‘It’s the whole package that makes Dublin World Cup really special’

“Dendermonde was really special because it was the first one, but Dublin, when I look back on Dublin it was crazy,” the 23-year-old recalls of beating Laurens Sweeck in a sprint to the line in Abbotstown.

“In Dublin, the way I won was phenomenal. When it’s muddy I do really well and last year it was really muddy because it rained. You also have a lot of Irish fans shouting you on. The people know every rider.

“Here in Belgium they only know and cheer for the top riders but in Dublin it was literally for everyone. It was like a party. It’s the whole package that makes Dublin really special.”

Although he will go into this year’s event as defending champion, Ronhaar has been unable to build on last year’s success so far because his preparation for the new off-road season has been badly hampered by illness.

“It started in June,” he recalls of his pre-season woes. “I got Covid during the Tour of Belgium, a preparation race on the road and, in the weeks after, I was feeling really tired and couldn’t train hard at all. It was really weird. I’d never felt anything like this in my body.

​“You’re calling with your coach and you’re guessing what it is. ‘Maybe you’re training too much’. I did less training but still, I was really tired. A few weeks passed, I did a blood test and it was positive for Lyme disease. I never saw a bite or a tick. I just got really tired.

“The numbers on the blood test were really high which meant I had only been recently infected, which was good news and meant we could tackle it quickly. I had 20 days of antibiotics and four weeks off the bike almost. That was in June, July and August, the period we train the most for the cyclo-cross season, so it messed up my whole preparation.”

Recent blood tests indicate the disease is on the wane, if not completely gone and ‘Ronny’, as he is known, is returning to himself.

“Every three weeks I have a blood test,” he says. “It’s not completely gone yet but I’m getting there. Every week I’m riding better. I’m not feeling tired anymore. Of course I have to watch out that I’m not training too much, but I’m feeling better and better. I’m getting there.

“I think Dublin is a race where you can hide yourself in the pack until the last few laps, like I did last year. I know I’m not in top shape but I think I can aim for the podium there. That’s the plan.

“I really want to focus on the World Cups. Antwerp is maybe a little bit too early, but me and my coach, we plan to be in good shape in Dublin so I hope I can battle for the podium. We will see.”

A rider who likes tough, muddy conditions, Ronhaar admits that his bunny-hopping skills have let him down this year due to lack of practice and he is not as fast over the plank obstacles as others, so his face lights up when I tell him this year’s course will see the planks placed on an uphill section and is likely to force everyone off their bikes.

“That’s good news,” he smiles. “Normally people don’t jump going uphill but there are always a few crazy guys in the bunch. If it’s muddy, jumping is not faster than getting off and carrying the bike over, so last year I carried my bike and didn’t lose any time.

“This season I don’t have the confidence to jump because I didn’t do the cross training. I normally like the jumps but I’m not a fast jumper like Thibaut [Nys].”

Riding for the Trek-Baloise Lions team, Ronhaar can count European champion Nys, Lars van der Haar, Joris Nieuwenhuis, David Haverdings, Ward Huybs and Seppe van den Boer among his team-mates on probably the strongest pro team on the circuit.

“Last year we were the best team,” he says. “We won a lot of races and the ladies did too. This year we’ve won nine or 10 races so far, so I think we can be satisfied.

“The last few years we’ve helped each other more. Before a technical section you can go in front of the group, slowly brake and let the gap open for your team-mate. That happens more and more but it’s not like the road where you can say, ‘OK today, Lars you are the leader’ or, ‘Today we ride for Thibaut’. I am really happy that we have these guys on the team because this year I don’t have the preparation and they give me time to build up my form. I don’t feel any pressure on the team because Lars and Thibaut are winning races.

“I think if I was the only leader of the team I would be stressed now because the sponsors pay a lot of money and they want to see results, so for now this is perfect. It’s the best team I’ve ever been on. Sven [Nys] is a really good coach for us because he has been in every scenario you can think about in cyclo-cross. He knows what to do and we learn a lot from him.”

While there are no Irish professional cyclo-cross riders, the Netherlands and Belgium constantly churn out new talent, providing a competitive hotbed of coaching, racing and training.

“In Belgium we have a small course where every Wednesday almost every team trains. We have a nice course near my house also, in the woods, where I can do my training. It’s perfect in Netherlands and Belgium.

“It’s a big sport here and we have the benefit of that. Training-wise, we have different days for different stuff. Today, I had a rest day because I raced yesterday and the day before. Tomorrow I’m doing some running in the morning and then three hours on the road. Wednesday we have cyclo-cross training. Thursday I have three hours on the road again, then two rest days before racing again Sunday. We only train once a week specifically on technique, the rest is running or endurance rides on the road.”

Like other big names in cyclo-cross, Ronhaar would like to eventually transfer to the road during the summer like his team-mate Nys, who won stages at the Tours of Norway, Switzerland, Romandie, Poland and the overall at the Tour of Hungary this year before returning to the mud, sweat and gears of cross in the winter.

Ronhaar won Fleche du Sud at the start of the year and had a trial with the Lidl-Trek WorldTour team at the end of the season.

“I was stagiaire (intern) with them in the period I had Lyme disease but we didn’t know that, so it wasn’t really good,” he says. “I did a few good things for the team and did a decent race in Belgium but I like the road more and more, so I want to explore in the coming years what I can do.

“On the road, I know I can be a good helper for the team. Sometimes I can be in finale when the road goes uphill but I’m not like Thibaut, I can’t finish a race off in a sprint, so it’s really hard for me to win. If I make the step to the road it will be as someone that helps others, so I have to decide if I want to do that or if I want to win cyclo-cross races.

“You can do both, but you need a good plan. Thibaut, this year, is doing almost all the cyclo-cross season but maybe next year he will miss some because he rides the Vuelta or something.

“You can combine it, but it’s really hard. It takes a lot of mental toughness too. If the team want you at December camp, January camp and the classics races, then it’s hard to do cyclo-cross too.”

At the moment though, Ronhaar is focused on Dublin and a return to one of his favourite courses.

“I really like Dublin. Sometimes we have races outside of Europe that are not really well organised but Dublin is perfectly organised.

“They make sure we have a place to change where we are warm, where we have a showers. Everything is arranged really good. We also have a Trek store in Dublin and they help us and give us mechanics. I think it’s good for the sport if we have more races like Dublin.

“The week after, we go to Sardinia for the first time and I think it’s good to do these kind of things, make it a bit more international.

“It’s good for the sport but it’s also good for Ireland to have a World Cup race there. You have a lot of children in Dublin who are really stoked to see all the riders in the flesh.

“Last year I had to hurry off the podium to catch my flight but this year I want to explore Dublin.

“I fly back on Monday so I can have Sunday evening in the city. Last year I had a Guinness on the podium, but it was maybe too soon after the race. I think this year I will have a few fries first and then maybe I can enjoy one.”