"Nobody should be going straight to WorldTour": Lidl-Trek rider sounds alarm to not skip important steps in rider development
Cycling
The biggest cycling teams are always on the lookout for the most talented young riders. The chances of discovering the next Remco Evenepoel or Tadej Pogacar are very intriguing, but teams shouldn't forget some steps in their easter egg hunt. At least that's how Cole Kessler who has been a part of the Lidl-Trek Future Racing team over the past two seasons.
The American under-23 time trial champion graduated from the category at the end of this season and should take his talents step further in 2026 with a rumoured move to the newly formed U.S. ProTeam, the Modern Adventure Pro Cycling. A strong all-rounder with good engine, it's not hard to see that Kessler aims to follow in the footsteps of compatriot Quinn Simmons and become another breakaway menace from United States.
"I think I’m a breakaway rider, definitely a breakaway specialist, because nowadays to win from the break you have to be super robust," Kessler explained in The Domestique Hotseat podcast. "You have to be able to get over some climbs. Like in the Tour, if you want to win from a break, most of the days they let it go are on hilly stages."
Simmons is one of several riders Kessler points to as proof that power and resilience can outweigh a pure climber’s build. "He’s an amazing example of a guy who isn’t climber weight, but with his robustness, he can still perform on hard courses," he referred to his compatriot's fourth place from an early breakaway at Il Lombardia month ago.
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In Lidl-Trek, he met many unique characters and one that left a mark at Kessler was 'El tractor' Tim Declercq. "I always looked up to Tim," Cole said. "When he joined the team, it was really cool to talk to him at camps and pick his brain. I think it’s awesome to ride on the front all day and just make people hurt. It’s pretty fun."
Quinn Simmons was the hero of 2025 Il Lombardia
Breakaways have always been (and still are) an inseparable part of cycling. However the recent years have seen fewer of the magic breakaway tales than in the past. Kessler offered his opinion why that is the case. "The death of the breakaway is probably mostly because of UAE Team Emirates and the way they ride," he said. "For Pogacar to be successful, he needs such a hard pace all day."
Still, he doesn’t believe the art of the escape is dead. "I don’t think the break is gone at all. That’s why you see riders fighting so hard for it in the Tour, huge power numbers in the first hour, everyone desperate to get up the road."
Rushing too much
Following in the footsteps of Remco Evenepoel, Quinn Simmons was also promoted to WorldTour straight from juniors in 2020. But unlike the Belgian, Simmons quickly learnt that it's not as simple to break through against the best riders in the world. Looking back, he might've chosen to take the path through under-23 categories as his progress stagnated for a long time before his talent was again allowed to shine in 2025.
Similarly, Paul Seixas and Albert Withen Philipsen have also moved straight into the prime division of cycling. And successfully. But Kessler believes the sport risks losing sight of endurance’s slow, natural progression by skipping the necessary development steps of racing in the under-23 category.
"Really, nobody should be going straight to the WorldTour out of juniors," Kessler claims. "You don’t see many guys go straight from high school into the major leagues and pitch in the World Series as an 18-year-old."
"Everybody wants the next Remco, the next Pogacar. They’re signing 15-, 16-, 17-, 18-year-old kids to WorldTour teams and forgetting how endurance sports work and that you get better as you get older. If you’re 18 and really good, be cautious. Maybe do two years under-23 before making the jump."
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 get the point totally. We live in the snowflake society where some riders forget they are getting paid to ride and get results. When they have a few issues they try to look outside of the real issue instead of themselves. It odd so many of the team are making no complaints and getting on with their job. If you do not like what you do find another job simples. Tough love as my mum would say.paultryan200207-11-2026
- many people advise him to grow slowly and rather do giro and/or vuelta instead of tdf. but i can totally understand that he is not satisfied with taking over once pogi declines, but instead beat him in his prime. so if he goes for tdf again, i‘m all for it. let‘s hope that pogi recovers soon!Ketterechts07-11-2026
- So gracious to offer something no-one would be prepared to pay for. The Giro is not the Tour and doesn’t command the same interest or attract the same “elite” (those willing to pay to be a part of something they consider has ego boosting potential). Roadside viewing will always largely remain free for everyone outside circuits. Introduction of a symbolic entrance to mountain climbs is worthy of exploration. Asking 1-2€ isn’t going to repulse real fans (most will spend 50-100€ on their outing that day all things included) but will prevent a portion of the total knobhead thrillseekers who will join in any large gathering as long as it’s free, just because they’re attracted to crowds, without which it it difficult for them to work up their anti-social behaviour.Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- How is radio going to help when someone went over a cliff or bridge or off the roadside into a forest unnoticed and is laying there unconscious?Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- Yep, next we’ll be accusing F1 drivers of avoiding Le Mans.Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- But on what is that opinion based? Are you holding him to a different standard than others? Are you saying he should do learn to like something he doesn’t Are you saying he hasn’t achieved enough Are you saying he pretends to be better than his results? It’s actually a really strange opinion to oust if you consider it objectively or rationally. Try applying it to others or yourself by asking if not EVERYONE should then be doing more? Nobody in athletics or swimming gets criticism for not expanding their repertoire when a rival or someone else does. In fact, most who move to another event get accused of running from their rival. Opinions are boring, the reasons behind them are what count.Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- for a medical chief to throw things like is just bad. There are already radios which were banned for spectacle. allow radios. Gps trackers are not a complete solutionabstractengineer07-11-2026
- any rider less than 25 whether they are really ready for the position of leadership of GT is probably not the case. I think Pogi himself suffered when he was defeated by Jonas in the TDF twice. But that would be the team's job to ensure support so that they can bounce back. It requires a team and time to get back up and win after getting knocked down.abstractengineer07-11-2026
- I'm very glad he got the big late Quickstep Vuelta win and I hope he has a few left for Euskaltel-Euskadi.flyer07-11-2026
- My memories of Ivan Basso aren't good but I liked his sister Elisa ok.flyer07-11-2026
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