"We try to remind him not to put too much pressure on himself" - Visma want Cian Uijtdebroeks to seize 'only year in which he can still remain somewhat under the radar'

Cian Uijtdebroeks is a rider with great expectations for the future and after a bombshell transfer in December, many more eyes were on the Belgian climber. However, Team Visma | Lease a Bike are carefully making sure that he does not have too many expectations yet and to seize the time he has under the radar before likely developing into a big Grand Tour contender.

“In the Giro, for example, he is also at the start with Wout van Aert. Not all eyes and pressure will be on Cian. We believe he can grow in this way. We have high expectations for him and he has high expectations for himself. So far it looks very good," team DS Marteen Wynants told Het Nieuwsblad. At Tirreno-Adriatico, like O Gran Camiño, Uijtdebroeks joined Jonas Vingegaard and rides besides his leader.

A learning process that he is very keen on, whilst also having spent the last few months working on his weak spots - one of them being the time-trial, where he also showed difficulties on the opening day of the Italian race. “2024 is the only year in which he can still remain somewhat under the radar. It would be a shame if he did not take full advantage of this advantage," Wynants adds.

"We try to remind him not to put too much pressure on himself. Take the Giro, where Pogacar is the top favorite. Cian can also go into hiding there. There will be plenty of years to come where he will be the favorite and the leader.”

A fresh 21 years old, Uijtdebroeks is a former Tour de l'Avenir winner and last year finished in the Top10 of every stage-race he started including the Tour of Oman, Volta a Catalunya, Tour de Romandie, Tour de Suisse and lastly his Grand Tour debut at the Vuelta a España. A consistent rider, the Dutch team also hope he grows into a strong Grand Tour contender in future years.

“He is still very young, there is no rush. It's not like we expect him to win a Grand Tour this year. Hopefully in the future. He has the potential. Whether it will happen is another question. It is very important for the Belgians to give him some time," he concluded.