Not just a support rider: spring sensation Alec Segaert also sees his chances at the Giro d'Italia

After Italy (41) and the Netherlands (17), Belgium is third in the national standings at the Giro d'Italia with 16 riders. One of them is Alec Segaert, who will line up at the start in Bulgaria for an attacking Bahrain Victorious. The Belgian had an excellent spring, and so he is quietly hoping for a chance or two of his own.

A glance at his spring classic results shows Segaert's name popping up regularly in the top 15 and top 20. On one occasion the Belgian went all the way, winning the GP de Denain — nicknamed the 'mini-Roubaix' — in fine style. The form, then, is there. His team duly decided to select him for the second Grand Tour of his career, following last year's Vuelta a España.

"I came out well from my Grand Tour debut in 2025," Segaert tells Belgian newspaper Het Nieuwsblad. "I really enjoyed myself in Spain on a tough route with ten uphill finishes." This Giro, however, is a different proposition. "Without a team leader at Lotto I was able to race with more freedom."

This time around, there is a team leader: Santiago Buitrago. According to the team, a top-five finish should be within reach for the Colombian. Does that leave Segaert with no freedom at all? "There are a few stages that lend themselves to going on the offensive," he says, already mapping out his opportunities.

The day he is firmly targeting is Tuesday, 19 May — Stage 10 — when a 42-kilometre test against the clock awaits in Tuscany. And almost entirely flat, too, making it prime territory for powerful engines like Segaert. "I'm working towards the individual time trial, where I'll be racing for the first time on the new Bianchi bike. It's a long time trial that won't lie. After my successful spring, I want to show myself again," the Bahrain Victorious Belgian says, looking ahead.