"If you see which riders he beats: Majka, Vingegaard, Mohoric..." - Thibau Nys' coach showers praise onto young superstar

Thibau Nys' star has been shining brightly in 2024 and it's fair to say that many in the know are getting incredibly excited about future prospects of Belgian cycling legend Sven Nys' son.

"I actually thought last year that Thibau had done very well. We did expect him to take an extra step this year. But this is not one, but three steps forward," Nys' Lidl-Trek coach, Paul Van Den Bosch explains in conversation with Sporza after his rider's second stage win at the 2024 Tour de Pologne. "If you see which riders he beats: Majka, Vingegaard, Mohoric... They are really big names, but he just deals with them."

A key to Nys' success is forward planning Van den Bosch believes. “It makes it even more impressive that he says it beforehand. He looks at the profile of the stages and then he dares to say to us – not to the big bell – that the first and third stages are tailor-made for him," the coach reveals. "Then Sven and I think: 'Well, we'll see.' Because there is often a big difference between being tailor-made and actually winning. But he still makes it happen."

"Thibau's maturity goes much further than the physical. He also shows that maturity by forcing his place in a team full of stars and by letting everyone ride for him," he continues. "Even men like Pedersen want to ride their socks off for Thibau, because they know that it can be finished."

“In terms of wattage, he is already pushing the same as the absolute top of the World Tour peloton. We saw that in training. But what we didn’t expect is that he would also be able to reproduce those top values ​​over 5 and 10 minutes at the end of a tough race. It’s all really impressive," Van den Bosch concludes. "Certainly if you look back at the top riders in the current peloton - and I'm not talking about Pogacar or Evenepoel , they're a whole different league. But if you look at the type of rider he is and what those guys achieved at the age of 20 or 21, he's very quick with his victories. Of course, we can't always talk about the breakthrough season, so next year the expectations will be a lot higher. But I do think he can handle that."