"It’s what I always dreamed about" - Matteo Jorgenson makes big impression on Team Visma | Lease a Bike debut at Omloop Het Nieuwsblad

In his very first race since swapping Movistar Team for Team Visma | Lease a Bike, Matteo Jorgenson was thrust right into the action at Omloop Het Nieuwsblad.

“It’s a dream come true. I had to pinch myself out there. This is a bike race I have always dreamed of,” the 24-year-old American reflected in his post-race interview with Velo. “It was a beautiful day, it’s what I always dreamed about."

Jorgenson was very impressive too, making it into an elite, six-man breakaway with teammates Wout van Aert and Christophe Laporte and arguably being the strongest of the Team Visma | Lease a Bike trio at that point in the race as he attacked clear solo. “I had a good move there at the Muur, but the conditions were not good for a solo move, because there was a block headwind leading to the base of the Kapelmuur. My move didn’t work out, but it set up the team perfectly. I am glad to play my part.”

Although that move didn't come off, it was Jorgenson's teammate, Jan Tratnik who eventually took the win meaning there was still reason for celebration. “We had a clear plan coming out of Oudenaarde, we wanted to split it early on. We had a perfect plan. We slowly whittled down our group,” Jorgenson said. “The peloton behind was really motivated, and we couldn’t get the gap we wanted. But in the end it still worked out perfect.”

“It’s totally different experience racing with this team, but it was a dream come true. It was a perfect day,” he concludes. “We raced with all of us, and we made it work. We had a clear plan, perfect preparation, and the strongest team in the race, when you have that, and you have the exact points to be in the front, it’s just a dream, and it’s a totally different way of racing.”