New sports director Fien Delbaere on her first National Championships and a look ahead to Thüringen

National Championships

The National Championships went exceptionally well. As a sports director, I started with the Belgian Time Trial Championship, my first race, where I followed Marthe, who secured a second place. It was a good race to begin with, as you can observe a lot without the hectic nature of a road race. I think this was the highest achievable result, and it was, of course, wonderful to start with a podium finish.

On Saturday, at the road championship, we performed exceptionally well as a team. We achieved the highest possible result and put in a strong performance. It was a very educational experience for me, especially since we were still competing for the podium in the final and could provide a lot of tactical input. I have learned a lot of tactical knowledge from Jolien and look back on it positively.

Looking back at all the team’s performances during the national championships, they were impressive. In Belgium, we had Marthe’s podium finish in the time trial and Justine’s third place in the road championship, as well as the U23 title for Febe. Mireia once again proved her strength by winning the Spanish time trial title for the second year in a row. Kim became double champion in Mauritius, and Julia performed fantastically in the Czech Republic with her gold medal in the time trial and bronze in the road race. Overall, we can look back on the championships with great satisfaction, as we competed for the podium and won several titles. This is very positive, and we are ready for a beautiful summer.

Looking Ahead to Thüringen

My expectations for Thüringen are high. It is certainly not an easy race, and there are a number of strong riders at the start, but I think we can all aim for a good result as a team. Especially since there is a time trial on the penultimate day of 31 kilometers, in which we have strong time trial capabilities within the team with Sarah, Mireia, and Julia. I have raced here myself and know it is a beautiful and challenging event. We aim for an attractive race and hope to achieve a good result with Mireia in the overall classification. Ultimately, we have to take it day by day, but I am confident that we have a strong and capable group here.