David Dekker: 'Pay attention to Ewen Costiou in the Giro d'Italia'

Name: CyclingOracle.com
Price range: $

Tuesday 30 April 2024 • Blog

Tom Nederend

Dutch sprinter David Dekker (26) represents the French team Arkéa B&B Hotels. Dutch cycling fans might have lost sight of him compared to his years as the sprinting prospect at Jumbo-Visma. Dekker had a slow start at Arkéa because of several crashes and an allergic reaction, but started off strong in 2024 with some strong results. We talked to David in the CyclingOralce podcast about his stats, role in the team and personal goals for the 2024 Giro.

Full interview with David Dekker is availabe in CyclingOracle podcast (in Dutch)!

David Dekker about his ambitions in the 2024 Giro

How is David Dekker doing? Ready to contest the Giro?

'Yes, well. A few more days of relaxing at home in Belgium before the big adventure begins. It has been the team's idea since January that I will participate in the Giro. It's not like I asked for it myself, but it's nice to race it. Certainly a route with many sprint opportunities, as you can judge by the strong field of sprinters. So there's a lot of competition.'

You have had a lot of bad luck in recent years, nasty falls and other misery. How are you doing now?

'Especially this seaon things are going a lot better than last year. I ended the winter with a strong feeling. That gives confidence. I'm racing a different calendar with more smaller races such as Grand Prix Jean-Pierre Monseré (3rd, red). That was really on my own request, because I like to race agressive. That's what I wanted and I got the opportunity to do that in my spring-campaign. I managed to get some good results. Even in a race where I was not the main target of the team, I was able to help my teammates and contribute to important results by the team. Last year was ok, but I was really struggling with an allergy, both in the Giro and the classics."

What about that allerig reaction at this moment?

'Long-term treatment has started, but it will take 3 to 5 years to fully recover. But at least things are going better than last year, so that is a first step. Especially in the Giro last year I had a lot of trouble with it and I eventually quit the race. There I really rode at a level where I was unable to race with the amateurs. It causes a lot of problems with my lungs and breathing. I then felt like my lungs were on fire, while the peloton is riding a normal pace. Then I feel like I'm doing an all-out effort of 5 minutes and then you look at your power meter and just ride a pace suitable for an easy ride of 3 hours. It just got worse.”

⁠Your profile based on our data: 76 sprint, 40 hills, 45 cobblestones. How do you evaluate these scores?

'I hope I will be able to prove to the algorithm that I am better on cobblestones. The gap between my hills-indicator could be slightly bigger. But of course you have to achieve good results on cobblestones before the scores improve. If I ride through an Italian village with some cobblestones I'll let you know so you can update my stats, haha.

How did you prepare for the Giro?

'I just returned from a 2-week training camp in Spain with five teammates, 3 of which are racing to the Giro. We trained in the same region where we stayed in December and January and not at altitude, but at sea level. I'm not a fan altitude camps either. I think it is very individual whether you benfit from them or not. I've been at an altitude camp twice and didn't notice anything negative nor positive about it. For me, the time spent training, eating and sleeping is crucial in order to prepare myself in the best possible way.”

Will you be the main-man for bunchsprints for Arkéa?

'Yes, Jenthe Biermans and will contest those stages togehter. It will depend on the day's route and how well we both feel. Jenthe is not the strongest in a sprint with a full bunch at high speed and fresh legs. He excels when the race was tough, we will have plenty of those stages this Giro. He must really be having a tougher day. And there are plenty of them in the Giro. So we'll see in which stages I can try to be succesfull.

How many sprint opportunities do you see for yourself? For example, stages 3 and 4. Do you expect to be there?

'That's a tough call. Those are not necessarily difficult climbs, but they're situated very close to the finish. There will be a lot of stress in the peloton, including with the GC-teams. The pelton will automatically race super fast on such a climb to avoid the chaos and not even necessarily with the aim of dropping guys like me. I hope they don't drive up those climbs very fast, unless I feel super good. Because that's what I'm aiming for.'

When are you satisfied?

'It may sound crazy, but I would really like to finish this Giro. That's my first goal. I didn't succeed last year, but I think it really takes you a step further in your strength and experience as a rider.'

Our listeners are crazy about fantasy games. Should they select you in their team? And who else would you tip, outside your team?

'Whether they select me depends on the price in the game haha. But yes! Always bet on yourself. They should also pay attention to my teammate Ewen Costiou as a budget-pick. He has already shown great things and I am really curious about his potential. Outside of my team, I am charmed by Olav Kooij. He will start his first Grand Tour, but always wins in stage races. Very strong, he's so consistent. I can't imagine him not winning once in those 3 weeks.'