Supertalent Jarno Widar chooses to stay at Lotto Dstny despite offers from all top teams: "Here I can become a leader faster"

There's no doubt that the 18-year-old Jarno Widar is already banging on the doors of professional world. The Lotto Dstny development team rider let the world hear about him in the spring when he matched Tadej Pogacar's Strava record on La Redoute. But he didn't stop there as in the recent months, he's been on winning streak, taking home GC of Alpes Isere Tour (2.2), Giro Next Gen (2.2U) and Valle d'Aosta (2.2U) in a rather dominant fashion. At Lotto Dstny, they're clearly prepared to welcome the supertalent in their ranks whenever Widar feels ready, but when will that be?

"Without pretension, physically, I could already be at the top," Widar tells DirectVélo. "At the beginning of the year, I already had the legs to race for the win in the Settimana Coppi e Bartali among the pros. Only problems with positioning prevented me from going all out there. The death of Gino Mäder at the Tour de Suisse had a huge impact on me. And when I fell three times in quick succession among the juniors, people said that I had no technique and could not ride downhill. Today, things are getting better, but if possible, I prefer to stay at the back of the peloton."

According to Widar, that fear of falling is one of the factors that play a role in determining his future. "I still have three and a half years of contract. I don't know yet what I'm going to do, but if the Tour de l'Avenir goes well and I feel better in the peloton there, the team will field me in a few more professional races in the fall. If everything goes well, I might go to the ProTeam next year. The team will give me the choice. This year I mainly wanted to win a lot in the U23s."

Widar did not choose Lotto Dstny for nothing. "All the big teams respect that I am connected to them until 2027. This is the perfect choice for me. I am surrounded by guys who are important to me, like friend Milan Donie. I know the staff well and I need this environment, I need the utmost trust of the guys around me. In difficult times you always need a shoulder to lean on. Would I have had that in some other teams where there are ten leaders? I am not sure."

"Here I can also become a leader faster. It’s my driving force, my motivation on a daily basis. I want to be the best. If I had gone to Visma | Lease a Bike, I might have claimed this role in a few years, but would I have been happy this year? The structure of Lotto Dstny is more modest than UAE Emirates or INEOS Grenadiers, but there is room for a more human and family side. It’s the perfect balance. Here we do the job seriously, but without taking ourselves seriously. We laugh at the table. I don’t know if that’s the case everywhere. In any case, I have everything I need here."