"I stopped dancing in my off season" - Toms Skujins explains his sudden rise to the top at Classics
Cycling
It's not so common these days to see a 32-year-old level up their game, yet Toms Skujins is a living example of that it is indeed still possible. After few years when the Latvian didn't get much spotlight, he has reawakened at last year's Giro d'Italia, carrying the momentum through San Sebastian (6th), World Championships (8th) and European Championships (13th) all to way to 2024. Finishing runner-up at Strade Bianche, Skujins can already speak of successful spring, yet there can always be achieved more, he admits to WielerFlits.
With Lidl-Trek's classics lineup decimated by the Dwars door Vlaanderen crash, Skujins could easily be the American team's best shot at Tour of Flanders - a race that inevitably appeals to Skujins. "If there is any place in the world where cycling is the biggest sport and the passion of the most people, it is in Flanders. Even on Thursday during our training round, there were a lot of spectators supporting us. There is a reason why people here call this Holy Week. There is not a Belgian in Flanders who is not a cycling fan."
"My shape is now better than ever. Unfortunately we miss Jasper Stuyven and Alex Kirsch, but the confidence in Mads Pedersen and myself is good. Long races suit me better. Selections are made by the legs you have, not by positioning. We have to aim as high as possible."
Skujins was rarely firing off all cylinders in the spring, however this year everything seems to have clicked. The reason is as bizzare as you'd expect from the eccentric Latvian. "I stopped dancing in my off season," he explains. "Folk dancing is very big in Latvia. We love dancing and singing. But I sacrificed that to have more energy for training. That's the whole truth. Once every five years is the Latvian Song and Dance Festival. Think of it as the Olympic Games for Latvians. In a packed stadium, thousands of people dance, displaying all kinds of Latvian symbols and ornaments. It's super cool. So I don't do that anymore and now look."
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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- 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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