"We hope his career won’t be defined by one bad day at Worlds" - Huge Belgian disappointment as Jarno Widar cracks badly in Mens U23 road race at Kigali 2025

On a scorching afternoon in the Rwandan capital, it was supposed to be Jarno Widar’s crowning moment. The Belgian rising star, touted as one of the heavy favourites for the U23 men’s road race, saw the carefully constructed plan of his national team unravel long before the race hit its decisive phase.

Widar eventually rolled across the line in 34th, 11 minutes and 45 seconds behind winner Lorenzo Finn — a stunning result that left the Belgian camp facing difficult questions but offering no regrets. “This is a huge disappointment for him,” admitted national coach Serge Pauwels in conversation with Sporza afterwards. “But in 10 years, we hope his career won’t be defined by one bad day at Worlds.”

From kilometre zero, Belgium rode with conviction. The tactic was clear: make the race as hard as possible, early. Tim Rex, soon to turn pro with Team Visma | Lease a Bike, took on the lion’s share of the early workload. “We wanted to make it super tough right from the start,” Rex explained. “After about 100–115 kilometres, the plan was to blow the race apart — and we did.”

For a while, it looked like the perfect execution. As other nations faded, Belgium drove the pace relentlessly. In the seventh lap, Kamiel Eeman and Aaron Dockx pushed again on the climbs, hoping to launch Widar into the winning move. “We thought we were in a good spot,” Dockx said. “But then we heard Jarno wasn’t able to follow Finn and the others. That’s when we knew he just wasn’t having a good day.”

Even with everything going to script tactically, Widar simply didn’t have the legs when it mattered most. “It became clear with three or four laps to go that he couldn’t follow the best riders,” Pauwels said. “You have to accept that.”

The Belgian squad had committed fully to a one-leader strategy. Some might question the wisdom of such an approach, but both the coach and the riders stood firmly behind it. “Jarno stood out,” said Pauwels. “He had won nearly all his races this year when things got tough. This tactic brought him two stage wins in the Tour de l’Avenir. The data supported our choice.”

As for the notion of adopting a more flexible or opportunistic approach? “No,” Pauwels was clear. “Jarno prefers structure. He doesn’t like chaos or attacks going off randomly. He wanted a long, grinding battle of attrition — and that’s what we gave him.”

But even the best-laid plans fall flat when the legs don’t cooperate. In the end, it was Aaron Dockx who finished as Belgium’s best-placed rider — 24th, 8:41 behind Finn. “We did everything we could,” said Jasper Schoofs. “But when the race breaks open so early and you’ve already gone so deep, it’s hard to keep up.”

And while Widar reportedly wanted to apologise to his teammates post-race, they insisted it wasn’t necessary. “Jarno had all the pressure,” said Eeman. “That it didn’t work out today? It happens. No excuses needed.”

Widar’s silence after the finish spoke volumes. A rider used to winning, he looked stunned. But there was no finger-pointing within the Belgian camp — only shared disappointment and a quiet determination to bounce back.

“There was probably some stress — there always is at Worlds,” said Pauwels. “But this is part of being a cyclist. You have to deal with setbacks. Today, Jarno didn’t have the legs. That’s it.”

Despite the deflating result, the national coach remained philosophical. “We played and lost,” Pauwels said. “That’s sport. And we’ll live with it.”