Victor Campenaerts liked the exciting finale of the individual time trial in Luxembourg: "The smaller the differences, the more entertaining the race is"
Cycling
Victor Campenaerts focused on the time trial for the first time in years. And with success, as the 31-year-old rider managed to win the fourth stage in the Tour of Luxembourg. In the flash interview he says that prior to the five-day event it was not necessarily the intention to go all-in in the 24 kilometer long chrono.
"It's been a while since I focused on a time trial," says the Belgian in post-race interview. "I actually wanted to go for a good general classification in Luxembourg. Normally, in that context, I would go all out in the race against the clock, if it weren't for the fact that I had a total off-day on day three."
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Campenaerts said he already felt very good during the recon of the course. "I already suspected then that it might be close. I think it's even better that I won by just one second," he refers to the minimal difference with runner-up Brandon McNulty. "Cycling is about entertainment and the smaller the differences, the more entertaining the race is."
In the run-up to the tour through the smallest country in the Benelux, Campenaerts heard a sad news item. His uncle/godfather Bob Campenaerts, manager of the popular café Mombasa in Borgerhout, Antwerp, died suddenly during a cycling holiday. "I found it very difficult to process that," said an affected Campenaerts. "It was especially difficult for my father, Bob's brother. He told me that there was no better way to honor Bob than to win a stage in Luxembourg. So I am very happy that I won this time trial with Bob in mind."
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Ondrej ZhasilCycling Journalist
Ondřej Zhasil is a cycling journalist at CyclingUpToDate and has been part of the team since 2023. He is based in Ostrava, the third-largest city in the Czech Republic, and covers professional cycling across the main UCI competitions, including the Tour de France, the Giro d’Italia, and La Vuelta a España. A key focus of his work is startlist analysis and pre-race coverage, where he examines team selections, rider line-ups, and tactical scenarios ahead of major events.
Alongside WorldTour coverage, Ondřej has developed specific expertise in junior cycling and in racing across East Asia, including competitions in China and Japan. He also maintains a broad working knowledge of other disciplines and levels, including cyclocross, while continuing to expand his understanding of mountain bike racing.
Ondřej holds a bachelor’s degree in Mathematics and Physics, which supports his analytical, data-driven approach to performance and race analysis. In his reporting, he regularly uses ProCyclingStats for results, statistics, and historical context. He places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles promptly when new, verified information becomes available.
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- There really was nothing in it. Schreiber was so much faster, and Brand was fighting to stay in the wheel in the sprint. Schreiber did move a bit, but to say she closed the door doesn't make sense because Brand couldn't enter it anyway, abd she wasn't impeded.
Rafionain-Glas08-11-2026 - He should have been allowed to go to Movistar. Right now both arent a good fit for each other and are just wasting each other's time and effortabstractengineer08-11-2026
- Thibau Nys does exactly what Iserbyt is calling for
Rafionain-Glas08-11-2026 - i did not see it. was the relegation justified or an overly hard decision? and don‘t cross riders deviate from straight lines all the time? bumping into each others when they cut corners, etc … why being more strict with the rules on the finish sprint?Ketterechts08-11-2026
- seems like we are advertising the website with pointless comments…Ketterechts08-11-2026
- So?Jumpyjohn08-11-2026
- The UCI do have their favorites.
Front24208-11-2026 - On a positive note, you maybe notice turning this topic into a discussion has the benefit of eliminating certain participants who do not see how they can turn it back to their sole interest ;-)Jumpyjohn08-11-2026
- People see what they want to. I am actually the opposite of your accusation, probably more of a rebel than most of you who don’t get the big picture. The difference is, I don’t go moaning publicly about the consequences of my transgressions, I understand the need for rules and I take my OWN responsibility when deciding to ignore or break them or doing so involuntarily. I will also not hesitate to state my case or argue vehemently when relevant, sometimes it works, sometimes it makes things worse but that’s the price to pay for principles and having character.Jumpyjohn08-11-2026
- That may be but that was unknown to others and nothing says that’s the whole truth. Again, don’t try to misinterpret, it is a call and technically it is correct. Besides, even if there is a valid reason, that does not disqualify the ruling or punishment as far as the rules have been developed. I don’t think they’re as far as in football where for handball there is a distinction (in some ways and specific cases) between intentional or not. And football can be just as harsh and people live with it, eg the offside rule, also judged to within tiny fractions but often wrong or ignored. It’s the nature of every collective organisation and sometimes I wonder if our rebellion against it isn’t seated in the feelings we carry from the injustices we’ve felt personally, like being flashed driving 1km/h too fast when we are explained limits are just a security measure but we are absolutely certain not to have endangered anyone with our transgression. The problem is, nobody has better solutions and no 2 people have the same interpretation of where a limit should be.Jumpyjohn08-11-2026
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"It's been a long time since I focused on a time trial." Victor Campenaerts had special motivation for his stunning Stage 4 ride, after suffering a sudden loss right before the Tour of Luxembourg. #SkodaTour | @VCampenaerts | @lotto_dstny
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