"I think I will only start in December" - Quinten Hermans to ride reduced Cyclocross calendar this winter

After a self-admittedly disappointing campaign last year, Quinten Hermans is trying a different approach to the cyclocross season for 2023/2024.

“The cross is certainly not going away, because I still love it very much. It will be much less than in recent years, I think I will only start in December,” the Alpecin-Deceuninck rider tells Wielerflits. “The main thing will be to rest long enough to recover from the road season. It has been a tough and long road season. I have to enjoy the rest and then slowly rebuild.”

Now riding alongside the Cyclocross World Champion, Mathieu van der Poel, Hermans remains keen to make an impact on the crosses, despite wanting more rest. “I don't think we addressed it 100% last winter, probably because of myself,” he explains. “I had made the European Championship a big goal, but that went wrong. Then I rested briefly and started again, so I didn't have a long rest.

"We want to approach that differently this year, with more rest and less racing than last year,” the 28-year-old Belgian concludes. "If all goes well, I don't see why the World Championship can't happen, but normally the Belgian championship will be the last cross.”