Harm Vanhoucke will soon be the only West Flemish to start in the Tour of Italy

The preparation of the young Kortrijkzaan for the Giro did not go smoothly. After a tenth place in the final standings of the UAE Tour at the end of February, he disappeared from his last preparation race, the Tour of the Alps, in April.

Better feeling

“In the meantime I feel better”, the Team DSM rider said during a press conference the day before the Giro start. “The last two weeks I was able to train well again. I’m looking forward to starting the Giro.”

Vanhoucke has already finished third in a Giro stage twice, in 2020 and 2021. He is also now thinking about success in terms of stages, although he will also roll up his sleeves for his teammates: “I also want to help the sprinters of the team where I can. With Alberto Dainese we have some good chances to take a stage win.”

Ambitions

“In the second or third week I can go for a good stage result myself. Then there are many difficult stages. I have not picked a specific stage for that. I look at how I improve in the race every day. Every difficult stage can be a good chance,” Vanhoucke continues.

Vanhoucke is not yet aiming for a good final classification or the KOM jersey: “At the moment I am not thinking about the KOM classification. But you never know, if you are in a few good flights in the last few weeks. To go for a general classification in a grand tour, I think it’s still too early. Me and the team are focused on stages this Giro.”