Interview Leonie Bentveld (EN)

 Interview Leonie Bentveld

This season, she won the World Cup in the Under-23s and also finished fifth in the elite category. As a 19-year-old, Leonie Bentveld was this Winter's revelation. The Dutch rider finished in the top 10 almost every week and even occasionally on the podium. This year, the Pauwels Sauzen - Bingoal rider also wants to set steps forward on the road and in gravel. In this interview, she talks about the steps that she has set forward in her still young career and how she experienced last Winter.

You won the World Cup for Under-23s this year. What impact did this big win have on you?

Surely the World Cup was one of my goals. I had decided to ride all but Val Di Sole and then see how I could do in the final classification. This surprisingly turned out very well and, besides winning the U23 World Cup, I finished 5th among the Elites, which is perhaps even more impactful that winning the U23 classification. The World Cup proved that I performed very consistently throughout the season.

You grew up on Friesland. Was it tough making frequent long commutes to most races?

The long journeys combined with school were quite tough for me. We had to travel at least 600 km every weekend. Besides that, there were also no good training opportunities close to home which meant I had to travel a lot. I am very happy that I made the choice to move to Belgium and focus on the sport full-time now.

Where would you like to be in 5 years?

A tricky question. If you told my 14-year-old self where I am now 5 years later, I wouldn't believe it. So I'll try to keep growing like this and then we'll see.

Do you also have ambitions in other disciplines?

I do want to race more and more in the Summer, both on the road and on the gravel bike.

You took a nice bronze at the World Championships in the U23 category. Do you want to take gold next year or would you rather ride in the elite?

I wouldn't like to make the switch to the Elites too quickly. There is still plenty to gain among the U23s and to get on the podium in the Elite category at a World Championships you have to be really good at that level.

How will you spend the Spring and Summer?

After the race in Oostmalle I will put the bike aside for three weeks. Then I will leave for Spain to rebuild. At the end of April I'll start with some gravel races and then go back to road cycling.

What has been the biggest challenge for you in the sport so far?

I can't name anything like that easily. I love doing everything so I don't encounter many things that I don't like. I think last Summer was tough after weeks of struggling with my knee after a crash. I couldn't finish the training sessions the way I would like to and that was mentally tough.

Which kind of tracks do you enjoy doing the most?

I like courses that are a bit more technical. I like doing courses like Flamanville, Maasmechelen, Hulst and Troyes.

Interview Leonie Bentveld (NL)

Interview Leonie Bentveld

Dit seizoen won ze de Wereldbeker bij de beloften en eindigde ze ook nog eens vijfde bij de elite. Leonie Bentveld was als 19-jarige, de revelatie van deze Winter. De renster uit Friesland eindigde bijna wekelijks in de top 10 en zelfs nu en dan op het podium. De renster van Pauwels Sauzen - Bingoal wil dit jaar ook stappen vooruit zetten op de weg en in het gravelen. In dit interview vertelt ze over de stappen die ze voorwaarts heeft gezet in haar nog jonge carrière en hoe ze afgelopen Winter heeft beleefd. 

Je won dit jaar de Wereldbeker voor beloften. Welke impact had deze grote overwinning op je?

De wereldbeker was toch wel één van mijn doelen. Ik had besloten om op Val Di Sole na alle manches te rijden en dan te zien wat dat zou doen voor het eindklassement. Dit pakte verrassend genoeg heel goed uit en naast dat ik de Wereldbeker voor belofte won werd ik 5e tussen de Elites, wat misschien nog wel een grotere impact heeft dat een klassement bij de beloften winnen. De Wereldbeker bewijst dat ik het hele seizoen heel constant heb gepresteerd.

Je groeide op Friesland. Was het zwaar om vaak lange verplaatsingen te maken naar de meeste wedstrijden?

De verre verplaatsingen in combinatie met school viel mij best zwaar. We moesten elk weekend minstens 600km afleggen. Daarnaast waren en ook geen goede trainingsmogelijkheden vlakbij huis waardoor ik veel onderweg was. Ik ben heel blij dat ik de keuze heb gemaakt om naar België te verhuizen en mij nu fulltime op de sport te richten.

Waar zou je graag willen staan in 5 jaar?

Een lastige vraag. Als je mijn 14 jarige ik zou vertellen waar ik nu 5 jaar later sta zou ik het niet geloven. Dus ik probeer zo door te groeien en dan zullen we het zien.

Heb je ook ambities in andere disciplines?

Ik wil wel steeds meer in de zomer gaan koersen, zowels op de weg als op de gravelfiets.

Je pakte mooi brons op het WK bij de beloften. Wil je volgend jaar goud pakken of wil je liever bij de elite rijden?

Ik zou niet zo snel vervroegd de overstap naar de Elites maken, er valt bij de beloften nog genoeg te behalen en om bij de Elite op het podium te rijden op een WK moet je van hele goede huize komen.

Hoe ga je de lente en zomer spenderen?

Na de cross in Oostmalle zet ik de fiets even voor 3 weken aan de kant. Daarna vertrek ik naar Spanje om daar weer terug op te bouwen. Eind april begin ik met wat gravelkoersen om daarna ook weer op de weg te gaan rijden.

Wat was tot nu toe de grootste uitdaging voor je in de sport?

Ik kan zo niet 1, 2, 3 iets opnoemen. Ik doe alles heel graag waardoor ik tegen weinig dingen aanloop die ik met tegenzin moet doen. Ik denk dat afgelopen zomer wel pittig is geweest nadat ik weken met mijn knie liep te sukkelen na een valpartij. Ik kon niet de trainingen afwerken zoals ik die graag zou doen en dat was mentaal wel lastig.

Welke parcoursen vind je het leukst om te doen?

Ik hou van parcoursen die wat technischer zijn. Parcoursen zoals Flamanville, Maasmechelen, Hulst en Troyes doe ik wel graag.

 Interview Carolina Vargas

Colombia is already doing very well in men's cycling for decades, but now also the girls are coming. Carolina Vargas is one of the young talented Colombian woman who wants to make the step to the world level. She's already one of the most promising talents on her continent and she already took part in her first European grand tour. The 21 years old rider dreams of winning a grand tour in the future, but you can already get to know her today through this conversation.

You are currently one of the most talented cyclists in Colombia. How does it feel to live in a country that is so passionate about cycling?

I think it is very nice to see that Colombian men's and women's cycling is growing a lot, that it is more and more supported and that we have great representatives at international level; that there is a lot of support for this sport in Colombia, which is very important for us cyclists and motivates us to keep working and improving every day.

Colombian men have already won grand tours, would you like to become the first Colombian woman to do so?

Yes, the truth is that I would like to win one of the grand tours, it is my dream, last year I had the opportunity to race La Vuelta with the ENEICAT CM team, and to be among the best in the grand tours is one of my goals.

What are your ambitions in this sport?

In addition to being in the three grand tours, I also dream of becoming worldchampion and Olympic champion.

How did you get started in cycling?

My father was also a professional cyclist and from a very young age, I used to accompany him to some races. I loved watching him compete and win. When I was 11 years old I started skating and I complemented it with cycling, I started to realise that I enjoyed it a lot more and when I was 15 years old I dedicated myself completely to it.

Where can we cheer you on this year?

This year we have several important races with our team here in Spain such as La Vuelta, Itzulia, and Burgos, we will be representing not only our team but also my municipality, my department of Antioquia and also the country.

You have participated mainly in stage races, would you also like to participate in big classics?

I would also like to be part of big classics. Hopefully this year our team will have the opportunity to have that nice experience.

Do you think there is a difference between European and South American cycling culture?

I think yes, there are some differences between European and South American cycling culture. I think that because of the advances and technology in Europe, European cycling culture is a bit more controling, more measured, a bit more predictable. When it comes to racing, you can take into account the winds before a race, the weather, everything is much more precise. So I think that influences the differences between these two types of cycling quite a lot.

What is your biggest passion outside of cycling?

Outside cycling I am a psychology student, it is a profession that I really like, and that I want to practice when I finish my sporting career helping athletes to have a good mental health.

 Entrevista Carolina Vargas

A Colombia ya le va muy bien en el ciclismo masculino desde hace décadas, pero ahora también llegan las chicas. Carolina Vargas es una de las jóvenes promesas colombianas que quiere dar el paso a nivel mundial. Ya es uno de los talentos más prometedores de su continente y ya ha participado en su primera gran vuelta europea. La corredora de 21 años sueña con ganar una gran vuelta en el futuro, pero hoy ya puedes conocerla a través de esta conversación.

Usted es actualmente uno de los ciclistas más talentosos de Colombia. ¿Qué se siente vivir en un país tan apasionado por el ciclismo?

Yo creo que es muy bonito ver que el ciclismo colombiano femenino y masculino esta creciendo mucho, que cada vez es más apoyado y tenemos grandes representantes a nivel internacional; que en Colombia hay mucha aficion por este deporte, que es algo muy importante para nosotros los ciclistas y nos motiva a seguir trabajando y mejorando cada día.

Los hombres colombianos ya han ganado grandes vueltas. ¿Te gustaría convertirte en la primera mujer colombiana en hacerlo?

Sí, la verdad es que si me gustaría ganar una de las grandes vueltas, es mi sueño, el año pasado tuve la oportunidad de correr la vuelta a España con equipo en el ENEICAT CM, y estar entre las mejores de las grandes vueltas es uno de mis objetivos

¿Cuáles son sus ambiciones en este deporte?

Ademas de estar en las tres grandes vueltas, tambien sueño con ser campeona del mundo y campeona olimpica.

¿Cómo te iniciaste en el ciclismo?

Mi padre tambien fue ciclista profesional y desde muy pequeña lo acompañaba a algunas carreras. Me gustaba mucho verlo competir y ganar. Cuando tenia 11 años empece a practicar patinaje y lo complementaba con ciclismo, me empece a dar cuenta que los disfrutaba muchisimo mas y a los 15 años me dedique por completo a el.

¿Dónde podemos animarte este año?

Este año tenemos varios retos importantes con nuestro equipo acá en España como lo son la vuelta a España e Itzulia, Burgos, estaremos representando no solo a nuestro equipo sino también a mi municipio, a mi departamento antioquia y también al país.

Has participado sobre todo en carreras por etapas. ¿Te gustaría participar también en grandes clásicas?

También me gustaría ser parte de grandes clásicas reconocidas. Esperemos que este año de pronto nuestro equipo pueda tener la oportunidad de contar con esa bonita experiencia.

¿Cree que hay alguna diferencia entre la cultura ciclista europea y la sudamericana?

Creo que sí, hay algunas diferencias entre la cultura ciclística europea y la sudamericana. Yo creo que por los avances y por la tecnología que hay en Europa, eso permite que la cultura ciclística europea sea un poco más controlable, más medida, es un poco más predecible. A la hora de correr se pueden tener en cuenta los temas de los vientos, antes de una competencia, el clima, todo es mucho más exacto. Entonces creo que se influye bastante en las diferencias que hay entre estos dos tipos de ciclísmo

¿Cuál es tu mayor pasión fuera del ciclismo?

Fuera del ciclismo soy estudiante de psicologia es una profesion que me gusta mucho, y que quiero ejercer cuando termine mi carrera deportiva ayudando a los deportistas a que tengas una buena salud mental.

 Interview Karolina Perekitko

She started with bike rides in the forests around Gdansk. Now, she left her Polish harbour to conquer the podium spots abroad. Karolina Perekitko was 4th at the Juniors Worlds in 2016 and has been working on her carreer against the big riders in the years after. This season, she grabbed her first podium in an UCI race. The start of a promising year where she tries to set another step forward. Get to know the 25 years old rider who wants to make her international breakthrough this season. 

You grew up around the flat area of Gdansk. How did you became such a good climber?

I started my cycling with xc and mtb maratons so I was always doing a lot climbs in the forest. I really liked that. Honestly in Gdańsk in forest is a lot of climbs which help to me a lot. My first race which I won was polish National championships where parcour was in the mountains and from that day I realized that I like climbs and I would like to focus on that in future.

This year, you had a very good start against very good riders, did you change something this Winter?

Yes, this winter first time I did a camp in december in Calpe, which I never did before , because I was always working in winter in factory so I had really busy schedule and didn't have a lot of time to recovery. I focused a lot on my diet to eat really well around training and during training because in the passed I had a problem with that. I focused on specific work on climbs with my new coach and finally all went together and give me this effect.

In 2016, you finished 4th at the Worlds. How did you experience the years after that big result?

After this result I had really tought time, because I put on myself a lot of pressure and I can't hold it. So I struggle a lot of mentally and I was never happy and never enjoy bike and Training.

How do you combine studying and cycling on a high level?

In my school they give to us really good opportunity to have online studying and if I miss some classes it is never problem for them.

What are your goals in the sport?

My goal is to be become better person and better rider and learn from mistake as much as I can :)

What is your most beautiful memory in cycling so far?

My third place in Classica the Almeria is my most beautiful memory in Cycling. From few years I had a dream to get UCI podium and finally achive it. During last climb I felt something like I had in junior that I fly on the bike. After the race I was crying and get a hug with my teammates I will never forget this day.

You have been in the pro peloton since 2017, what changed in the sport since then?

I feel that now is more teams with stronger riders. Before was just few riders which could win the race, now the list is really long.

Did the gap between the different teams grow in your opinion?

I think that now is more teams with good environment. I can give example of my team. We are continental team but we have really good organisation good hotels good bikes and I don't feel worse to the World Tour girls.