Tom Pidcock considers going back to cyclocross and heads to Chile for January altitude training with Q36.5

More and more pro cyclists are pushing the boundaries of 'tradition', and at this point in time, quite a few take up altitude training right from January onwards before the start of the season. That is the case with Tom Pidcock, who will be heading to Chile to train at 2700 meters of altitude soon with Q36.5 Pro Cycling Team; whilst a return to cyclocross is being considered for next winter.

"It's certainly possible that Tom will be back in cyclocross next season. Last season, Tom rode two Grand Tours and raced up to and including the Giro di Lombardia. Add to that all his mountain bike races, and you'll have over 80 race days," his coach Kurt Bogaerts told Sporza. The Briton had a very heavy schedule with racing at a top level from January to October, but handled it very well.

He not only managed to confirm his Grand Tour potential by finishing third at the Vuelta a España but also finished second to Tadej Pogacar at Strade Bianche, won the AlUIa Tour, and had several other top results throughout the year. His confidence has been boosted, and the sky seems to be the limit once again.

He has not competed in cyclocross this winter so as to adapt to the new team and prepare fully for the road season, but for next winter that is being considered. "If Tom were to start racing cyclocross again, he'd want to be competitive right away and compete for the gold".

Now racing Pinarello bikes on all terrains, and with Quinten Hermans joining him on the cross bike, the Swiss team definitely has strong arguments to get their leader back on the mud. He is a former World Champion, and if Mathieu van der Poel does indeed skip cyclocross next year, it would open up the path to the rainbow jersey for many riders.

However that naturally comes with its challenges. "Because Tom didn't race cyclocross this past winter, he'd have to start from the back in his first cyclocross races," Bogaert explains. "Having to start from the back to catch up isn't ideal. If he maintains his good road ranking, Tom could start on the fifth row in the World Cup cyclocross races. That opens up possibilities."

Pidcock's program for 2026 is still under wraps, and is one of the few top riders in that situation. He should aim for the spring classics naturally, however with the Swiss team dependent on wildcards, it is not known yet whether Pidcock will race the Giro d'Italia or Tour de France.

But now in January, he will be in South America, training at altitude in Chile. He was the one to make the call, and the team continue to put their confidence behind the Briton: "Tom himself was the driving force behind the idea when it was put forward at the end of last year. It was important that he was fully behind it".

This will be at 2700 meters of altitude, and a very unusual preparation towards the season. However with high risk may come high reward. "There, we'll find the perfect weather conditions for training, at the right altitude".

Weather at this time of year in the northern hemisphere hasn't fully stopped a few teams from taking up an altitude camp this early on, but Q36.5 believes they will have the edge over them. "The reason is simple: it was a matter of finding solutions to go on an altitude training camp. At this time of year, you need to be able to go on a training camp somewhere with a good climate for training, so you don't have to constantly improvise."

It is a relatively unknown destination for this sort of presence for the world-class peloton, but if it works out, it could become a more frequent destination for top teams. As Bogaerts describes it, it is very similar to what the riders find in the most popular European locations.

"In that respect, our training location is similar to Tenerife: there's one mountain where we're staying, and you can climb it from different sides. The advantage is that it's the beginning of summer there now, so it will be around 30 degrees Celsius in Santiago. On the mountain itself, it will still be 15 to 20 degrees Celsius," he concluded.