"I hope to sprint for the win, just like Philipsen did today" - Olav Kooij left with big dreams after Milano-Sanremo debut
Cycling
Team Visma | Lease a Bike have started Milano-Sanremo without Wout van Aert but with the lead in the hands of Christophe Laporte and Olav Kooij. The race did not favour the latter, as it was the fastest edition in history, but Kooij still rode to a strong result and is left hopeful for future years.
“I definitely want to return here one day and then I hope to sprint for the win, just like Philipsen did today," Kooij said in a press release issued by the Dutch team. "I'm happy that I was able to survive the Cipressa. This course once again illustrates the development I am going through.” The Dutch sprinter has proven himself as a quality classics rider last year at the national and European championships riding to a podium in both, and has now taken another step.
The pace was as high as ever up the Cipressa this year, the longest climb of the race, but Kooij survived in a small peloton. In the Poggio di Sanremo it was not possible to follow the best but he was not too distant, eventually settling in the chasing group. “As expected, the pace was very high on the Cipressa. I was really at the limit, but I still managed to survive. I also enjoyed the Poggio. But when the strongest riders accelerated, I no longer had the legs," he explained. Kooij then sprinted to 14th, second out of the second big group on the road.
"We have to be satisfied with that. That is simply a very impressive achievement in your first monument," team DS Marteen Wynants said. "Olav was exactly where he should be in the final, but Tadej Pogacar's second attack was too much for him. There is absolutely no shame in that. Of course, as a team we are disappointed that we did not achieve a top result here today. But the way Olav has manifested himself here today shows perspective for the future.”
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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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🇮🇹 #MilanoSanremo The fastest MSR ever ➜ 46 km/h. 🥵
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