Cycling: After the retirement of the former captain Niels Albert due to health reasons, the German champion Philipp Walsleben will lead the Belgian team BKCP-Powerplus. The team announced this during the presentation of the squad for the upcoming cyclocross season.
In addition to Walsleben, who finished second overall in the World Cup last year, the team's hopes are on Matthieu van der Poel and Wietse Bosmans, but also on the Czech newcomer Adam Ťoupalík.
“With Niels Albert on the team, there was never any pressure to win”, told Walsleben Veldritekrant. “It's different now, but I think I was able to learn a lot last year. That can help me this season.”
As U23 athletes, Van der Poel and Ťoupalík are the two youngest in the team, but they can already look back on impressive palmarès – both off-road and on the road. Especially with regard to the World Championships in Tabor in January, the young Czech will do a lot. The team is hoping that Van der Poel will be able to repeat his performances from last year. The Belgian team relies primarily on talent from abroad - a rare sign in a sport in which Belgium still dominates.
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