"Perfect execution" - Matteo Jorgenson thrilled after debut with Visma at Opening Weekend

Matteo Jorgenson was in great display at Omloop Het Nieuwsblad and close to victory on his debut for Team Visma | Lease a Bike. At Kuurne - Bruxelles - Kuurne he once again put in a stellar ride, and is ready to go for his own results this spring.

"We went to Tenerife as a group a lot of us actually, the training has been a quite few different this year than in the past, we've done a few different stuff," he told Cyclingpro.net at the end of today's race. Once again, Visma picked up the race on the early climbs of the day and broke it apart until they could play with their numbers.

"It was exactly the plan... We had one climb where we wanted to take initiative, we made it into the bottom first and we kinda split the group on that one but it wasn't enough... so we just held back again and went again in the next one," he explains. "Which is actually where they went next year the exact same climb." Eventually Wout van Aert went with a small group up the road. An idea situation for the team that had plenty riders in the chasing group.

"Eventually we got a selection that we wanted, then we started playing around from there and Wout went with the ideal group. It couldn't have been any better, it was the strongest guys that I could think of that could stay away, and he was for sure the fastest in the sprint. It was, I would say, perfect execution," he smiles.

Jorgenson himself had a tough role on the day having to make big efforts early in the day: "I had to cover moves at the start, a couple of teams we had to watch, I had to cover moves with Jan [Tratnik] and the first hour I was starting to feel it but eventually I came through." Nevertheless he teamed up with Matej Mohoric and Laurence Pithie on a long-distance attack that held off the peloton until the final kilometers. He leaves the Opening Weekend with a 29th and 66th spots, but great performances.

The cobbled monuments will be the main goals, but he will have his own chance to lead in France over different terrain over the next weeks: "Paris-Nice is next. It will be my third attempt at Paris-Nice GC. Actually my fourth attempt at GC. I've gotten eighth twice so hopefully I can do better than that."