"Quite punchy like Pogacar" - 18-year old 'school kid' finishes on the podium of E-Sport World Championships on his second-ever race
Cycling
This Saturday saw the E-Sports World Championships that took place in the UAE. Whilst the likes of Tadej Pogacar and Peter Sagan grabbed most of the attention, lots of young riders took their chance in achieving greatness and exposure towards the top cycling teams. One such young man, of only 18 years of age, Kasper Borremans, was perhaps the rider who has attracted the most eyes.
Borremans is from Finland and said that this was only his second-ever E-Sports race, and he finished in third place behind Jason Osborne and Lionel Vusajin. Osborne coincidentally won this event in 2020 netting him a pro contract with Alpecin-Deceuninck, but retired from cycling this year to focus on rowing once again. In third place was Borremans who is a new name for most of the cycling world, but definitely not for the teams whose scouts have payed close attention to.
Borremans is actually already under contract with a World Tour team, before now putting his name out there: "I signed with Bahrain, so I'll be a road cyclist next year. So, not esports. My coach said to do this so I just came here. In Finland it's winter, so I ride on Zwift. I still have school, so I can't go to Italy or Spain. That's why I do this. My coach said to do it," he told Cyclingnews after the race.
Over the next two seasons he will race with Bahrain's development team and then take the leap towards the World Tour structure in 2027 - his contract, currently, ends in 2028. He could be the team's new jewel if he manages to show this talent on the road, specially as he sees himself as a climber.
"I'm like, a long climber, 20 minutes, and then the short efforts I'm pretty good at that too. Quite punchy like Pogacar I think," he says. He admits that he is not short in ambitions and dreams of a Tour de France victory in the future, just like the rider he looks up to. "You need to believe in yourself. That’s the first thing. I think it's doable, but we will see how things happen. I want to keep my feet on the ground," he concluded.
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A founding contributor to CyclingUpToDate since its launch in January 2022, Ruben Silva has played a central role in shaping the site’s editorial direction and long-term growth. Before joining the project, he built his experience through independent blogging at Echelons Hub and by producing race previews for Ciclismo Internacional, developing a strong analytical voice rooted in daily engagement with professional cycling.
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Over the course of his career, he has conducted approximately 100 interviews across road cycling and cyclocross, ranging from one-to-one conversations and online formats to press conferences and on-site pre- and post-race coverage. His interviews include leading riders, team managers, and prominent figures within cycling media: Tadej Pogacar, Jonas Vingegaard, Mathieu van der Poel, Primoz Roglic, Wout van Aert, Joao Almeida and Tom Pidcock; managers like Patrick Lefevere and Joxean Matxin; and YouTube personality Bryan Kennedy (BKXC)...
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- Pidcock finished 9th place, 29 minutes down. he is a helluva rider, so gutsy. and he is amazing at all disciplines. but this headline is . . .mij09-11-2026
- I know, watch the video. and listen to her competitors. it was a tricky tacky call at best. WTF is this guy talking about??? my original comment was from the picture it didn't look like anything.mij09-11-2026
- I dunno what you're talking about. you make no sense. MS's competitor and the competitors coach said it was BS. she didn't deviate in a way that relegation should be required. revel LOL. you're so cool, in your own mind.mij09-11-2026
- deviation lol, watch the videomij09-11-2026
- the 'No different than women who follow and discuss celebs through gossip magazines' comment was unfortunately a bit off. didn't you just boast about your principles in the comments section of another article?Ketterechts08-11-2026
- Are you MrMauMau 2.0? Nothing you are saying is really relevant. Vaguely connected, but irrelevant. The conversation is whether Schreiber impeded Brand or not.
Rafionain-Glas08-11-2026 - He is boring
leedorney08-11-2026 - To Twoje przemyślenia te bla, bla :)
Dariusz08-11-2026 - Uwielbiam patrzeć, jak wyjeżdża na czoło peletonu i zaczyna się rzeź...Dariusz08-11-2026
- Yeah, unreal.
parisbound0008-11-2026
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🌈 2024 UCI Cycling Esports World Championships powered by @my_whoosh 🌈 Women’s Final 👇 🥇 Kate McCarthy 🇳🇿 🥈 Gabriela Guerra 🇧🇷 🥉 Kathrin Fuhrer 🇨🇭 Men’s Final 👇 🥇 Jason Osborne 🇩🇪 🥈 Lionel Vujasin 🇧🇪 🥉 Kasper Borremans 🇫🇮 #AbuDhabi2024
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