Toms Skujins and Lidl-Trek are not afraid of Pogacar in the classics: "He’s welcome to challenge us"

By far, one of the most positive surprises of the season was Toms Skujins. The Latvian rider from Lidl-Trek has been known for years as a reliable and consistent rider who was successful in many of the smaller races, but this year, he was suddenly up against the best. With the top season behind him, he aims higher than ever and hopes to compete for wins with his team.

Although Skujins was good all year, the performances at the Paris Olympics and the World Championships in Zurich were absolute highlights. In the summer, he finished fifth in France, while in Switzerland, he narrowly missed out on a medal with a fourth-place finish. "I wanted a medal at the Olympics and Worlds, and that didn't work out," he told cycling journalist Daniel Benson. "But they were still really good rides, and at the end of the day, when you get beaten by better guys on the day, there's not much that you can do."

Nevertheless, the classics specialist is nonetheless delighted with his cycling year. "For sure, the whole year was super good, and I hit every goal that I had. It hit them as good as I could, so it wasn't a perfect year, but as close to it." The Lidl-Trek rider was best of the rest in the Strade Bianche in March behind an untouchable Tadej Pogacar. He also rode top ten in the E3 Saxo Classic and the Tour of Flanders. He ended the year with sixth place in the GP Montréal and fourth place at the World Championships: from start to finish, Skujins was superb.

"The one-day races were a big goal in 2024, and they will be again next year," he explained. "I want to improve there, but we must progress in all areas every season. If there's one thing where I can get better, it's my sprint. That holds me back a little bit. I'm not saying I'm slow, but it's something I can't rely on."

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Toms Skujins was one of the most active riders at the World Cup with Ben Healy.

Will Lidl-Trek be unstoppable in spring 2025? 

Skujins' performance is indicative of his team's development. Lidl-Trek experienced the best season in the team's history. With riders like Mads Pedersen, Jonathan Milan, Thibau Nys, and Søren Kragh Andersen alongside Skujins, the American formation has an excellent team for the spring. "Hopefully, we can show that with results. This year, we missed some big goals. I just managed to finish in the top ten in Flanders, and of course, we wanted more there. However, there have always been races where it didn't materialize, and if we can compete in every race, that would be perfect."

For Lidl-Trek to win at the highest level, they must deal with Pogacar. The world champion, among other races, will start in the Tour of Flanders. "He's welcome to challenge us," Skujins states boldly. "It's not going to change much for us. Of course, he is a contender in every race he starts; there is no doubt about that. But at the same time, I have confidence in our team. The same story continued in Gent-Wevelgem. It wasn't just Mads who won; it was the whole team. With Pogacar, it will be a similar scenario. Maybe we can't beat him man to man, but we can with the team."

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