'Like Pogacar vs Vingegaard' - Widar ready to challenge Seixas at Tour de l'Avenir says Belgian coach

In an interview with DirectVelo, Belgian U23 coach and former Tour de Yorkshire winner, Serge Pauwels, indicated that he believes Jarno Widar is ready to challenge for victory at the upcoming Tour de l’Avenir after his impressive performance at the recent Giro Ciclistico della Valle d’Acosta in July, where he claimed three consecutive stages and the general classification. Pauwels remained cautious about the difficulty of the task at hand, with riders such as French sensation Paul Seixas also set to feature.

“He's in great shape now. The Tour de l'Avenir suits him very well. It's really his kind of terrain, but don't think it will be easy,” Pauwels said to DirectVelo after Widar had bounced back from disappointment from abandoning the Giro d'Italia Next in June.

The anticipated battle in the mountains between riders such as Widar and Seixas led Pauwels to draw comparisons with one of cycling’s biggest rivalries, which we have become accustomed to seeing each July at the Tour de France.

“Paul Seixas is something of a phenomenon. Finishing eighth in his first Dauphiné at the age of 18 is incredible. If he performs at the same level, then he's a cut above the rest. It will be a great duel, a bit like Pogacar versus Vingegaard. We're hopeful, of course,” said Pauwels in high regard of the French rider, with plenty of other contenders for the yellow jersey on the provisional startlist including Pablo Torres, Jakub Omrzel, and Jorgen Nordhagen.

Pauwels also revealed more details about the other riders who will line up to support Widar in his quest to become the fifth Belgian winner of the Tour de l'Avenir.

"Kamiel Eeman performed well in the Peace Race, finishing 14th overall. Aaron Dockx showed promise, although he remains somewhat inconsistent. Jasper Schoofs is also making a strong comeback. He won the Herbeumont hill climb," said Pauwels.

"Tim Rex is also a good rider. Viktor Soenens had a great start to the season, finishing 8th in the Gran Camino and 11th in the Settimana Coppi e Bartali. Milan Donie is also very strong, but he needs freedom in the race. He is not always comfortable in a dense peloton," said Pauwels.

Former winners of the Tour de l'Avenir in the last decade include the likes of Egan Bernal (2017), Tadej Pogačar (2018), and Isaac Del Toro (2023). Twelve months ago, it was Joseph Blackmore who made history by becoming the first British winner of the race. Blackmore seized leadership of the race-winning stage 3 to La Rosière, beating Widar and Torres, and after losing the jersey to Torres on stage 4. 

He regained it on stage 5 ahead of the finale, making a crucial move which Torres and Widar missed out on, with the latter crashing out of contention. The British weathered an onslaught from Torres, who flew up the slopes of the Colle delle Finestre 3:43 quicker, to win the Tour de l'Avenir by a slender 12 seconds.

Blackmore recently made his Tour de France debut in July and had a solid race, including a sixth-place finish from the breakaway on stage 10's Bastille Day bonanza, and the likes of Widar, Seixas and Torres will be looking to make their marks on the biggest race in the world in future years, but first, will be aiming to nail the dress-rehearsal which kicks off on 23 August.