"I won't have to temper Thibau now" - Sven Nys thinks son is ready to win biggest cyclocross races

Thibau Nys has delivered and confirmed his talent on the road this year with Lidl-Trek as an elite rider, and he may now do the same in cyclocross. On the first opportunity, the Belgian has won in Beringen against elite competition.

“Thibau has a sprint in-house, which is a huge advantage. The other riders have to let him go. It's not sinking in very well yet. This is the first time that it has happened in such a race with the men who will color the season," Sven Nys told Wielerflits. "This is very nice, it is a confirmation of the good summer. He has gained confidence in recent weeks and sharpened his cross technique. Everything comes together. Of course this does something to me. It's not the same as a championship, but this is still very special. I can well estimate what this does to a 20-year-old guy. I see him working super hard every day. It's nice that this is rewarded.”

The manager of Baloise - Trek Lions and father of Thibau is a legend of the sport and he has trained Thibau physically and mentally to race at the highest level. At 20 years of age, he has already taken the step and beaten some of his biggest rivals which he will battle with throughout the winter. “In the beginning he was impressed when he was among the big boys. Then he forgot to race his race. By now riding finals on the road and also reaching the finals more often on the cross, he gains confidence."

Nys not only had the legs to match the best on the climbs and technical sections, but he then put on a massive sprint to beat Eli Iserbyt himself. "I also told him that he must dare to lose in order to win. This will also give confidence for the future to dare to take more risks," father Sven believes. "However, Thibau will also get a good start this season. Those other men are fantastic athletes with experience and more strength because they are older. I won't have to temper Thibau now, I think he is mature enough to deal with this. He realizes very well that next week it will be all over again from scratch.”