After two months away from competition Biniam Girmay has returned to the peloton at the Brussels Cycling Classic. It was an attacked race where he was part of the action, and he showed good legs ahead of what may be his biggest goal of the season.
“I was able to make the race hard, my legs felt pretty good and I had no problems. All very positive," Girmay told Het Nieuwsblad. "Especially the first two or three weeks after the fall were tough. The wounds didn't want to heal properly, and in the meantime I just lay there. I couldn't do anything. Difficult, especially mentally.”
The Eritrean packed a good sprint but did not depend on it, with two laps of a circuit around the Mur de Geraardsbergen and the Bosberg, he made moves as the race looked to beak apart. Ultimately it came down to a sprint, Girmay sprinted to fourth on the day with Arnaud Démare taking the win.
This is the first race in his preparation for the Tour de France. “And there is still time. The Tour will only start in less than four weeks," he adds, not feeling the pressure. "Of course I have ambition. As a child I dreamed of one day riding the Tour. But first I have to make sure that I can appear at the start in good shape.”
He now travels to Switzerland where the Tour de Suisse will be his main building block towards the Grand Boucle, there he will face the likes of Wout van Aert who will make it quite hard for him to take a victory, but it will be a proper test with several opportunities.
“None of that was super optimal. That is why we are surprised that it was so good here in his first race, team manager Aike Visbeek said. "But at the same time we remain cautious. This is not yet a WorldTour peloton. In July things will be different. Anyway, he's clearly taken a big step. Can he continue to do this in the coming weeks, we will definitely see him in the Tour de France.”
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A founding contributor to CyclingUpToDate since its launch in January 2022, Ruben Silva has played a central role in shaping the site’s editorial direction and long-term growth. Before joining the project, he built his experience through independent blogging at Echelons Hub and by producing race previews for Ciclismo Internacional, developing a strong analytical voice rooted in daily engagement with professional cycling.
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- He is boring
leedorney08-11-2026 - To Twoje przemyślenia te bla, bla :)
Dariusz08-11-2026 - Uwielbiam patrzeć, jak wyjeżdża na czoło peletonu i zaczyna się rzeź...Dariusz08-11-2026
- Yeah, unreal.
parisbound0008-11-2026 - there needs to be space in life for pointless comments!Ketterechts08-11-2026
- That is a very lazy way of putting it but so far on this website it seems like everyone is happy to look at everything lazily, even things that annoy them intensely. All they want to do is state their feeling and position but ask most to analyse a problem or come up with solutions or improvements and you’re stunned by silence. Nobody even really knows how this all happens. It’s very simple and quick to just say the UCI did it but I bet you they didn’t, I bet you not more than 2 people were involved, more likely just 1. The UCI may be ultimately responsible but it is not their decision, this is about hierarchy, power and delegation. The fact that protest is possible also means it isn’t over and that MORE people could get involved for a thorough review which could throw up anything. It is highly likely it was a sole commissar who decided and has that power in a first round. Therein might lie the problem the UCI has to consider, is it acceptable to give so much authority to one single person when it is quite possible for them to have a natural bias or be too easily susceptible to imposed bias. Who is to say an individual in this position isn’t susceptible to collaboration with outside players with interests in the results, nations, families, teams, betting companies, etc. On the one hand we have sports where these problems have been worked on way more to reduce such problems, on the other hand we have sports with far stricter and more draconian rules not even concerning safety or obstruction that nobody really questions like false starts or stepping out of lane or zones in athletics. If cycling hastowork on itself, it would be good if protagonists (all kinds) would start doing a little more than just moaning over outcomes.Jumpyjohn08-11-2026
- Yes, so why not make comments less pointless?Jumpyjohn08-11-2026
- What a race! I didn't expect Vanthourenhout to collapse like that, and Wyseure did take the fight to Nys, but there was no doubt at the end. I also wonder what Aubin Sparfel would be capable of were he to race in the elites now. In the U23 ranks he is making good work of Giel Lejeune, who himself is among the better riders in the elites, and a top 10 contender in the big races (3rd at Kleebergcross, 8th at Berencross and 5th at Heerderstrand). In the French Cup, Sparfel is significantly better than Romain Debord (8th at Koppenbergcross and 10th at the Euros) and Rémi Lelandais (12th at Koppenbergcross and 19th at the Euros).
Rafionain-Glas08-11-2026 - There really was nothing in it. Schreiber was so much faster, and Brand was fighting to stay in the wheel in the sprint. Schreiber did move a bit, but to say she closed the door doesn't make sense because Brand couldn't enter it anyway, abd she wasn't impeded.Rafionain-Glas08-11-2026
- He should have been allowed to go to Movistar. Right now both arent a good fit for each other and are just wasting each other's time and effortabstractengineer08-11-2026
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Happy to back racing with good team effort @IntermarcheCW
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