Etixx – Quick-Step and Laurens De Plus, 20 years old, appear to be a perfect match. De Plus and Etixx – Quick-Step reached a three-year contract agreement in August. De Plus, who lives in the heart of Flanders and made a name for himself in several top Under 23 performances in 2015, is making his dreams come true as he will make his professional debut for a Belgian based team! However, racing will not be his only focus. De Plus will also study business management at HoGent while riding for the team. De Plus gives a closer look into his background and hopes in the blog below.
For me this will be the first time riding on a world class team like Etixx – Quick-Step.
To be honest, if you told me five years ago I will be riding for this team, I wouldn't believe it. Cycling wasn't even always the plan. I actually played soccer first until I was 16-years-old, which was when I decided to dedicate my efforts to cycling instead.
Nobody in my family is into cycling. We are a hard working family that own a plants and garden store.
So from where my sudden interest in cycling? Well, I can say a role model that helped inspire me. I have always been a big fan of Tom Boonen.
With the jersey my mother gave me for my birthday. Tom Boonen signed it personally for me.
It all started in the year 2002 when Boonen was an up and coming rider. As a young Belgian kid I watched every race on television, and was totally mesmerized by it!
When Tom Boonen became World Champion in his famous 2005 season, that's when I dreamt of once being a cyclist like him. I was only 10 by then.
With some of the trophies I earned during my younger years.
Where I live, it is is perfect to train. I live in the middle of Flanders, on the parcours of the Tour of Flanders and other classic races. I love it. I train with two years younger brother, who also started cycling.
I didn't expect to be a pro rider so soon. I thought maybe in two or three years it might be possible. ;-)
So, getting a phone call from Patrick Lefevere was a real surprise. It's all been like a whirlwind. I am now part of this big team, and it's amazing.
I already got to meet all the riders, except for Tom Boonen, last month when the whole team got together for two days in Brussels.
That's where we did all the fittings for the clothing and other materials. It was very impressive to see how professionally this team works.
I knew already some of the riders, like Nikolas Maes and Yves Lampaert.
I felt accepted by all of the people immediately. It was a reassuring and welcoming experience as a young guy who is new to the team.
I'm pretty nervous for my first pro race, but in a good way. I want to perform really well, but I also know that I need to focus on learning and simply gaining experience.
The races that fit my skills are stage races and races with climbs, I hope to really show myself in those kinds of races.
Of course it will all be a total new experience to be riding with the pro cyclists, a big difference!
I know I have to earn my place and be patient.
With my dog Ibo and my beautiful Specialized bike.
Another benefit of riding for Etixx – Quick-Step is access to the best materials, like my Specialized bikes. You really get the world class materials that make the small, and even big, differences in cycling performance.
I really can't wait to start the season, I'm totally excited about it!
Laurens De Plus won Best Young Flandrien U27 of the year, at the Flandrien 2015 in Ostend.
Favorite food: Entrecote and fries
Favorite music: Popular hits
Favorire movie: American Sniper
Favorite color: Blue (from Quick-Step) :-)