“He was just so focused on the sprint that he forgot to drink enough. And he got dehydrated, ” Visbeek recalls. “And after a week of racing at the highest level in the Tour, well, small mistakes like that are very costly. ” Visbeek also says that the team is trying to find the best way to adapt to Girmay’s life in Eritrea and his racing in Europe. “He trains very well in Eritrea, but the problem is that he has no one that he can really train with for a good six hours. There are guys that can be with him for four hours, but not six.
” Images from the high-speed crash are horrific, as Girmay went rolling on the pavement, with riders falling on and around him. Surprisingly, Girmay suffered no fracture but was badly concussed, and his body was covered in cuts and bruises. It would be more than two weeks before he could even consider getting on a bike again. Rebooting, Girmay then set his sights on his next objective, his first Tour de France.
And in a bike race, it is the last two hours that count. ” But despite the different setbacks in 2023, one senses that they belong to the team as much as Girmay himself. Both stepped up to the WorldTour together in 2021 and they have experienced success and setbacks together. The fact that he has a contract through to 2026 is nothing if not a testament to the confidence they have in Girmay. “When I was in the hospital after my crash in Flanders, somebody from the team came to visit me every day in Belgium, ” Girmay recalls. “I was in the hospital for two weeks after the crash, and every day, someone from the team came to visit me and stay with me for like two hours. I cannot say enough about my team.
“Mentally, you have to be so strong. The Tour de France is just another level altogether. All the fighting for position, all of the sprint trains just going full gas in the final – It is like nothing else I have experienced. It was a huge learning curve. But now I know. ” Girmay was clearly frustrated by his Tour de France debut, yet both he and his Intermarché-Circus-Wanty team are playing the long game. “The first step is to be constructive about everything and to learn from each situation, ” says his sports director, Aike Visbeek. “Biniam is very young still. He is only 23 and has not lived in Europe that long. The key is to learn and understand what we can do better because we are still very much in the learning process.
We are still trying to figure out the best way to balance living in Eritrea and racing in Europe, fine-tuning our training and preparation. ” Visbeek insists – even after his eye-opening 2022 season – there were a lot of firsts in 2023, with the Tour being the biggest. “This year in the Tour was one of the highest levels for sprinters in a few years. I don’t think he expected the Tour to be that big or the racing to be that aggressive. I think he was a bit overwhelmed at the Tour.
Great expectations: Biniam Girmay's professional evolution continues despite season of frustrationsIt wasn’t supposed to happen like this. After winning a major Classic and a stage in the Giro d’Italia in 2022, many had even greater expectations for 22-year-old Biniam Girmay in 2023, including Girmay himself. But instead, the Eritrean sensation struggled through much of the year, and a stage victory in the Tour de Suisse was the highlight in a season marred by sickness, crashes and injury.
Jordan U23 Fixtures & Results 2023/2024 The 2023/24 Premier League results will appear after the first fixture has finished. close. TV Info Watch Live · Clubs · Players · Transfers · Awards. Fantasy.