"I started to feel dizzy": K-B-K revelation Matevz Govekar could've missed the entire spring due to a health condition

The 2026 Kuurne - Bruxelles - Kuurne had an unusually controlled run for a second year in a row with once again a large group sprint for the victory. The Omloop Het Nieuwsblad follow-up race sometimes brings forth many unexpected names, this time, fourth place Matevz Govekar was among them. With this result, the 25-year-old Slovenian secured his by-far best result in cobbled classics.

Despite a relatively calm day of racing, big sprinter names, including Jonathan Milan, Biniam Girmay or Paul Magnier lost contact with the main group on the hilly section in first half of the race, while Jasper Philipsen had to solve many mechanical problems and was way out of position to participate in the sprint in Kortrijk. Thus all the eyes were on Matthew Brennan who didn't fail to deliver in a dominant fashion.

But behind the young Brit, a chaos unfolded with riders blocking each other and eventually the Tudor Pro Cycling duo Luca Mozzato and Matteo Trentin came out on top. The former European Champion was just fast enough to slip past Matevz Govekar sprinting on the other side of the road to a close fourth place.

"When I crossed the finish line, I didn't even know if I was third or fourth," the Bahrain - Victorious rider told Siol after the race. "I could have done something differently in the last few hundred meters, but that's how it is."

The lead-out of Brennan's teammate Christophe Laporte was simply devastating, especially in the strong head-wind which caused a tough battle for Brenann's wheel - ultimately with no winner as riders coming from further back gained upper edge.

"There was a strong headwind and I knew I had to wait a bit and not start the sprint too early. Maybe I could have done something differently. I had the option to go to the left side, but I decided to go to the right. I accept the result, I'm happy, but at the same time I know that there will be more opportunities and that I can improve it."

"For me, the key thing in the race was to survive the selection on the challenging slopes, and the wind made it even more difficult. The team and I raced great. Matej (Mohoric, ed.) was also very active, and on the flat part towards the finish, where the selection happened several times, we were always present at the forefront."

And just like that, Govekar secured Bahrain - Victorious' best result at the cobbled (semi-) classics since compatriot Matej Mohoric's third place at the same race in 2023, exactly three years ago. Yet Govekar might've missed the start of the season entirely due to a health condition that delayed his preparation past winter.

He explains: "Like every year, I started training at the end of October, and then shortly after the new year I had a minor complication. The doctor diagnosed me with vestibular neuritis, which is inflammation of the balance nerve in my right ear. In practical terms, this meant that I started to feel dizzy."

"I had to see a specialist and then rest for ten days. But I think I laid such a good foundation in December that those ten days didn't significantly affect my form. I started the season well, maybe even fresher than usual. Fortunately, I don't have any more problems now, we also did preventive checks and ruled out other complications."