Interview | Kuss feels no pressure after losing climbing helpers Roglic: "Hopefully, I can keep up with the best"

Kuss, now 28, has established himself as a luxury climbing helper in recent years. He joined the team in 2018 and initially seemed to be pursuing a career as a contender for the overall classification. However, his role has shifted more and more towards supporting the team's leaders in the grand tours. After helping Roglic win the Vuelta in 2019, 2020 and 2021, and supporting Jonas Vingegaard in last year's Tour de France, Kuss is now ready for his Giro mission.

Kuss rode the Giro in 2019, also in support of Roglic, who finished third. This year, the American rider was initially slated to ride the Tour de France, but he was called up after Kelderman was ruled out due to a crash in the Tirreno-Adriatico. Kuss immediately flew to Tenerife for a high-altitude training camp with the Giro squad. "For me, the situation isn't so bad. I knew pretty early on that I was going to the Giro, so I've been able to train well and have a great altitude training camp. I'm physically and mentally ready. Now that I'm in good shape, I'm looking forward to racing in the Giro."

Does he feel the pressure now that Kelderman, Foss and Gesink are not participating? "Mwah, it's a bit like always. I'll have to perform in the mountains and in those stages, it's actually quite simple: you do what you can when it gets really tough. I'll have to stay with the best for as long as possible and hopefully I can keep up with them. In the end, the Giro is a different race, where the team is structured differently. With Rohan (Dennis) and Sam (Oomen), we have two good replacements for Robert and Tobias. We'll miss them, but Rohan is strong on any terrain and Sam is an excellent climber."

Kuss was able to join the rest of the team at altitude in Tenerife in April - which was a big advantage. The Giro team was forged on the Teide. "It was very nice, very relaxed. We had a nice group of riders, time flew by. Everyone enjoyed it," he said. Kuss doesn't think that someone like Oomen not being there and being flown in at the last minute will be a disadvantage. "He'll be motivated, if you get the chance to be in a race that's so important for the team. If you're in good shape, it's cool to suddenly have such a goal."

Kuss emphasizes that there is no difference in the plan due to the many changes. "It will be the same with this team. We're going with the same plan: gaining time where we can. Am I better than ever at that? Haha, well, the numbers say I'm often kind of the same."

Bram van der Ploeg (Twitter: @BvdPloegg)