Promoted to the first team and immediately given a starting jersey for one of the most important races in the world. It’s the tale of Gerben Kuypers which enters the roster with immediate effect Intermarché Wanty and on Sunday he will be lined up at the start of the Liège-Bastogne-Liègil
The 24-year-old Belgian, cyclocross specialist, has been a member of Jean-François Bourlart’s structure since 2023: in cyclocross with the Charles Liégeois Roastery CX and on the road with the Wanty-ReUz-Technord. He thus becomes the fifth rider from the team led by Kévin Van Melsen to be promoted to the Intermarché-Wanty World Team since the launch of the Continental development team, after Francesco Busatto, Alexy Faure Prost, Roel van Sintmaartensdijk and Huub Artz.
Last year Kuypers not only earned his first two career wins with the Development Team in the Provincial Cycling Tour and the Tour de Namur, but he also represented the World Team on several occasions, standing out in the professional group as a model teammate in the Tour of Sicily in which the team won a stage, the team classification and a final podium, or at the Rund Umm Köln following the strongest riders and finishing 11th alongside Mike Teunissen.
During his first cyclocross campaign with Charles Liégeois Roastery CX, Kuypers continued his progress with victories in Oisterwijk and Ardooie and top five finishes in the World Cup trials in Troyes and Dendermonde. A dazzling start to the season in the mud was interrupted by health problems, which forced him to end his season during the Christmas period.
Four months later, Gerben Kuypers prepares for the first World Tour race of his career at Liège-Bastogne-Liège, together with Francesco Busatto, Lilian Calmejane, Kevin Colleoni, Lorenzo Rota, Rein Taaramäe and Georg Zimmermann, and directed by Sébastien Demarbaix, Steven De Neef and Laurenzo Lapage.
Gerben Kuypers explains his emotions like this: «My rapid development since my arrival at the Intermarché-Wanty structure has awakened in me the ambition to race at the highest level with the World Team. I thought that my health problems last winter had ruined my dream, but fortunately these physical problems did not affect the trust the team has in me. This opportunity to move on to the World Tour is the best proof of that. It’s a real honor and I’m extremely grateful to the facility. It’s a great motivational boost for my return to competition.”
It’s still: “Stopping the cyclocross season was the best decision to give my body time to recover from my health issues. I have been satisfied with the quality of my training since the beginning of March and feel ready to start my road season with Intermarché-Wanty. The first kilometers of the race are always exciting, because it is difficult to evaluate how good you are, especially at this level. Liège-Bastogne-Liège will be my first Monument, it will undoubtedly be special because it is something I wouldn’t have even imagined just a year ago. I will give everything to support the team, making efforts that can make a difference for our leaders. Then, I can’t wait for the May races to arrive, starting with the Breton weekend with the GP du Morbihan and the Tro Bro Léon. This season my program includes a wide variety of races to allow me to discover myself on different terrains. I’m thinking of the Tour of Norway for example, with two difficult uphill finishes. I’m curious about what I can achieve at this level, I’m eager to learn and I feel supported in this process. For all these reasons, I am convinced that Intermarché-Wanty is the best environment for continuing my career.”
Aike Visbeek, performance manager of the Belgian team, adds: «Gerben Kuypers has made a strong impression since his arrival at our facility. First, during his first road season in 2023 when he combined the World Team and Development Team programs. He has proven to be a valuable teammate for our pros, and was also able to get the job done by achieving great victories for Wanty-ReUz-Technord in the Provincial Cycling Tour and the Tour de Namur. He has continued his momentum in cyclocross with top-level performances since the start of the season. Now we want to offer Gerben one more choice to put together a tailor-made racing program on the road. We are convinced that we can continue to develop him in the World Tour group, which will also be useful for his ambitions in cyclocross. After his debut at Liège-Bastogne-Liège this Sunday, we plan to build towards peak form in May, with a series of races that suit him very well such as the Tro Bro Léon, the Antwerp Port Epic and other Belgian classics, or even the Tour of Norway and the Tour of Belgium. Together with Gerben Kuypers, we are very happy to begin this new important phase of his growth journey.”
Tags: ARRIVES WORLDTEAM DEBUT LIEGE
