Skjelmose wants to strike back at Jumbo-Visma with Lidl money: "They booked the entire hotel, no one else could go to Teide"

If you're a good climber, you'll head to the Tour de France in 2024, and if you're a strong time trialist, you're better off choosing the Giro d'Italia as a general classification rider. The big names are slowly revealing where they will be focusing their goals in 2024, except for Mattias Skjelmose. The 23-year-old Danish rider for Lidl-Trek has known for months that he will be competing in the Vuelta a España next season, with the goal of achieving a good overall classification. In an extensive interview with IDLProCycling.com, he discussed his choice, his competitive outlook towards Jumbo-Visma, and fellow countryman Jonas Vingegaard.

Skjelmose is one for the future, although 2023 can already be considered a breakthrough year for him. He won a stage in the Étoile de Bessèges and the Tour des Alpes Maritimes et du Var, before claiming the Tour de Suisse with a stage victory. During his Tour de France debut, he played a crucial role as a teammate for Giulio Ciccone, helping him secure the polka dot jersey. In the fall, he became the Danish road cycling champion, won a stage in the Tour of Denmark and also triumphed in the American Maryland Cycling Classic.

A year to be proud of, yet something was gnawing at him when Skjelmose sat down for an interview with IDLProCycling.com on Lidl-Trek's media day. "The biggest goal is to achieve a good overall classification in a grand tour before heading to the Tour de France. I haven't had such a success story in a grand tour yet, despite helping Giulio win the polka dot jersey in the Tour," said the climber, who truly feels that he is gradually being pushed into a leadership role within the team. "I feel the pressure as the team leader, but not from the team itself. It's coming more from myself. I'm still young, but the ambition I have is what drives me to want to be a leader. I want to earn the trust of the people within the team, and I'm working hard on that, hoping to grow in that role."

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Skjelmose is aiming for the Vuelta alongside Liège-Bastogne-Liège

This is why Lidl-Trek has a long-term plan in place. Skjelmose already knows that he will be the team leader for the Tour de France in 2025, which makes the 2024 Vuelta crucial. "Since I turned pro, my goal has been to ride the Tour de France as a general classification rider in 2025. As a team, we believe that in order to contend for the general classification in the Tour in 2025, I should try the same in the Vuelta now. For me, the Vuelta is somewhat calmer than the Giro and the Tour. There will be less media attention, and because it's later in the season, many riders may be a bit more fatigued. I don't mean to say it will be easier to perform, but other riders might not be as motivated as they are for the Tour."

For those who aren't participating in the Giro and the Tour, there is nothing to do until September. However, Skjelmose has an important appointment in the spring. "Liège-Bastogne-Liège will be the main objective in the first part of the season. Actually, it's the Ardennes Classics, but Liège is the queen in that regard," says the man who finished ninth in Liège in 2023. La Doyenne is not an easy goal in 2024, with two-time winner Remco Evenepoel returning and Mathieu van der Poel also eager to participate. "Mathieu and Remco are two of the best riders in the world, and the way Evenepoel won Liège twice in a row is impressive. We'll have to find a different way to beat him. We have a strong team, and hopefully, we can play our cards well. Winning isn't always about being the best; sometimes you win by being the smartest with a strong team. I would like to podium in a Monument, which, besides Liège, will only be Lombardy for me."

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Lidl invests money and ambitions in Skjelmose's team

When asked if he truly sees himself competing with the current top riders, he nods confidently. "With a Tour de France under my belt, I believe I've taken a step forward. I've worked on my nutrition and will be two kilograms lighter for Liège, with an additional high-altitude training camp to show for. I have a lot of confidence that I'll be better than in 2023 because there are still many buttons I can push, which I'll be pushing soon. I believe I have what it takes. I have a lot to improve, but we took a step forward in 2023 and will take another one this winter."

Skjelmose is undoubtedly referring to Lidl as the team's new sponsor. Since the supermarket chain came on board, the budget has increased, and new leaders have been added for all terrains. But it doesn't end there. "With additional chefs, nutrition coaches and new trainers, we're really making progress. We have big plans with the money Lidl is investing. We can go to altitude more often, hire people for more specialized roles, and I think we'll see a completely different Lidl-Trek in 2024, with a lot of success. The pressure will be higher. Salaries are higher, so we need to perform. We have the ambitions to compete with the best teams," he says with full conviction.

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Jumbo-Visma serves as a guide for Skjelmose and Lidl-Trek

Skjelmose has never kept it a secret that he likes to take cues from Jumbo-Visma, currently the strongest team in the WorldTour. Whatever the Dutch team does, Skjelmose plans to do as well. He is very straightforward about it. "I will do more high-altitude training camps, and I've also moved to Andorra for that purpose, so it will be much easier. And I will start later in the season. Those are the two most important things I've taken from Jumbo's success. Additionally, we will focus more on nutrition and such."

Lidl also plays a role here because Skjelmose confesses that it has been quite challenging to compete with Jumbo-Visma with less funding. "Jumbo-Visma uses high-altitude training camps at a much higher level than other teams. It's no secret that this is the recipe. All teams know that too, but the problem was that Jumbo-Visma went to Teide and fully booked out the only hotel there in February. No one else could go there, just like a few years earlier with INEOS. We have found other ways now because there aren't many places to go for high-altitude training in February. I believe we have won a battle in that regard. We have the money, so we can go to high altitude in February."

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Skjelmose and Vingegaard: fellow countrymen but not friends

So far, we've discussed Skjelmose's plans for achieving success. Towards the end of the interview, there's also an opportunity to talk about his compatriot Vingegaard, who won the Tour de France two times in a row, representing Jumbo-Visma. Skjelmose had a close look at Vingegaard during the 2023 Tour, and in stage 16's time trial, he was trailing by 3.21 minutes. This was despite Skjelmose finishing a respectable eighth that day. "I didn't go all-out, but I did give it a hundred percent. I might have been able to go thirty seconds faster with better preparation. So, Jonas was on a different level."

"He prepared better," Skjelmose concludes, emphasizing that Lidl-Trek is taking the same approach. "For example, this winter, we're going into the wind tunnel, with a different time trial suit and new equipment. We've made a lot of progress, but I won't find those three minutes in the setup alone. That's a significant difference. The time trial Jonas did in the Tour was one of the best individual performances ever in cycling. Everyone was impressed, but the way Jumbo-Visma operates and the way Jonas is physically built are important factors in such a performance. Jonas had one of the best days ever, which made something like that possible. Of course, the difference is scary to see because I was well-prepared for the Tour and still lost over three minutes. I need to improve."

However, Skjelmose won't be getting tips from Vingegaard anytime soon. The two share Danish citizenship but don't socialize. Perhaps they'll meet this summer at the Olympic Games in Paris? "I've never raced with him. Riding with Jonas would be good for me. Other riders won't simply let me go, but if they have to choose, they'll keep an eye on Jonas and not so much on me," he smiles. "I don't think many people, including Danes, are close to him, and I don't go out to dinner with him either. But when I see him in races, he's a very nice person. Very down to earth. I talk to him regularly, and he's very different from what you see in the media. Then he's open and funny."