ProTeam Lennert Van Eetvelt looks ahead to Strade Bianche: "I want to do better than last year"

Last year, the iconic white gravel roads of Strade Bianche were wet and gray, but now they are gleaming under the bright Italian sun. The 2025 edition is set to be raced under clear blue skies, and team leader Lennert Van Eetvelt is looking forward to it. "Last year, the wet gravel almost literally sucked our tires into the ground. This year, we can expect not just a dusty race, but also a much faster one," Van Eetvelt says. This morning, he and the Lotto Cycling Team did a final reconnaissance of the closing section, including the steep Le Tolfe climb.

In recent weeks, Van Eetvelt has already raced in the UAE Tour before heading to Tenerife again to prepare for his first one-day race of the season. "I felt myself improving day by day. I feel good now, but a race like Strade is always unpredictable. I hope to play a role in the final. I managed to do that last year, so of course, I want to do even better this time. A top-five finish would be great, and a podium would be even better. Though I think that’s probably the highest achievable result."

The course for this year’s Strade Bianche is slightly different from last year, with 16 gravel sectors instead of 15. That means even more gravel, thanks to the addition of the 9.3 km-long Serravalle sector. "It’s the sixth of sixteen gravel sectors, somewhere around the halfway point. I don’t think it will make a huge difference," Van Eetvelt says. "I don’t ride on gravel much, but races like this, and these recons—those are moments I really enjoy."

Picture: Brecht Steenhouwer