"Somehow I feel like it's all just starting for me" - Arne Marit puts Intermarché-Lotto drama and retirement fears behind; fresh restart alongside Remco Evenepoel

The Volta a Comunitat Valenciana begins this Wednesday and here, Arne Marit will be reunited, in racing, with his old training partner Remco Evenepoel. After the virtual demise of Intermarché - Wanty the 27-year old sprinter feared for his career only a few months ago; but currently he finds himself in perhaps the best position he's ever been and as motivated as ever following his victory at the Challenge Mallorca.

“I've known Remco since he was a junior. We trained together a few times during that period. Racing together wasn't possible back then because there was an age difference, so we weren't in the same category," Marit recalls in an interview with Wielerflits. "We reconnoitered Nokere and Kuurne-Brussels-Kuurne together, all races where he scored in those days. Afterward, he'd come over to my place for a shower and we'd have coffee together. Great memories. It's great that we're now reunited in such a big WorldTour team.”

Marit had one pro win to his name since turned pro in 2021, and that was right in his first months as an elite, winning the GP du Morbihan. He had won a few non-professional races in 2022, but throughout his entire run at Intermarché - Wanty he wasn't able to raise his arms and celebrate. That takes a toll specially on a sprinter, the type of rider who relies on victories.

"Did you know I'd been dry for three years? That's why I was extra emotional after it finally happened in Mallorca. That eventually became frustrating. I've always been a winner in the youth ranks. Then you start to doubt if it's still possible, after those difficult years," he admits. "Part of you know it's still within your grasp, but then again, it's not. On Sunday, I suddenly felt a huge pressure lift from my shoulders, a long frustration vanished. It had always been close, but now it's just right. Hopefully, it won't last another three years after this."

It couldn't have been a better start to his life in Red Bull - BORA - hansgrohe, which wasn't supposed to have been reality in the first place. After Intermarché - Wanty merged with Lotto, most of its riders were left without a contract, and many told only very late in the year. Marit was one of them.

"The fact that I haven't won in recent years is the only reason they had for not keeping me. Otherwise, I've always stayed motivated. Two days before the end of the Tour of Guangxi, I was told I couldn't stay, after a solid season with many top-five finishes," he reveals. "That's when your world collapses. I was quite pessimistic and started talking to many teams at a much lower level."

His career had a question mark hovering over it, as did several of his teammates, a few of which have retired from the sport. He ended up signing with Red Bull - BORA - hansgrohe, but this was the fruit of a huge coincidence that ended up playing to his benefit.

“Literally. You know that every decent team either has one spot left in November or is completely full. Until I suddenly heard the news about Oier Lazkano. I was laughing to my girlfriend 'imagine if this were my lifeline'. Less than two days later, Zak (Dempster, RB BORA DS, ed.) was on the phone. A dream scenario. Crazy, isn't it, how things can turn so quickly?”

Marit is a born-again rider, having made his debut with the German team at the Trofeo Palma and immediately taking the victory, the biggest of his career. Although he has only one race day under his best, the last couple months spent with the team have seen him gain an entire new level of motivation.

"I think so, yes. Somehow I feel like it's all just starting for me. Maybe this is a turning point, the change I needed. It's a different culture, a team full of winners and great champions. The coaching is also spot on. In the Trofeo Palma, I rediscovered my killer instinct from the under-23's. We need to build on that momentum now," he adds.

But the difference is not only in his head, it is also physical. It was Marit himself who, in a recent interview, detailed how the Intermarché - Wanty riders would have the same winter training plan instead of personalized programs - the norm at high-level racing.

"Previously, at Intermarché-Wanty, we all had the same program during the December team training camp," he had said. "Everyone did the same climbs and everyone completed the same blocks".

Now that is no longer the case, and he is entering the season on full blast. "Because I train differently now, yes. This winter, I didn't focus on the sprint at all, but more on the intensity. You can feel that in the run-up to that final sprint. I was riding through the wind at times when I would always have stayed in the lead. Now I could do that because I had more power".

Whilst not facing top-of-the-world competition, it is a victory that was very important, and can be used to build on bigger ones. "I earned my position by actively investing in it. That's the difference from the last three or four years. Then I sprinted from tenth to third place. Now I've gone from a top-five position to victory."

At the Volta a Comunitat Valenciana, he will be amongst the favourites to win the opening stage, alongside Mads Pedersen and Biniam Girmay. A victory there would catapult him into a greater position in the peloton, and maybe get him a bigger role in the German team.

“Maybe. In Valencia, I'll get my next sprint opportunity, and without Jordi [Meeus] and Danny [van Poppel] there. Those are the days I have to do it. I also believe I can. I've noticed I've learned a lot from the mistakes of the past few years. That will help me with both my own chances and my own. That way, I hope to confirm my value.”