"World championship for sprinters" - Jonathan Milan eager for Tour de France debut and battles with Philipsen, Merlier, Girmay

At the Volta a Comunitat Valenciana there will be three mountainous days, a team time-trial and only one stage for the sprinters on the final day. Hence, it is a surprise that Lidl-Trek have shown up at the start line with Jonathan Milan, his full leadout and no options for the overall classification. But the Spanish race serves as preparation for his goals later in the spring and his Tour de France debut.

“I think we had a good period in the classics last year. For me it was important to grow as a rider. In these races you need luck and experience, and I learned a lot and took a step forward. Let’s hope that this season will also be the case," Milan shared with In de Leiderstrui. "We have great ambitions with our strong team. Personally, I am aiming for a small result. I have to be honest about that. Maybe I will have the chance to get it, maybe not.”

Although there is only one stage for the fast men this year, Milan will still have some competition on the arrival to Valencia this Sunday, with the likes of Kaden Groves, Gerben Thijssen and Iuri Leitão well present. Milan will then travel to the UAE Tour which is much more sprinter friendly and one of the highlights of the year for the fast men; Kuurne - Bruxelles - Kuurne; and Tirreno-Adriatico before the block of spring classics.

"I wouldn’t say that Milano-Sanremo is more special than the Belgian races, but obviously it’s a race that is close to my heart as an Italian," he adds, before talking about his experience last year. "Last year after Cipressa I was already exhausted. Then I started pedaling in the lead towards Poggio, to still be useful in that sense. Now it’s about saving more energy and trying to survive Poggio.”

This year it may be a more difficult task, as UAE Team Emirates - XRG have been anticipating a race made for Tadej Pogacar, which could prove to be very hard for sprinters such as the Italian. He will then also race Gent - Wevelgem, Dwars door Vlaanderen and Paris-Roubaix.

However the other big goal lies on the Tour de France, where he will be within a shot of the yellow jersey on the first stage of the race. “The Tour is a new challenge and I can’t wait to face it without putting too much pressure on myself. In any case, the big ambitions are there, obviously. We all know that the Tour is something different, and I see it as something completely new".

"Of course, I took a look at the route. It’s like a world championship for sprinters. Other sprinters might start looking at me, but I don’t see it as extra pressure. Jasper Philipsen and Tim Merlier are just two of the rivals. They are different though. Tim can come very strong from behind, as we saw at the European Championships. Jasper is more often in front and does his sprints more the way I like them. I always watch them when they race, but there are others like that.”