Nys wants to write his own story in 2025 in the Ardennes (and the Tour?): "Want to leave a legacy"

Thibau Nys is experiencing a miraculous year. The 22-year-old Lidl-Trek rider is one of the best in the field but works his way up in the summer. The combination is challenging, especially for someone his age. But the upcoming road season shows excellent promise. The Belgian will compete with the absolute best in the biggest races.

On the road in the summer, in the field in the winter, it's more complicated than people think. "There is much more to it than most people can imagine," Nys told Sporza. "Combining road and cyclo-cross is difficult at an age where you feel impressed with your results yourself, but where at other times you are confronted with the facts." For example, the youngster was only sixteen in the Hulst World Cup before taking second in Zonhoven the next day.

The inconsistency is still something he is working on, but a lot is expected of Nys from all sides. "It's a rollercoaster. I surprise everyone during the road season, but I ride two cyclo-cross races poorly after illness, and everybody in Belgium tears you apart. Then I win 3 times in a row, and they carry you on their hands again. That's a bit typical of our country."

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Thibau Nys became European cyclo-cross champion in Pontevedra.

The Ardennes classics and a grand tour, but which one?

His road campaign was impressive. Nine victories, including five at WorldTour level, show how fast Lidl-Trek's star is developing. "I took almost all my chances. I am aware that that is quite rare. In the coming years, it will only get tougher." Nys also won three stages on the Poland Tour and one on the Switzerland Tour.

That development also brings expectations. Next year, he will step up again. "I will ride the Walloon classics (Amstel, Flèche Wallonne, and maybe Liège) for the first time, and I will also ride my first grand tour," he says of his program for 2025. "Which one? I don't know that yet. Nothing is certain yet. I honestly don't know. There are pros and cons to the three grand tours. The Giro comes early after the cyclo-cross season, the Tour is hectic, and the Vuelta is near the next cyclo-cross winter."

Therefore, we are still guessing which grand tour Nys will do. But the Tour de France is one of the possibilities. That's what he sees himself doing. "The Tour would suit me best regarding timing, but it's independent of what the team wants or expects. I follow their recommendations. But I won't say no to the Tour as my first grand tour." The Tour de France starts July 5 in Lille. The course of the first week seems tailor-made for Nys.

Read more below the photo!

It has become a common sight: Thibau Nys also triumphing on the road.

Nys is not delusional about his spring: "Everything depends on Pogacar"

But the Ardennes classics should suit him as well. Nys is good uphill and very explosive. But there is one who can probably do that better: Tadej Pogacar. "And everything depends on him there. He can write the scenarios so that there are no more certainties." That's why the young Belgian is careful about his ambitions in the spring. "On paper, those races suit me very well, but who says he doesn't already go solo in the second-to-last passage over the Muur van Hoei? With him, you never know. I don't want to be able to blame myself anyway, and I want to be in as good a shape as possible."

Papa Sven is an absolute superstar in cyclo-cross. That brings pressure, but Thibau handles it very well. "Everything is magnified, yes. Positive and negative. But I don't look at it like I have to succeed my dad. I want to leave some legacy. People say that he achieved great results, he was committed to his profession, he got everything out of his career, and he sparked the imagination. That's what I strive for day after day."

Read also

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