ProTeam Van Gils wants to end strong spring with a good feeling at Liège-Bastogne-Liège

Maxim Van Gils obtained a top ten place in both the Amstel Gold Race (7^th) and Flèche Wallonne (8^th). In Liège-Bastogne-Liège, the 23-year-old Belgian wants to deliver one more strong performance before taking a bit of rest.

Van Gils started his Ardennes campaign with a little doubt as he got ill after Volta Limburg Classic and wasn’t able to train for a while. As a precaution, he skipped Brabantse Pijl and returned to racing at the Amstel.

With success. He managed to take a 7^th place and was the first Belgian at the Amstel, while teammate Andreas Kron sprinted to 4^th place. Also at the Flèche Wallonne, the youngster of Lotto Dstny did well with an 8^th place. “Maybe with a better positioning at the foot of the Mur de Huy, something more would have been possible”, he told after the race, “but okay, this was my first participation. I’ll learn from this.”

Also on Sunday, Van Gils is making his debut, this time at La Doyenne. He will be accompanied by Andreas Kron, Liam Slock, Mathijs Paasschens, Lennert Van Eetvelt, Sylvain Moniquet and Harry Sweeny. “I don’t really know what to expect”, he’s being honest, “it is going to be a totally different race compared to Flèche Wallonne. This is one of the toughest races of the year, a real war of attrition and the legs will do all the talking.”

Van Gils believes in his team. “We will start with a strong team and have already delivered some nice performances. Maybe this race suits Andreas (Kron) and Lennert (Van Eetvelt) a little more so I will probably ride at the service of the team, but of course the race situation could still change a lot. No matter what: I’m going to go all in one last time, it’s the last race of the spring and a Monument, then you just want to leave it all out on the road one more time.”

Furthermore, there’s the factor Remco Evenepoel. “Honestly? I’m looking forward to race together with him”, he concludes, “besides, you also have Tadej Pogacar who’s racing at a really high level. It will be a nice battle, but a big challenge to follow them, but it’s one I’m glad to take on.”

Images: Maxime Van der Wielen.