For this reason, Lamperti started his season in Nokere, where he sprinted to the podium: "I wish I had just a little bit more"

On the Nokereberg, the 22-year-old rider took third place behind Dutch winner Nils Eekhoff and Italian Matteo Moschetti. A crash involving Jasper Philipsen, among others, disrupted the sprint preparations, but Lamperti was not affected and managed to sprint.

"I'm quite happy, to be honest," were the rider's first words after the race. "I've had a long winter with a small issue and then you start the season late and you never know how it is gonna be. Guys have races already in the legs, but you always want to win. I am happy to be third here today. It was a hard sprint, but I wish I had just a little bit more."

The Belgian team leader told IDLProCycling.com beforehand that the problem the man from the States was talking about was related to an injury. "I had a small issue this winter. That's why I started my season later, but I'm happy to be here now and to start the classics."

So, what injury prevented Lamperti from riding his bike? 'A small problem with my knee, which meant I could train later and started the season later,' he explains to this website. "Now I can start again and am one hundred percent fit."

The cause of his knee injury was not due to a crash. Tight knee ligaments were the cause of his problems. "We then wanted to be sure I could start the season without pain." He has now succeeded in doing so, and the talkative rider from the United States appeared cheerfully at the start.

Even though the Soudal Quick-Step star is completely fit, the rider does not yet know how good he is. "That's hard to say without races in the legs. You can train a lot, but until the first race, you won't know. At the moment, I think I'm pretty okay, but I can only say how good I am in a few weeks when I've had a few more races in my legs."

The sprinter's form must also be considered before a program is made for the big classics. "The Giro was on the schedule, but at the moment, we must first see how fit I am."

Lamperti does not expect to count on much support from his fans in the USA for races like Nokere Koerse. "Of course, Nokere Koerse is not the biggest race in the USA. Unfortunately, we only know the Tour de France in the USA, but they say that the Tour of Colorado will return in 2026, so that would be nice."