No Spring Classic Without Breakaway King Victor Vercouillie (23): “Incredible how many people were shouting my name on the Oude Kwaremont”
Between the Monuments of cycling — the Tour of Flanders and Paris-Roubaix — Victor Vercouillie (23) of Team Flanders-Baloise made time to speak with us about his remarkable spring campaign. The peloton’s undisputed breakaway king also went on the attack during In Flanders Fields and the Tour of Flanders, doing so aboard our brand-new 525R bike. While Victor battles to make the early break, his father Kristof is fighting incurable colon cancer. That story has also touched the wider public and gives Victor added strength: “The massive support gave me goosebumps.”
Victor Vercouillie was not born with the engine of Tadej Pogačar, nor does he possess the golden cycling genes of Mathieu van der Poel. He is well aware of that himself, although as an U23 rider in his final year he was strong enough to earn a genuine opportunity at professional level. He first received that chance as a stagiaire with Bolton Equities Black Spoke, and later in the form of a professional contract with Team Flanders-Baloise. There, the rouleur from Beveren-Leie demonstrated that he is blessed with an inexhaustible reserve of resilience and character — qualities he inherited from his father, Kristof.
Around the turn of the millennium, Kristof Vercouillie was a solid rider on the amateur circuit. Later, he was also active with the cycling team Onder Ons Parike, a team that has more than earned its stripes in the cycling world. “Louis Vervaeke rode there, as did Jenno Berckmoes, Yentl Vandevelde and Gil Gelders. So it really is something of a talent factory,” Victor explains. Sadly, his father is no longer battling sleet and crosswinds, but rather that dreaded illness.
Yet cycling remains sacred in the Vercouillie household. “What a son does to make his father proud,” Kristof posted on social media on Sunday evening. Throughout the day, he had received countless messages from people who had spotted Victor in the breakaway of the Tour of Flanders. Because that is where the young West Fleming has become an absolute specialist: the early break.
Victor Vercouillie was not born with the engine of Tadej Pogačar, nor does he possess the golden cycling genes of Mathieu van der Poel. He is well aware of that himself, although as an U23 rider in his final year he was strong enough to earn a genuine opportunity at professional level. He first received that chance as a stagiaire with Bolton Equities Black Spoke, and later in the form of a professional contract with Team Flanders-Baloise. There, the rouleur from Beveren-Leie demonstrated that he is blessed with an inexhaustible reserve of resilience and character — qualities he inherited from his father, Kristof.
Around the turn of the millennium, Kristof Vercouillie was a solid rider on the amateur circuit. Later, he was also active with the cycling team Onder Ons Parike, a team that has more than earned its stripes in the cycling world. “Louis Vervaeke rode there, as did Jenno Berckmoes, Yentl Vandevelde and Gil Gelders. So it really is something of a talent factory,” Victor explains. Sadly, his father is no longer battling sleet and crosswinds, but rather that dreaded illness.
Yet cycling remains sacred in the Vercouillie household. “What a son does to make his father proud,” Kristof posted on social media on Sunday evening. Throughout the day, he had received countless messages from people who had spotted Victor in the breakaway of the Tour of Flanders. Because that is where the young West Fleming has become an absolute specialist: the early break.
Marathon Man
In 2025, the West Fleming was already the undisputed king of attacking racing in the professional peloton, with 2,403 kilometers spent off the front. This year, he is happily continuing that trend, with long-range attacks in races such as the Bredene Koksijde Classic, In Flanders Fields and the Tour of Flanders. A remarkable feat, especially considering that dozens of riders were vying for a place in the breakaway and Victor had put pressure on himself by openly expressing his ambitions — yet he still made it into the move when 13 riders broke clear after roughly thirty kilometers.
“It’s always a bit of a lottery,” says the endurance specialist. “You need a bit of luck, but sometimes it’s also about having a well-thought-out plan. There was no way a breakaway would go without a rider from Team Flanders-Baloise, and I knew that around Sint-Niklaas could be a decisive zone. The roads are narrow there, there’s a lot of turning and twisting, and that makes it easier for a group to get away. I saw that we first had five riders and then thirteen, but that seemed too large, so I didn’t fully commit yet. On top of that, Silvan Dillier from Alpecin-Deceuninck was in the move, which made it even trickier. The peloton tried to keep things under control, but once we had a thirty-second gap, I knew we were gone.”
And so, on Sunday afternoon, Victor Vercouillie once again filled thousands of living rooms across Flanders — and beyond, in the international cycling world. “Sometimes riders jokingly ask me if I’m going to try again that day and say they’ll follow my wheel so they can be in the break too,” Victor grins. “My friends also know my racing style by now and love to refer to it.”
“It’s always a bit of a lottery,” says the endurance specialist. “You need a bit of luck, but sometimes it’s also about having a well-thought-out plan. There was no way a breakaway would go without a rider from Team Flanders-Baloise, and I knew that around Sint-Niklaas could be a decisive zone. The roads are narrow there, there’s a lot of turning and twisting, and that makes it easier for a group to get away. I saw that we first had five riders and then thirteen, but that seemed too large, so I didn’t fully commit yet. On top of that, Silvan Dillier from Alpecin-Deceuninck was in the move, which made it even trickier. The peloton tried to keep things under control, but once we had a thirty-second gap, I knew we were gone.”
And so, on Sunday afternoon, Victor Vercouillie once again filled thousands of living rooms across Flanders — and beyond, in the international cycling world. “Sometimes riders jokingly ask me if I’m going to try again that day and say they’ll follow my wheel so they can be in the break too,” Victor grins. “My friends also know my racing style by now and love to refer to it.”
A Wall of Sound
What is new for Victor, however, is the overwhelming support from the public. “In the hill zone during In Flanders Fields it was already noticeable, but in the Tour of Flanders I realised for the first time just how many supporters now know my name. We were in a group with some big names. Luke Lamperti won a stage in Paris-Nice this year and wore the yellow jersey there. And still, people were shouting my name. It’s partly a home race for me in my training region, but I didn’t expect this.”
Secretly, Victor had dreamed of cresting the Oude Kwaremont for the second time at the very front of the race. But because the finale exploded earlier than usual and an elite group rode away from the peloton, the breakaway riders were caught sooner than hoped.
“It’s exactly for moments like that that you try to be in the early break. From the peloton, it’s very difficult for me to survive that kind of selection, so this is an efficient way to still be part of the race. On Berg Ten Houte, my legs unfortunately started to flood with lactate. I was well positioned, but I had a difficult moment when the pace surged at the front. A few of us hung on just a few seconds behind for a while, but we were never able to reconnect.”
Unlike his two previous participations, Victor did reach the finish in Oudenaarde this time. “And that’s nice, because if you spend the whole day in the break and then don’t finish, it feels like an unfinished story. Back in the peloton, I had to fight hard on the second ascent of the Oude Kwaremont. Then you see the entire field stretched out across the narrow roads. At the back, some groups came together and we maintained enough of a gap over the women’s race, which follows shortly after the men on the same course. On the final Kwaremont, I could already start to enjoy it a bit, and thanks to the tailwind in the final kilometres, it was a fitting finish.”
Secretly, Victor had dreamed of cresting the Oude Kwaremont for the second time at the very front of the race. But because the finale exploded earlier than usual and an elite group rode away from the peloton, the breakaway riders were caught sooner than hoped.
“It’s exactly for moments like that that you try to be in the early break. From the peloton, it’s very difficult for me to survive that kind of selection, so this is an efficient way to still be part of the race. On Berg Ten Houte, my legs unfortunately started to flood with lactate. I was well positioned, but I had a difficult moment when the pace surged at the front. A few of us hung on just a few seconds behind for a while, but we were never able to reconnect.”
Unlike his two previous participations, Victor did reach the finish in Oudenaarde this time. “And that’s nice, because if you spend the whole day in the break and then don’t finish, it feels like an unfinished story. Back in the peloton, I had to fight hard on the second ascent of the Oude Kwaremont. Then you see the entire field stretched out across the narrow roads. At the back, some groups came together and we maintained enough of a gap over the women’s race, which follows shortly after the men on the same course. On the final Kwaremont, I could already start to enjoy it a bit, and thanks to the tailwind in the final kilometres, it was a fitting finish.”
Between Heaven and Hell
Victor experienced cycling heaven last weekend — and is now preparing for hell. On Sunday, he returns to Paris-Roubaix, after finishing outside the time limit there two years ago. He has already reconnoitred the course several times, each time focusing on a different section of the race.
“Making the break in Roubaix is, if anything, even harder than in Flanders,” he explains. “But from a breakaway, you can really ride to a top result in Roubaix. Matthew Hayman even won the memorable 2016 edition that way. If you’re up front, you don’t have to fight as much for position and you can anticipate the arrival of the favourites. So it’s always beneficial to be there.”
“Everyone considers Roubaix a flat race, but in the opening phase it’s constantly up and down. On those false-flat sections, the pace is extremely high, so it becomes a battle just to make the move again. As a team, we obviously want to avoid missing the decisive move. Last year, my teammate Rory Townsend made the break in both Flanders and Roubaix — that’s my goal this time as well.”
“Making the break in Roubaix is, if anything, even harder than in Flanders,” he explains. “But from a breakaway, you can really ride to a top result in Roubaix. Matthew Hayman even won the memorable 2016 edition that way. If you’re up front, you don’t have to fight as much for position and you can anticipate the arrival of the favourites. So it’s always beneficial to be there.”
“Everyone considers Roubaix a flat race, but in the opening phase it’s constantly up and down. On those false-flat sections, the pace is extremely high, so it becomes a battle just to make the move again. As a team, we obviously want to avoid missing the decisive move. Last year, my teammate Rory Townsend made the break in both Flanders and Roubaix — that’s my goal this time as well.”
525R
This spring, Victor has also been turning heads with his new 525R bike from Eddy Merckx. This aero road bike is currently in the final stages of development. Together with Jules Hesters, Victor was given the opportunity to test the bike in race conditions. For the brand, he proved to be the ideal choice, as for two consecutive Sundays the new bike enjoyed hours of television exposure thanks to his breakaways. The bike will be commercially available in the near future.
“I’m very satisfied,” says the Flanders-Baloise rider. “When doing VO2 max intervals, I can really feel that the bike is stiffer and that you keep building speed on the flat sections. The frame is also surprisingly light, and I’m very pleased with the geometry. Working with my bike fitter, I’ve found a position that puts less pressure on the iliac artery, which is extremely important in modern cycling. My training partners often ask about the bike and, like me, they’re big fans of the paint job. I like the fact that through this collaboration, I can also contribute to such an iconic brand.”
Photos: Photo News
“I’m very satisfied,” says the Flanders-Baloise rider. “When doing VO2 max intervals, I can really feel that the bike is stiffer and that you keep building speed on the flat sections. The frame is also surprisingly light, and I’m very pleased with the geometry. Working with my bike fitter, I’ve found a position that puts less pressure on the iliac artery, which is extremely important in modern cycling. My training partners often ask about the bike and, like me, they’re big fans of the paint job. I like the fact that through this collaboration, I can also contribute to such an iconic brand.”
Photos: Photo News
