Berckmoes and Lotto have their eyes on the Tour de France's opening week: "It’s very French"

Like his co-leaders, Berckmoes has not had a faultless season. He had to postpone his classics campaign due to an infection and then crashed heavily in the Tour of Flanders, which meant that we did not see the best version of the Belgian this spring.

However, we did see the best version of the rider in the run-up to the Tour de France. Berckmoes convincingly won the Baloise Belgium Tour queen stage to Durbuy and finished an impressive seventh in the Belgian Championships last Sunday. The 24-year-old rider, who already broke through last season, seems ready for his first Grand Tour.

What does Berckmoes expect in general? “Hectic, but I think that's the case in every Tour de France. But I also expect plenty of opportunities for our team. I'll have to see how it goes, and I think I just have to experience it. It was already the plan in December to ride the Tour.”

“I've already done some recon, especially for the first week,” he explains. “As Lennert already described, as a team, I think we always have opportunities and can support each other, with myself, Lennert, and Arnaud. And so, we always have a chance to compete. We have to talk and communicate well on the day itself.”

So what can Berckmoes tell us after those recon rides in week one? “It's very French. Lots of small villages, twisting and turning left and right. It's good to have viewed it and to know that if we're at the front here, we'll be at the front on the next climb or at the crucial moment. It's going to be very hectic, and we already have an idea of what to expect.”

In the Tour, positioning often starts much earlier than in other races. How does a smaller team like Lotto, with all due respect, think it can arm itself against the big teams? "I haven't discussed it yet, but I would wait on the second or third line. That's kind of the new cycling, even in mass sprints. It's a matter of picking the right moment."

In 2025, it will be more difficult for a subtopper to achieve success in the Tour. "But with our tactics, we can still achieve something. Take Quebec last year, when we had three riders with Tadej Pogacar. We didn't win then, but if we can compete with three weapons in the Tour... he can't win all 21 of them either."

Regardless of the situation, Berckmoes makes no secret of the fact that he is in good shape. "I think I'm above the level I reached last year in the GP Quebec. The last few weeks have gone very well; everything has gone smoothly. Things are also easier in training after a victory, like in the Baloise Belgium Tour. Everything runs just a little bit smoother."