National coach Moerenhout thinks that Dumoulin can shine again at the World Cup: ‘Tom is a real specialist’ | cycling

“He told me a few days ago that this was coming,” says Moerenhout. “I knew it could go this way. But also that Tom is such a class act where the class is certainly not gone and he could also come back. That was a choice he had to make and he did.”

The 2017 Giro winner and that year’s time trial world champion said in a statement that he hopes to take one more shot at the time trial at the World Championships in Australia in September. The national coach will in principle offer Dumoulin that space, he said, provided that form and health are good. ,,Tom is a real time trial specialist and knows what to do. He has done it twice as well.”

According to Moerenhout, Dumoulin can certainly shine again in the World Cup time trial. ,,He should actually be in better physical shape than last year. He himself indicates that the balance is a bit off. That he has to do more for it than he gets in return. But I also believe that he will enter such a race with his class to deliver a great performance.”

Dumoulin temporarily stopped cycling at the beginning of 2021, but came back to that decision a few months later and then took silver for the second time in the time trial at the Olympic Games in 2021. ,,The Games were the ‘trigger’ for him to start again”, Moerenhout said proudly about that achievement.

Moerenhout now hopes for a nice finish for Dumoulin in the remaining months. ,,It is unique what he has achieved by winning the Giro d’Italia. We don’t have that many winners of a Grand Tour,” he says, referring to Tour winner Jan Janssen (1968) and Joop Zoetemelk, who won both the Tour de France (1980) and the Tour of Spain (1979). ,,To be able to do that, everything has to be right for three weeks. He has done more great things, but this one stands out for me.”