the start: "not interested in leadership role"

Matteo Jorgenson was one of last season's standouts at Visma | Lease a Bike. People knew the American had talent, but he surprised everybody with victories in Paris-Nice and Dwars door Vlaanderen. The American talked about his season, his already impressive career, and the future in conversation with Geraint Thomas at the Geraint Thomas Cycling Club.

Jorgenson's career began like any American talent on the regional circuit. But when he wanted to move to Europe, he took matters into his own hands. That's how he eventually joined the development team of Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale. "I started as a 19-year-old in an American continental team. But I thought, 'I must still go to Europe.' So, I started sending emails to development teams. They wanted me and were the only ones because they had quotas regarding foreign riders. So they hired me and an Australian."

After a short stay in French service, the 25-year-old all-rounder transitioned to the WorldTour with Movistar, even though he didn't speak either language before that, from a French team to a Spanish team. "I knew that if I went to Movistar and learned Spanish and could create a relationship with the managers, I would succeed. I wasn't a special neoprof, but they gave me opportunities because I wanted to learn. I did my best, and they saw that. They had a lot of races without leaders, so I had my own chances. Looking back, it was the best team for the beginning of my career."

At Movistar, Jorgenson developed tremendously. He showed he was a jack of all trades with podium places in stage races and the Flemish classics. Interest was high. Eventually, he chose Visma | Lease a Bike, but INEOS knocked on the door. "I spoke with Rod (Ellingworth, ed.). But I talked to a lot of teams. I told my agent I wanted to talk to as many teams as possible. I was open to INEOS, but I'm happy with my choice."

At the Dutch formation, development has improved by massive leaps and bounds. However, the main improvement is on the mental level. "I have more confidence in myself. Not everything is mapped out for you, and you must take risks. In the last stage of the Dauphiné, Primoz had a hard time. But I didn't believe in myself; I didn't believe I could gain a minute on him. Because of that, I didn't go full throttle. I also had Derek Gee and others still in my head. Normally, you think, "Okay, he's having difficulties; now I'm going full speed." I didn't. In the end, it was eight seconds. In the last stage of Paris-Nice, I believed I could win, and I did."

Winning in Paris-Nice, eighth in the Tour... What will be the goal in 2025? "I'm wondering that too. The team is working on its goals. I'm interested in doing a grand tour, but I'm not interested in a leadership role," Jorgenson is clear. "I would rather ride the Tour with Jonas and learn more. I also think the Tour is cool. If I had ridden the Giro, I wouldn't have been able to do the classics and the Tour similarly. I'd rather have a year similar to this year."

It's not that Jorgensen himself has no ambitions. "After this year's Tour, I would like to ride a GC on a big tour someday. That's possible, but I don't know if I can win. But to spend a season building up for it seems cool. These days, the gap between me and the top riders is so big that I feel I need more time. I don't feel like racing for sixth place. I want to win once, but if Jonas, Remco Evenepoel, or Tadej Pogacar are at the start..."

One can cautiously speak of a golden generation in American cycling. There is plenty of talent, with Jorgenson as one of the frontrunners and teammates Sepp Kuss, Neilson Powless, and Brandon McNulty. According to the Visma | LaB rider, that is mainly because of Lance Armstrong. "We have a great group now. Many of us have moved to Nice, seven of us or so. We're close; many of us grew up together in the peloton. It's cool; we're part of the Lance generation. If you look at the age, we were all young kids when Lance won all his Tours."