Thibau Nys until this year was an extremely talented yet inconsistent rider. However, over the opening weeks of the
cyclocross season he seems to have taken a step in his performance. Sven Nys' former rival
Niels Albert enjoys the new figure at the top and his tendency to take risks.
"There is an interesting generation emerging among men. I am a happy person. I saw another exciting cross this weekend (Overijse, ed.). It was fascinating to the core," Albert told Het Laatste Nieuws. "You can call his impetuousness a point of improvement, I especially like to see it. This way I can live with the fact that Van Aert or Van der Poel are not there. Thibau will occasionally fall to the ground due to his crazy maneuvers, but just as often it will be just and then it will be worth it. So let him explore his limits: that is valuable in the long term."
In Overijse Nys crashed early in the race, made a comeback, and then in the final minutes of racing divebombed Eli Iserbyt to try and take the lead, crashing in the process. A young rider, Albert believes that it is healthy for the Belgian to take the risks and discover his limits. "If you want to slow him down, you can do so in two weeks' time at the European Championships in Pontchâteau. Then there is a jersey at stake, so you could be a little more cautious. But otherwise: let him be young."
"In any case, I have no reason to think that he will drop back, his engine has clearly grown. On Sunday in Overijse he lost through his own fault: he went too eagerly in that last descent. But I'm fine with that," the CX legend argues. "Please let him try, let him be enthusiastic. It's good that he hits the wall every now and then, he learns from that. His dad said it well: you have to dare to lose in order to win."
