"It seems that he is no longer used to racing in cold weather" - sports director justifies Dylan van Baarle's bad results at cobbled classics
Cycling
Dylan van Baarle won Paris-Roubaix two years ago, but since then, things haven't been going well. Regardless, Visma | Lease a Bike is still counting on the Dutch champion next Sunday in the Hell of the North, sports director Arthur van Dongen tells WielerFlits.
Last Sunday, Van Baarle barely played a role at Tour of Flanders. "Dylan was really good," Van Dongen explains. "He also did well in the race, but suffered a puncture after the first time at Oude Kwaremont. When I was driving up to put a wheel on him, I also had a puncture with my car. He then grabbed a wheel from the side of the road on the Hotond."
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Despite the poor results in recent weeks, Van Baarle is in good shape and extremely sharp, according to his sports director. "It simply seems that he is no longer used to racing in cold weather since he lives in Monaco. I am convinced that he will play a leading role within our team on Sunday, but also within the race. Even though things have gone wrong, we have every confidence in him."
"I'm also not worried about his form in terms of that illness last week. That was only one day," Van Dongen explains. "He was able to recover quickly and well, which indicates that his basis is very good. He just hasn't been able to show that yet due to circumstances. That is very unfortunate and sad, but it is a fact. The great thing about Paris-Roubaix is that men always emerge, either from the early breakaway, or guys who don't encounter much and have good legs."
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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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- I had no idea about that either.
santiagobenites10-11-2026 - great analysis thanks! appreciate you posting this. I didn't realize CX had a different standard for deviation. this is even more egregious it seems.mij10-11-2026
- As he isn't currently with Red Bull, I guess if he want to race for one more year he needs to find a team. He's 37 so this will be his last year I would guess, unless he wants to race for almost nothing like Froome did.awp10-11-2026
- I think some are making much ado about nothing. Even though Jonas is getting older, before his crash in the Tour, he looked like a solid 2nd all the way home. No one can really climb with Tadej until this year, Eric Mas showed himself which I think was a one off year for him and Paul Seixas has been able to be pretty close to him. Whatever stage race Jonas enters as long as Tadej is not there he is a favorite to win.awp10-11-2026
- Giro or not Giro, he won't win the Tour!MajorPayne10-11-2026
- Very true.awp10-11-2026
- Ciccone had a very strong end of season. Consistently attacking and livening up races. Hope he makes that last leap in progress and starts notching some significant wins. Great rider to watch.Occam10-11-2026
- Me too!!!!!Occam10-11-2026
- they can sign any 100 of top riders today but Pogi will win over Remco any time at the TDF unless something goes wrongabstractengineer10-11-2026
- the time for a GC rider to retire is when they cannot win stages, or have a significant level drop like from winner/podium into top 5/10 consistently. Roglic is still competitive and Froome raced even though he became pack fodder.abstractengineer10-11-2026
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