Published November 24, 2022 01:49AM
Lotte Kopecky sees opportunities with transfer of Lorena Wiebes to SD Worx
The arrival of the peloton's best sprinter will open things up for Kopecky who is already thinking about the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.
Belgian champion Kopecky became queen of Flanders. (Photo: Jasper Jacobs/Belga Mag/AFP via Getty Images)
Lotte Kopecky will see some company in the sprints in 2023 with the arrival of Lorena Wiebes.
Kopecky’s carried SD Worx in the mass gallops with style, and the Belgian said the arrival of Wiebes is only a plus for the team that will give her more freedom to attack.
“I look at that in a positive way. When we start together, I will be able to race more offensively and more freely,” Kopecky told Sporza.
Wiebes moves across to SD Worx after a breakout season that included 23 victories, and Kopecky knows that Wiebes will be pressuring for leadership in the sprint races across the calendar.
That’s fine for Kopecky, whose skillset continues to broaden with wins in 2022 at Strade Bianche and Tour of Flanders.
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“I have no problem with that. When it comes to a bunch sprint, we have Lorena,” Kopecky said. “It will be very difficult to match that or to do better. It does motivate me to work super hard again this winter and to get the highest possible out of it next year.”
Kopecky, 27, already has an eye on the 2024 Olympic Games, and will mix in some track racing into her calendar next season.
“I’m mainly focusing on spring right now. The European championship on the track is already mid-February. It is the first qualifying competition for the Olympic Games, so that is important.