And celebrations with partners of the team and members of our Business & Fan Peloton in Amsterdam. 😍 #colouringhistory
Sepp Kuss does not intend on racing for yellow jersey at Tour de France: "In the Tour it is much more nervous"
CyclingThursday, 21 September 2023 at 09:44
Sepp Kuss has just ended a Vuelta a Espana that was psychologically hard, as by default he had to take the win over the two riders he was set to help out win the race. The title is now in his palmarès however, but he does not ambition to add a Tour de France title for the time being.
“That will be different. But above all, I should not impose too many expectations on myself and keep going, as I have always done in the past," Kuss told Wielerflits, telling the responsibilities of fighting for an overall classification. “Riding in a race where you can lose everything. Normally I have nothing to lose, because I focus on my work and want to do it well. From that point of view you have nothing to lose, but being focused every day and getting the most out of every stage is not easy mentally.”
More than being a great climber, being a Grand Tour specialist involves many more skills and focus. The American benefited from a Vuelta that was very well suited to the pure climbers, and managed to keep it together on the flat or hilly days where something could go out of Jumbo-Visma's control more easily.
“Before the Angliru we were not sure that we would be the three strongest riders in the race. Until that moment we mainly raced against the competition, but then there were three of us," he said of the day that perhaps marked the race the most, in terms of drama. "That surprised us all. You cannot plan that in advance, because we did not expect that situation. We therefore wanted clarity in this new situation."
“You can always have those aspirations. But I realize that the Vuelta is very different from the Tour," he clears out, pointing out that he does not intend on fighting for a yellow jersey at the time being. “Then I'm talking about the dynamics of the race. The Vuelta is the perfect race. In the Tour it is much more nervous."
"There the transition stages are harder and the climbs are less steep. So that race is really different for me. Normally yes, but I also like to be played as a joker. That is also motivating for me, to work for a leader in this way and also to be able to race. I have certainly not lost the pleasure of serving.”
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- yeah, that’s a more fair assessment. “reaching mathieu’s level” doesn’t mean you’re planning to replicate his whole career. the former IS doable, potentially. it’s just the latter that likely is not.OCexile25-12-2024
- That’s not entirely true. Every person follows their own development path and peaks differently. Remco and Primoz had hardly started cycling before elite level. Jonas was pretty much under the radzr until he unexpectedly had to take over responsibility at JV. Some guys only get real good in their thirties others have peaked mid-twenties. You can’t tell in advance how and upto what level they will progress, obviously his career might not have MVDPs length but nothing says he could not end up doing a few seasons at his level.Mistermaumau25-12-2024
- well, del grosso is 21 right now. when mathieu was a year younger than that, he was already winning elite level world championships, not U23. i think del grosso will be a very good pro for years, but if he was really going to be the next van der poel someday, he’d already have to be at that level right NOW. van der poel was showing signs of true greatness when he was 15-16. THAT’S what generational talent looks like.OCexile25-12-2024
- Yeah.... gear 😅.mikolajjj24-12-2024
- It shouldn’t be about expectations in the first place should it? Besides, if you look at everyone’s calculations as a whole they don’t add up in the first place. There’ll be 2-3 riders with a 50% chance, a dozen with 10 or 20% and dozens more with a 5% so we’re expecting at least 2 if not 3 winners. Remind me again who won before her? Says it all about using data to decide on participation.Mistermaumau24-12-2024
- Ok, happy I’m not too interested in this team coz’ the account of what happened is really hard to follow.Mistermaumau24-12-2024
- The UCI is worse than USA CyclingVeganpotter24-12-2024
- It's not like they wanted her to not win😅 She had an outstanding Olympics. But there's a reason why she wasn't expected to win the road race and that's ok. Things like this happen and it's great...better than seeing expected winners win.Veganpotter24-12-2024
- Bruyneel ? The man with a lifetime ban from cycling...why do you keep giving him and his doper mate, Armstrong, a platform?DJ24-12-2024
- yeah, agree. on the subject of being a “complete rider,” i do think that’s getting more interesting. mathieu seems to have decided he wants to get much better at climbing the the high mountain passes. he appears to be looking for new challenges, which should be interesting to watch. in most cases you’d dismiss a goal like that at age 30, but it’s mvdp. he’s never going to climb with the real climbers, but if he can improve enough it could open up stage wins when the parcours isnt just purely toothy and punchy.OCexile24-12-2024