After spending last season switching from road to track as she prepared for the Olympic Games in Rio, Jolien D’hoore believes that she is faster than ever on the road. The Belgian told Cyclingnews that she feels stronger both physically and mentally.
D’hoore took bronze in the omnium in Rio but had to sacrifice her road form to do so. Despite notching up seven victories last season - most of which came in the second half of the year – D’hoore said that she felt as if she was struggling on the road. With just one discipline to focus on in 2017, she believes that she’s back where she needs to be.
“I feel like I haven’t been faster in sprints than I have been this year,” D’hoore told Cyclingnews after arriving in the UK for the Ovo Energy Women’s Tour which starts on Wednesday.
“Last year was a bit hard, especially mentally, because I knew that I was going to the track, but I had to do the road races as well. I wasn’t going really well. In the back of my mind, I knew that it was because I was going to the track. This year, I feel different, I feel stronger on the road, and I have a different mindset as well, so that helps.”
Just over five months into the 2017 season, D’hoore is just shy of her tally of wins from last year with five already in the bank.
The first came in Omloop van het Hageland at the end of February, and after second place at Gent-Wevelgem and a slightly disappointing Tour of Flanders, she took another win at the GP de Dottignies in April. May brought the Wiggle High5 rider her first WorldTour win of the season – and the second of her career – with two stage victories at the Tour of Chongming Island, where she beat Kirsten Wild (Cylance) in a straight duel, and the overall classification.
Having the speed is one thing, says D’hoore, but there is also an element of luck.
“It’s just hard for a sprinter to really make a race and get into breakaways because people never ride with you. You just have to wait and ride in a group, hoping for a sprint,” she explained. “That’s kind of my story for each race. It’s not really easy to make a race, but I just try to finish off in a good way.
“I understand that everybody needs to get their chances, and it’s not always a sprint, so I’m cool with that. I also like to work for others in the team.”
http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/dhoore-i-havent-been-faster-than-i-am-this-year/