“I still feel I can compete with these young riders” - Rafał Majka looks forward to starting his season

Ahead of his first race of the year at the AlUla Tour in Saudi Arabia, Rafał Majka has expressed his excitement for what will be his fourteenth season as a WorldTour rider. The 34-year-old has been the right-hand man to Tadej Pogačar over the last few years and has often played an integral role for UAE Team Emirates at the Tour de France.

In an interview with Eurosport, Majka stated that “I am very happy and excited to start the next season. Although when I look around me, I see very young guys, but my body does not feel old”. On whether he is still able to keep up with the pace of the racing nowadays, the Polish rider said “I still feel I can compete with these young riders, it's not a problem for me. Cycling still gives me pleasure and I am motivated to do it. I can still achieve further successes”.

Majka showed that he is still able to compete at last year’s Tour de Pologne, as he took the victory on stage 3. He has also proven himself to be a reliable domestique for the likes of Pogačar and Adam Yates, helping both of them to podium finishes at last year’s Tour de France, where he also finished fourteenth in the overall standings.

On Pogačar, who is looking to achieve the Giro-Tour double this season, Majka was very complimentary of his team leader, saying that “he’s a really smart guy, he’s a great leader, a great leader. I had the opportunity to ride with riders such as Contador and Sagan and I know how mentally strong they were. Tadej has such a mentality”.