Cian Uijtdebroeks: "There is still margin for everything"

Young Belgian prodigy Cian Uijtdebroeks is under the radar of the World Tour teams and he is slowly making his way up the ranks in BORA - hansgrohe. He has had a tough start to the season, but as the form comes in, so does the spotlight.

Uijtdebroeks gathered his first Top10 place as pro this weekend at Per Sempre Alfredo - won by Marc Hirschi - and was asked by Wielerflits if he was surprised about his performance: “A little bit. Specially because my run-up to the race did not go smoothly. The day before, my flight to Italy was suddenly canceled and I had to take another flight at the last minute. After that, I was stuck at the airport for another seven hours, and to make matters worse, my luggage didn't arrive either. A lot of chaos and misery, but this achievement makes up for a lot," he says in a light tone.

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The 19-year old jumped straight for the junior ranks into the World Tour via BORA - hansgrohe. Although he's in his neo-pro season, with a lot to learn, he'a had a good start to the season which has brought him to a seventh place in the Italian classic: "I rode a fairly attacking course in the final. Just when I was taken back with a group, Hirschi started. Then I knew: winning will be difficult, because I had already lost quite a bit of strength. Luckily I was able to accommodate and ride in the top 10, but that doesn't matter much. The most important thing is that I was able to show myself. I thought: just attack, and if it doesn't work, then so be it. Then you get to know your limits. But the fact that I immediately ride in a final is great, of course. That's what you do it all for," he added.

He's had tough times in February though, as his season didn't have the best of starts. "I had to leave the Saudi Tour with salmonella, and three days later I got Covid-19. Probably suffered on the return flight, but it seriously cut in. I had a fever for about a week and a half with temperatures up to 41 degrees, then it took three weeks before I was back at a level from which I could start building up. Only when I felt good again did I look for the good condition. You often see that riders want to race again too soon, but I took my time calmly. That pays off now," he added.

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He's confident that he's still far from his best level, and that his form will grow throughout the season. He's also pointed out some of his main goals for the year: "Certainly not. A decent condition, but a lot can still be fine-tuned. I have not done an altitude training camp, my fat percentage is still around 11 %. There is still margin for everything. That's a good thing. My first goal of the year is in the Tour of the Alps, later in the Tour de l'Avenir I have to be at my very best. In the coming Coppi e Bartali there are fewer goals, but I want to get the most out of them. Without pressure, but as with the juniors: last as long as possible and race aggressively.”

In the opening stage of the Settimana Internazionale Coppi e Bartali, Uijtdebroeks finished in the peloton after a hard finale. He will be testing himself in fitting terrain as he is leading the team.