World cup win, Belgium

Winning the World Cup TT in Belgium was one of those days where everything finally clicked. I flew in just one day before the race, so the turnaround was tight, but I actually felt surprisingly good considering the international travel. The course itself was pretty intuitive, but I arrived after it had already closed for recon, so I had to rely on studying the map and watching other riders instead of getting a proper lap in. My plan going in was simple: stay smooth, stay controlled, and be just conservative enough to avoid mistakes on a course I hadn’t ridden at speed.

Race morning was windy, and after watching a few riders struggle to hold their lines, I made the call to switch to a shallower front wheel. It felt like the right move — stability over style. Once I rolled down the start ramp, I had no radio, no splits, nothing to tell me how I was stacking up against the field. All I could do was trust my pacing and focus on staying as aero as possible.

At the first checkpoint, I later learned I was 8 seconds down on Dorian, the Paralympic track gold medalist. By checkpoint two, the gap held about the same. When I hit checkpoint three — the turnaround on the second lap, roughly 5 km from the finish — I was 12 seconds back. At that point, it was all instinct. The last 5 km were pure commitment: empty the tank, hold the position, and don’t let the wind push me around.

Crossing the line, I genuinely had no idea where I stood. I was completely spent — the kind of empty where you can feel your heartbeat in your teeth. A few moments later, I heard the result: not only had I made up the deficit, but I’d clawed back all the time plus four seconds. That realization hit hard. After everything — the travel, the lack of recon, the wind, the uncertainty — I’d pulled off the win. I was absolutely stoked.