Victor Campenaerts opts out of Tour de France: "Impressive to see on television, but not great for me"
Cycling
Victor Campenaerts will be looking for his first win of the season in the upcoming Baloise Belgium Tour, aswell as the national championships where he's got his eye layed on as the prime goal for the second block of the season.
“However, I am not in the form I should be yet. I also drove fully employed there, and I prefer to drive on my own account of course (laughs). But I want to grow into my best form in the next few days. Next week there will be the Baloise Belgium Tour and then the championships.”
Campenaerts had talked about how ever since dropping the specific focus on time-trials he's become a more successful road rider, however he's still having goals in his former favourite discipline: “I trained a lot on my time trial bike, especially with that Belgian championship in my own village in mind... It will be very difficult, but I am going to try.”
Not only the time-trial, but he should be a contender in the road race for the Belgian stripes. He will have heavy competition on both, however those will be the main goals for the summer as he is set to miss the Tour de France. “That was a personal choice. I already rode the Tour last year. It may be impressive to see on television, but not great for me," he said regarding the option.
The 30-year old has explained his plans for after the national championships: "But I will go on an altitude training camp after the championships, to prepare myself for what is to come. I hope that a selection for the World championships is on the way," he said. "Although I wouldn't say no, if they ask me for the time trial. And then there are many more beautiful appointments. It's just a shame that the Benelux Tour is cancelled."
Campenaerts took to the start yesterday at the Baloise Belgium Tour where he will be looking to test his form and look for a win.
Read also
Rúben SilvaEditor-in-Chief
A founding contributor to CyclingUpToDate since its launch in January 2022, Ruben Silva has played a central role in shaping the site’s editorial direction and long-term growth. Before joining the project, he built his experience through independent blogging at Echelons Hub and by producing race previews for Ciclismo Internacional, developing a strong analytical voice rooted in daily engagement with professional cycling.
Beyond editorial work, he has been closely involved in the expansion and coordination of CyclingUpToDate’s wider network, helping establish and support sister platforms across multiple languages. This includes ongoing collaboration with CiclismoAlDia (Spanish), CiclismoAtual (Portuguese), WielrennenUpToDate (Dutch), and RadsportAktuell (German), contributing to a shared editorial vision and consistent international coverage.
He also helps oversee editorial governance across the network, setting standards for accuracy and consistency and coordinating updates or corrections when needed.
Originally from the Porto metropolitan area in Portugal, he holds a bachelor’s degree in Geography. His path into cycling journalism was shaped not through formal media training, but through independent reporting, community engagement, and sustained on-the-ground involvement in the sport.
Over the course of his career, he has conducted approximately 100 interviews across road cycling and cyclocross, ranging from one-to-one conversations and online formats to press conferences and on-site pre- and post-race coverage. His interviews include leading riders, team managers, and prominent figures within cycling media: Tadej Pogacar, Jonas Vingegaard, Mathieu van der Poel, Primoz Roglic, Wout van Aert, Joao Almeida and Tom Pidcock; managers like Patrick Lefevere and Joxean Matxin; and YouTube personality Bryan Kennedy (BKXC)...
Within 18 months of launch, he helped grow CyclingUpToDate’s English-language platform into one of the most-read cycling news websites, built entirely from the ground up. As both a professional journalist and lifelong cycling enthusiast, his focus remains on delivering accurate, timely, and well-contextualized coverage.
claps 0visitors 0
Just in
Popular news
Latest comments
- This is a phenomenal course design. I do wish that they'd stretch these tours for the women to at least 2 weeks.RidesHills03-11-2026
- This is an amazing route, honestly. Let's hope that it attracts riders to make it a compelling and competitive race. Side bar amusement: going to Slovenia and passing pretty close to Pogačar's house. I wonder if they were tempting him to get all 3 jerseys at once after winning the Tour and Vuelta. After all, only a very few have ever had all three at the same time (Froome being the last).RidesHills03-11-2026
- He was a child two years ago
Rafionain-Glas03-11-2026 - A great route aswell. Col d'Arpy is a toughieRafionain-Glas03-11-2026
- Let Torito have a shot at itRafionain-Glas03-11-2026
- A great route, much more exciting than the Tour de France. Monte Livata is an interesting one, because they experimented with it at the 2026 Baby Giro, and it was fantastic. 4 km at 10%, then 10 km at 6.5% made for a great spectacle. The stage 16 is horrible. Montaner is also used in the U23s, in Giro del BelvedereRafionain-Glas03-11-2026
- I remember when Mark went through that. He was really experiencing lows and thought about quiting many times. It took him a long time to recover. I, like many others were overjoyed when he came back. I hope Lafay has been tested. I wish him the best.Paggss03-11-2026
- That sucks for him. I've always wondered what guys like him do after retiring from cycling - go back to uni? He's still a very young manCrashjames03-11-2026
- Good Point, I wonder if he's been testedmhfrvz03-11-2026
- A busy boy!Lozza03-11-2026
Loading
Write a comment