"My main goal is to do well in the classics" - Biniam Girmay happy with first block of racing in Portugal
Cycling
Biniam Girmay definitely made a name for himself in cycling last year by winning three stages in the Tour de France, adding to his palmarès. Admittedly, he didn't win any more in the rest of the season, but his performances in the Tour led most critics to consider 2024 to be the best season of the Eritrean's short career.
In 2025, he started in Spain, with two top 10 finishes in the Mallorca Challenge races and then headed to Portugal, finishing 6th in the Figueira Champions Classic and taking 2nd and 5th place in the Volta ao Algarve's sprints. It's the first time he's raced in Portugal, but the Intermarché - Wanty leader made this decision because he likes "going to different places at the start of the season". "I'd never been to Portugal before. Figueira was very good, the weather is nice. I'm happy to be racing here".
However, his main goal at the start of the season will be the classics, where he'll try to repeat his victory in the 2022 Gent Wevelgem."I'm not at 100% right now, but for this kind of race, with this kind of sprint, I'd be happy to win a stage. But my main goal is to do well in the classics, that's what I'm working on my form for. I hope to be at my best there," he said.
Girmay also acknowledged that his victories in the Tour had given him a popularity he'd never had before in his career, even though he'd also won a stage in the Tour of Italy in 2022, "It was great. Winning in the Tour... it's the biggest cycling race. When you win there, you become better known in cycling. It was very positive for me, I really enjoyed it," he confessed.
The French race should be back on Girmay's calendar, but for now the focus is on the one-day races "For now, we just have to think about this week and then the classics, but I'm ready for this season," he concluded.
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Biniam Girmay concludes strong leadout with 5th place in Volta Algarve 🇵🇹 pic.twitter.com/5lbJwwpbvF
— Intermarché-Wanty (@IntermarcheW) February 22, 2025
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- We'll see what happens this year, hopefully he finds himself a little stronger.awp26-03-2025
- awp, the way and races he races, he probably doesn’t feel like he needs that many or specific race days before the Tour. His program isn’t very different from other years.Mistermaumau26-03-2025
- No, he just realises he’s not a one-day racer so why should he force himself?Mistermaumau26-03-2025
- Sacrificing E3 and G-W that were planned seems like he was hedging his options and only decided to do it after not winning MSR. Would he have planned to do all 5 and if so why hold back on announcing P-R if it wasn’t conditional? Guess people will get active with predictions now :-).Mistermaumau26-03-2025
- The MTB World title - there is no such thing. However, there are World titles in XCC, XCO, XCM, XCE, Enduro, Downhill......... He's after the World title in XCO, but could probably win the XCC title too, as his record is still better than anybody else, and he hasn't ridden an XCC World Cup since May 2021. Ten wins from twelve races says it all..... However, the XCO course is Crans-Montana is technical - he will surely need plenty of time back on the MTB, both training, and racing, otherwise it's going to be another doomed ambition.wipperman9526-03-2025
- Sweet. I wonder who's up on the next episode of Disgraced Ex-Doper Offers an Unsolicited Opinion?critguy26-03-2025
- well, paris-roubaix isn’t hilly AT ALL. it’s flat. the obstacle isn’t the hills it’s the cobbles, and what i’ve gathered over the years is that it’s almost impossible to imagine the beating that the body takes riding that course at race pace.OCexile26-03-2025
- Is Paris Roubaix hilly enough for Pogi to crack the other classics guys? Bring it on, it's going to be an exciting show!Ride197426-03-2025
- I don't care if you comment on LA articles. But it's counterproductive to do so, the more comments, the more clicks, the more such articles there will bevappaxbipmv26-03-2025
- I love listening to Geraint Thomas, he is such a great sportsman.awp26-03-2025