Sam Oomen about his role and ambitions for 2023 - "You want to belong somewhere every year, but at the same time you also want to be special and make a difference"

Sam Oomen first appeared to the cycling world has a promising young prospect that could one day fight for a Grand Tour overall win. Fast forward some years, after some injuries and bad luck, Oomen seems to have drop from the pecking order. As seen during Jumbo-Visma's team presentation, Oomen didn't had any focus on him seeming somewhat anonymous in the crowd.

The Dutchman had a successful pass in team Sunweb where he finished 8th in 2018 Giro d'Italia securing consistent results that earn him the reputation of a talented stage races cyclist prior to his crash at 2019 Giro d'Italia.

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Oomen had difficult years, due to surgery on his femoral artery and a broken hip he sustained in his Giro crash. Despite this in 2021 he sign for Jumbo-Visma has the team clearly saw in him a lot of potential to keep doing well at the races.

He achieved some interesting results but not enough to grant him a big role on the team has it was his ambition,"Last season until Liège-Bastogne-Liège was actually really good. Then it got very hot in Europe and problems piled up a bit. Then, in August, I crashed three times and that's why things never really got going in the second half of the season, unfortunately. There have been good moments in between, from which I got a lot of confidence. But I've also had some big challenges", he stated in an interview for In de Leiderstrui.

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Oomen was not granted a spot at the table with presenter Sander Kleikers and instead watched the presentation from the stands. "That's right, yes. When you see who all were at the tables, you don't just stand there" and is not thinking about being a leader. Still he says he has enough to "make a difference" and could be better than prior to his injury

"People then refer to the period before my surgery in 2019 and my injuries. But in terms of level, I am maybe even better than then. The sport has only changed in three or four years. The riders and the overall level has become so much better and my role has also changed at Jumbo-Visma. That makes the picture now very different from 2018", he stated.

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Speaking about his opportunities "If I get i have to take them and I will also definitely ride in service of Wout, Primoz or Jonas when I'm on the road with them. I have always liked classics like Liège-Bastogne-Liège and riding finals is the best thing there is. Of course it's special to ride finals in Liège, but it's just as much fun in grand tours or other classics and one-day races" stated Oomen.

Oomen biggest frustration is not his lack of opportunities at the team but his injuries and problems he has being dealing in the recent past has he said "I occasionally get my chances and I take them with both hands. But it doesn't help if you are on the ground three times and suffer injuries as a result".

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Since he does not seem to be eligible for the Giro d'Italia and Tour de France for the time being a chance at Vuelta a España could be possible. Still it is very early for that, "The second half of the season is still so far away. The Vuelta a España a goal? You can certainly say that, but a lot of guys are aiming for that and it is still far away. There is no certainty and in that I do: I only want to start there if I am good enough and can make a difference for the team.", said Oomen.

"The first half of the season I already know where I stand, which is super nice. I can't go into details yet, but I will at least start in Valencia, the Algarve and the Tirreno-Adriatico" he concluded about his calendar.

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For now, Oomen is not much sure about his chances but he will not just settle for a role in anonymity for 2023, "It does remain a long-held dream to ride the Tour and make a difference for the team. As a top athlete, you want to belong somewhere every year, but at the same time you also want to be special and make a difference. In that respect, 2023 is no different from 2022", he ended.

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