"I do all the training days with the real climbers" - Frank van den Broek on trying to find his role within Team dsm-firmenich PostNL
Cycling
Frank van den Broek was one of the pleasant surprises of 2023. While racing for continental Dutch ABLOC, he made a good name for himself finishing eighth at the elite National Championships and with few smaller victories. Now he's heading to a first race with Team dsm-firmenich PostNL at Tour of Oman. IDLProCycling.com had a chat with the neo-pro ahead of his professional debut.
Van den Broek first joined the Development for second half of 2023, what were his first impressions? "That it's really a professional organization, because that's what it is: a business. The transition was quite natural because the first race I rode with the Development Team was actually immediately my last. After that, I've only been with the WorldTour team."
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"I've now been placed in the classification group, so I do all the training days with the real climbers," the 23-year-old says about trying to discover his identity as a rider. "But the program is really diverse, so I've had the chance to really find out what suits me best or what I'm most passionate about. That's really nice."
"I'll start in Oman, with Fabio Jakobsen among others. That's one of the only races I'll do with the sprint train, but after that, there are races like the Vuelta a Catalunya. But then there are also some classics mixed in, so it's a bit up and down," he says about his schedule, noting the Vuelta a Espana could be also on the cards if everything goes well.
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Ondrej ZhasilCycling Journalist
Ondřej Zhasil is a cycling journalist at CyclingUpToDate and has been part of the team since 2023. He is based in Ostrava, the third-largest city in the Czech Republic, and covers professional cycling across the main UCI competitions, including the Tour de France, the Giro d’Italia, and La Vuelta a España. A key focus of his work is startlist analysis and pre-race coverage, where he examines team selections, rider line-ups, and tactical scenarios ahead of major events.
Alongside WorldTour coverage, Ondřej has developed specific expertise in junior cycling and in racing across East Asia, including competitions in China and Japan. He also maintains a broad working knowledge of other disciplines and levels, including cyclocross, while continuing to expand his understanding of mountain bike racing.
Ondřej holds a bachelor’s degree in Mathematics and Physics, which supports his analytical, data-driven approach to performance and race analysis. In his reporting, he regularly uses ProCyclingStats for results, statistics, and historical context. He places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles promptly when new, verified information becomes available.
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- for what?frieders311-11-2026
- Blah blah blah!frieders311-11-2026
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- I had no idea about that either.
santiagobenites10-11-2026 - great analysis thanks! appreciate you posting this. I didn't realize CX had a different standard for deviation. this is even more egregious it seems.mij10-11-2026
- As he isn't currently with Red Bull, I guess if he want to race for one more year he needs to find a team. He's 37 so this will be his last year I would guess, unless he wants to race for almost nothing like Froome did.awp10-11-2026
- I think some are making much ado about nothing. Even though Jonas is getting older, before his crash in the Tour, he looked like a solid 2nd all the way home. No one can really climb with Tadej until this year, Eric Mas showed himself which I think was a one off year for him and Paul Seixas has been able to be pretty close to him. Whatever stage race Jonas enters as long as Tadej is not there he is a favorite to win.awp10-11-2026
- Giro or not Giro, he won't win the Tour!MajorPayne10-11-2026
- Very true.awp10-11-2026
- Ciccone had a very strong end of season. Consistently attacking and livening up races. Hope he makes that last leap in progress and starts notching some significant wins. Great rider to watch.Occam10-11-2026
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