Cycling: Racing into the Headwind

This would be his first time on the roster for a true top-tier World Tour race, and he was, without a doubt, incredibly excited.

But the pressure was also immense.

No matter how outstanding his performance had been in previous races, if he choked in these next two, both his standing in the team and his market value would undoubtedly plummet.

'After all, the competition is on a different level. Can I handle the incredibly difficult, relentless attacks from top-tier riders in a major one-day classic?'

This was the most direct way to measure whether he had truly become a top-tier rider.

Fortunately, Huang Chong wasn't a complete stranger to the cobblestone roads of Belgium.

He had trained here with the team during last year's winter camp. And while every ride left him feeling like his insides had been thoroughly rearranged, his superb bike-handling skills allowed him to adapt.

"Huang, for tomorrow's Crossing Flanders, you'll be riding as a domestique. The leaders will be Van Boppel and Meus.

I don't have to explain myself, but I want you to understand my reasoning for this arrangement.

This is your first race of this magnitude, after all. I want to minimize the pressure on you, both in terms of results and tactics.

Of course, a one-day race isn't like a stage race. If you feel you have a chance to contend for the win after all the high-intensity attacks, you have the green light to go for it.

You won the Milan-Turin Race, so you should know that victory in a one-day classic is often decided in a fleeting moment.

You'll have to judge that for yourself based on how the race unfolds. You don't need to ask for my permission."

The day before the race, after the tactical briefing, Aldag pulled Huang Chong aside to give him a reminder.

Huang Chong already knew the Bora Team lineup for Crossing Flanders. Aldag had designated Van Boppel and Meus, who had each secured third-place finishes in earlier one-day races, as co-leaders.

The five domestiques were himself, Ryan Mullen, Emil Herzog, Marco Haller, and Luis-Joe Lührs.

Among these teammates, other than Ryan Mullen and Van Boppel, he had never raced with the rest before, but there was nothing unusual about that.

That's just how the World Tour worked. At the start of the season, when races were spaced far apart, the team management had to be very selective, carefully curating the roster for each event.

But once the season returned to Europe, with the arrival of spring and warmer weather, top-tier races came thick and fast. Pretty much every officially contracted rider on the team had to be rotated into the lineup.

This served to both balance each rider's number of race days and relieve the pressure on the core roster.

For example, for this quintet of one-day races in Belgium, even a rider made of steel couldn't endure it if the team used the same lineup for all five.

Aldag's decision to field Huang Chong in the fourth event, Crossing Flanders, was strategic. Besides the terrain suiting him, Aldag figured that after the grueling first three races, most of the top riders from other teams would opt to rest in preparation for the final event: the Tour of Flanders.

Therefore, having him make his top-tier World Tour debut in a race with a slightly less stacked field of star riders was a very logical arrangement.

Huang Chong replied directly:

"Don't worry, Director.

I have no issues with the plan.

Also, during the flat sections in the first half of the race, I'll do my best to take pulls at the front of the peloton to help our two leaders conserve energy."

Hearing this, Aldag nodded in satisfaction and said encouragingly,

"Good.

Then get yourself prepared. The official start list and route details have been published, so you can review them on your own.

However, one-day races are incredibly unpredictable. In this race, aside from Alpecin Team's Philipsen and Visma Team's Van Aert, who you'll need to watch closely, other big names like van der Poel and Pedersen won't be participating. It's hard to say who will end up winning.

In any case, for your first top-tier World Tour classic, I'm not demanding a stellar result right out of the gate. But at the very least, you need to stay with the main peloton and finish the race!"

Huang Chong just grunted in agreement, said nothing more, and went straight back to his hotel room.

As always, Chen Junyi had all the pre-race information prepared for him. She handed him a tablet and began to explain:

"The course for Crossing Flanders is 188 kilometers long, making it the shortest of the five one-day races, but the route is famous for its relentlessly rolling, short, steep climbs.

There are 10 officially designated climbs. However, because the middle section involves complex circuits, some climbs might be tackled twice, bringing the total number of ascents to 18.

You've been training here for the past few days, so I shouldn't need to explain the specifics in detail.

In short, the course is very difficult, with the hardest sections concentrated between the 70 and 150-kilometer marks.

It's the kind of race that's relatively easy at the start and finish, with the main difficulty packed into the middle.

Therefore, if you have ambitions for the final result, you must stay with the front group through the middle section. They're bound to make relentless attacks and wear each other down during those kilometers.

As for the field, a total of 175 riders from 25 different teams will be participating.

In addition to the 18 World Tour Teams, there will be 7 Pro-level professional teams participating, including wildcard entries and officially invited local squads. They are: