Tratnik defends Omloop title alongside Van Dijkes and Spanish talents: "Maybe even better than last year"

Jan Tratnik will start this Saturday as the defending champion in the Omloop Het Nieuwsblad. The Slovenian will not wear the Visma | Lease a Bike shirt because he transferred to Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe this winter. He has already competed in two preparatory races for that team, the Star of Besseges and the Tour of the Algarve, where he spoke about his goals for the only cobbled classics he will be attending.

Tratnik raced in southern Portugal for the first time with teammate, compatriot, and contemporary Primoz Roglic, who had already transferred to Ralph Denk's team the year before. Roglic drew some attention by appearing at the start with hairy legs, which made Tratnik laugh. "Who made up the rule that you have to shave your legs?" he replied, smiling.

The Slovenian was not the only one who transferred from Visma | Lease a Bike to Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe this winter. Tim and Mick van Dijke also made the same move, although they were not yet racing for their new team. The brothers have spent the past few weeks in Tenerife with Spaniard Roger Adria, last year's surprise star, who will also be racing on Opening Weekend. They will make their debut in the Omloop on Saturday. "What do I expect from them? It's hard to say, but I hope they can win as much as possible," says Tratnik.

"We have strong young men on the team," he says, referring to transfers such as Oier Lazkano, Laurence Pithie, the Van Dijke brothers, and Adria. Tratnik will not be racing with the latter, as he will join Roglic after Strade Bianche in the Giro/Tour regime. With this in mind, he wants to get the most out of the Opening Weekend. "I'm looking forward to next week in Flanders. I can't wait."

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Tratnik did not achieve any results, but feels "perhaps better than last year"

Last year, the now 35-year-old Tratnik came to Ghent for the start of the Omloop with ambition. At the time, he came second in the Tour of Murcia, third in the Clasica Jaén, and third in the GC of the Tour of the Algarve. Things are a bit different this season, with a 26th place in Portugal. "I feel excellent, maybe even better than this time last year," Tratnik says. "Last season, I had already achieved some results at this point, but this year was different. Besseges was not the best race, and in the Algarve, we are for Primoz."

In the South of France, he wanted to go for a classification, but due to the lack of safety measures in that race, Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe was one of the teams that left the race. In Portugal, Tratnik was able to continue building on his form. "I am pleased with the strength of my legs, and also in terms of health and training; everything went perfectly. The Algarve is a beautiful, tough race to get into. I am pleased with how everything is going at the moment."

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Tratnik now faces a strong block Visma: "Needed that last year to win"

In 2024, Tratnik could take advantage of the strong Visma block, but now he will be up against Wout van Aert and co. "We all know that Visma has a powerful team. Especially how we were able to play it last season. In addition to good legs, that was also what I needed to be able to win," the experienced rider realizes.

So, what is the goal for the 2025 Omloop? "I'm not necessarily thinking about victory. My approach is to get out there and give it my all. "We have a strong, young team, and I think we can compete for the win. Although we also know that the spring races can be unpredictable," he says. "My victory last season gave me confidence to compete in these races. I am now 35, but I am even more motivated."

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