Algemeen Lead trainer Jeroen Dingemans: ‘This group sticks together really well’
Together with his colleagues Sander Cordeel and Loïc Segaert, he was perhaps one of the most important transfers by Lotto Dstny. The performance team was upgraded and Jeroen Dingemans became the new head coach. With a lot of ambition, but also the excitement of an U17 rider, he is on the eve of the start of the Belgian cycling season.
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Hi Jeroen, welcome to the team. How were your first weeks?
“Super positive, actually. Of course, our work did not start on January 1, but we were already hard at work in the months before. Loïc, Sander and myself are the three new trainers of the performance team. The preparation has gone well so far, as have the training camps. We are getting good responses and positive feedback. We believe to be a positive, new influence in the team.”
How do you see your role within the team?
“This is the first time that the team works with such a large internal coaching staff. We coordinate all aspects of the performance team and ensure that all departments are on the same page. We ensure that there is communication between the nutritionists, doctors and sports directors. In addition, we will be at the races a lot, so that we know what really happens in the races. We don't just want to look at the data.”
In addition to the arrival of the three of you, an extra nutritionist has come on board and a collaboration with Ghent University has started. Things are clearly moving in the team. Can or should we expect immediate results from this, or are these all things that will prove themselves more in the long term?
“Based on the positive things we've already seen - the data, training and other numbers - I believe things are already moving in the right direction this season. But we have a very young team. In any case, we work with a long-term vision and a plan for several years. The collaboration with Ghent University, for example, only started a few months ago. We have a lot of ideas about that and things that we want to explore and optimize in our performance team. So we are definitely looking beyond this year. But of course we also hope for a good season in 2023.”
What is the potential of this group of riders?
“There are some very strong leaders. Arnaud De Lie surprised everyone last year with all his victories. I think for this season we should not focus so much on the number of wins, but rather try to take the quality of results to a higher level. I also feel like Caleb Ewan is on a really good level. Those are the two winners, so to speak. But below that is a very strong, broad team that will now also get opportunities, especially with the new points system. Perhaps they were more quickly forced into another role, but now I do think that we can take a collective and offensive approach to the races. I hope it turns out very well, because I believe that a lot of guys can rise above themselves when we can race in an interactive and offensive way.”
As a newcomer to the team, were you surprised by some of the riders?
“I already worked with Florian Vermeersch and Cedric Beullens, but the young riders certainly surprised me. Someone like Lennert Van Eetvelt, who we certainly have to be very careful with and focus on the future, is a great talent. But the layer just below those two leaders sticks together very well. For me it's nice to see that the atmosphere is so good and everyone wants to go for it. It is a very homogeneous group where no one feels better than the other. They will cross fires for each other.”
Why did you choose Lotto Dstny?
“I was asked, probably because of my work with Florian Vermeersch and Cedric Beullens. I didn't have to think twice. As a coach, this is the pinnacle of what you can achieve. It's super fun to be able to set the lines in terms of performance. Things that might have been frustrating before as an external trainer are gone now. Now we can really do our own thing. I really speak in the 'we' form because I think Loïc, Sander and myself are a very good trio. We are complementary and stand behind the riders as a team.”
When will 2023 have been a success for you?
“When we have proven we are WorldTour worthy. I think last year was really good, but the years before maybe a little less. I think we're all happy that the pressure of the points system has been relieved a bit. There was so much to do about that points battle and our relegation. Not everything that has been written and said about it has been right, I think. But I think this year we can prove that we are a mature team that can come close to the top ten teams in the ranking.”
Photo: Photo News. Video: Facepeeters.