Remember Marc Hirschi?
The Swiss star is back on form, injury-free, and looking to recapture former glories at Amstel Gold Race.
Hirschi co-captains UAE Emirates in the Dutch classic Sunday after returning to the winner’s circle at Per Sempre Alfredo last month following off-season hip surgery.
“To be back in the team and in the rhythm of the racing again after months on the sidelines feels great,” Hirschi said in a team statement.
“The win in Italy was great for the confidence and I had good legs recently in GP Indurain on the climbs so I think the shape is where it needs to be for a good Ardennes campaign.”
Preview: Amstel Gold Race
Hirschi blazed a trail with Team Sunweb in the 2020 post-pandemic season. Then only 21, the Swissman won La Flèche Wallonne, a stage at the Tour de France, and landed on the podium at both Liège-Bastogne-Liège and the road worlds.
It was a two-month spell that catapulted him into the world’s eyeline and marked him out as a future star of the Ardennes. Yet Hirschi’s trajectory flatlined in his debut season with UAE Emirates last year as he battled a long-nagging hip problem.
Surgery this winter looks to have left Hirschi injury-free and back at the pointy end of the peloton after winning on season debut and racking up five more top-10s in just seven race days.
Also read: Hirschi hot out of the gates in Italy
Hirschi opens up his classics campaign in the Limburg hills this weekend as part of a UAE Emirates team piloted by Matteo Trentin and boasting a stack of young stars including Spanish prodigy Juan Ayuso.
“Our team is strong so we have quite a few cards to play in the final, it’s a good situation to be in,” Hirschi said.
Who are Hirschi and Co. up against Sunday?
Mathieu van der Poel, Tom Pidcock and Matej Mohorič, that’s who.
UAE Emirates for Amstel Gold Race:
Juan Ayuso (Spa)
Alexys Brunel (Fra)
Finn Fisher-Black (NZ)
Marc Hirschi (Swi)
Sebastian Molano (Col)
Ivo Oliveira (Por)
Matteo Trentin (Ita)