Tim Rex's pain face went viral during the Giro d'Italia: 'That is really bizarre'

Tim Rex’s first Grand Tour is done, and what a debut it was: the Belgian from Visma | Lease a Bike, 22 years old, rode a superb Giro d’Italia and was rewarded with team-mate Jonas Vingegaard’s overall victory. Everyone inside the team praised Rex’s work rate, and he also went viral on social media.

On his team’s website, Rex looks back on the past few weeks. “It is finally starting to sink in a little, but it did take some time. For me, it was a Giro I will never forget for the rest of my life. I already thought it was very special to be allowed to ride my first Grand Tour, but the fact that it turned out this way makes it ten times more special. It exceeded all my expectations.”

“It is great to work for someone like Jonas,” says Rex, who is in his first months with Visma | Lease a Bike’s professional team. “You know in advance that you are riding fully for him, so when he finishes it off, it gives a special feeling. As a team, we rode very strongly. We managed to turn our plan into action every day.”

“It is hard to pick out one moment, because for me the whole Giro was special,” he says. “If I have to choose, I’ll go for the final day. It started in the morning with the presentation of the new kit and shoes. That was a really beautiful moment. Then, when we rode into Rome with Jonas in pink, you realise: in two hours we have won the Giro. That did feel surreal.”

The Belgian not only did excellent work on the flat, but also in the mountains. He did have to use his now trademark pain face there, though. “I also got a lot of messages from people congratulating me and saying I had ridden strongly. On Instagram, I went from just over 4,000 to almost 13,000 followers. That is really bizarre,” Rex laughs.

“I noticed that people started recognising me and calling me T-Rex. My ‘pain face’ will certainly have contributed to that. Every rider who suffers pulls a strange face, but with me it went completely viral. On day 20, there was even someone wearing a T-shirt with my pain face on it, haha.”

All in all, he can look back on a superb three weeks. “I had always hoped I would be a good stage racer, because as a youth rider I enjoyed stage races the most. The Giro Next Gen was my favourite race in the youth ranks, and I hoped the Giro would be my first Grand Tour.”

“At the start of the year, I didn’t think I would already get to make my debut this season. I am very happy with the chance I have been given. I have learned a huge amount from those guys and I am sure it will benefit my career,” Rex concludes.

Author: David Bavin-Hobbs | email: [email protected]