Jasper Philipsen concluded the 2023 season with an impressive total of nineteen victories. The Belgian rider from Alpecin-Deceuninck secured his fourth stage win in the Tour of Turkey on Sunday, allowing him to embark on his vacation with a treasure trove of gold medals and trophies. IDLProCycling.com symbolizes the culmination of all these triumphs.
Interestingly, Philipsen didn't start his winning streak until March of this year, during his third race of the season. At the Tirreno-Adriatico, Mathieu van der Poel executed a lead-out twice, enabling Philipsen to capitalize on it. This formula for success continued to prove itself as Van der Poel also played a crucial role in sprint preparation during the Baloise Belgium Tour and the Tour de France. In the Tour de France, Philipsen notched up four stage wins and secured the points classification victory.
Nevertheless, it was not solely mass sprints that brought Philipsen victories in 2023. Consider his triumph in the grueling fan race at Brugge-De Panne and a closely contested sprint in the Elfstedenronde. Additionally, he claimed victory in the Scheldeprijs in the spring and added the Flanders Championship, the Gooikse Pijl, Paris-Chauny, and the Friesland Elfstedenrace to his list of achievements in the fall. To top it off, he secured a stage win in the Renewi Tour and four more victories in Turkey, bringing his total to nineteen, two more than Tadej Pogacar.
"It was a challenging season, and I'm grateful we did thorough reconnaissance. The team was well-prepared and executed the plan superbly," Philipsen stated after his final race and victory of 2023 on Sunday. "For me, it was about avoiding trouble and sprinting in the final 300 meters. I wanted to demonstrate that my form was still excellent, so winning was a great feeling. The objective was to claim stage victories, and we can now reflect on a successful Tour of Turkey and season. I'll savor that for the time being, with the goal of continuing this momentum into the coming year."