“The night itself I thought: 'No problem, I'll win another stage here.' Now I do regret it a bit more" - Lennert Van Eetvelt reflects on Vuelta near miss to Primoz Roglic

On the brutally steep finale to stage 4 at the 2024 Vuelta a Espana, Lennert Van Eetvelt was incredibly impressive and looked set for a first ever Grand Tour stage win. As he began to celebrate just before the line however, the cunning Primoz Roglic spurted towards the line and snatched the stage win.

“The night itself I thought: 'No problem, I'll win another stage here.' Now I do regret it a bit more," admits Van Eetvelt honestly in a rest day conversation with Het Nieuwsblad. "But that's part of life. And enthusiasm makes life worth living. Let's just say that I'll remember that ride just as much now than if I had won.”

Despite the disappointment of that stage, Van Eetvelt bounced back strongly in the following days. Towards the end of the first week however, the Lotto Dstny leader has begun to struggle, dropping to 15th in the general classification, nearly nine minutes down on race leader Ben O'Connor.

“No, I don't have an explanation. I felt really bad from the start of the stage, but I got through it and I also noticed that I was certainly not the only one who didn't feel well. I think the heat took its toll on many riders. But the last hour and the last climb I was really done. I had trouble eating much more, my stomach was also 'broken'. I even threw up a bit on the last climb because I wanted to drink too much in that heat," he reflects of Sunday's stage 9. "It's a shame that I have to end that first block for the rest day like this. Because for the rest I can be very happy with how things are going. I don't feel sick and I still feel good, so I hope that my form will return. Last year I got sick during the Vuelta, but I was back in shape towards the end. So I do have confidence in my body, although it can still go either way.”

"I'm still going to try to get a good classification. If I don't have another day like Sunday, I think I can still get into the top ten," continues Van Eetvelt. "Otherwise I have to shift my focus to a stage win. But I definitely want to keep fighting for the classification as long as possible. If only to get to know my body for the coming years."

Similarly to Ben O'Connor, Adam Yates and Richard Carapaz, could a breakaway raid be a way for Van Eetvelt to get himself back up the GC? “Before the Vuelta I had said that that was not my plan. That that was not the way I wanted to ride a classification. But indeed, the Vuelta is going quite strangely. Maybe I will try it from the breakaway," he concludes. "Although you also have to be a bit lucky to choose the right day. Because you could easily be in front on the day that the breakaway is taken back and you will lose time. There have been so many surprises in this Vuelta that I cannot estimate it myself.”