Philipsen wants to challenge Van Aert for green jersey in Tour de France: "I'm eager to go for it"

Over the past few years, Philipsen has ridden in several major races, first with UAE Team Emirates and then with Alpecin. In 2019, he did not finish the Tour de France, but the following year he won a stage in the Vuelta a España. In 2021, he even aimed for the Tour-Vuelta combo and finished in the top three six times in France. However, he did not secure a victory. Nevertheless, he also claimed two wins in the Vuelta a España. Unfortunately, he couldn't complete that race due to illness.

Last year, Philipsen solidified his position among the world's top sprinters. He won nine races, including two stages in the Tour de France, just like in 2021. His sprint victory on the Champs-Élysées will probably stand out in his memory for a long time to come. This year, he has already won two stages in the Tirreno-Adriatico, and has claimed victories in the Classic Brugge-De Panne and the Scheldeprijs. Has he provided enough evidence of what he can do? We believe so. Now, his major goal is the green jersey in the Tour.

On Sunday, Philipsen will participate in the Elfstedenronde before heading to the Baloise Belgium Tour, and then the Tour de France. "I haven't been in Belgium for at least a month," he describes his recent weeks. "After Frankfurt, I traveled to Tenerife and then made my way to the French Alps. I've seen nothing but mountains in the past month. I think I've accumulated more altitude gain in my training than I will encounter during the Tour. Compared to last year, I trained slightly harder because I traveled to Tenerife a bit earlier than the previous season. But overall, my preparation has been quite similar."

With a Tour de France that features more mountain stages than ever before, Philipsen seems perfectly prepared to collect points. "To be able to sprint in the Tour, you need to be in top condition and also survive the full three weeks. I am participating in the Elfstedenronde and the Baloise Belgium Tour to regain rhythm and fine-tune my sprint. Between those races, I will do specific sprint training to regain speed in my legs. Last year, I quickly managed to get the speed back in my legs. I'm hoping for a similar scenario this year."

In addition to the formidable Mathieu van der Poel (who will also participate in the Belgium Tour and Tour de France), Philipsen is also extremely ambitious. After Wout van Aert effortlessly claimed the green jersey last year, Philipsen hopes to challenge his fellow countryman this time. "We have already discussed this within the team. I have expressed my eagerness to go for it, but we will have to see if it's achievable during the Tour itself. I am well aware that if I want to wear the green jersey in Paris, I need to be on track right from the opening stages. The wisest approach, in my opinion, is to focus on the seven sprint opportunities ahead. If I can perform as well as possible in those, the green jersey will naturally follow."