Vancansoleil-DCM’s Wouter Mol has had a disappointing season that he attributes to a virus he picked up last year. The Dutchman’s best result so far was finishing the national championship in twelfth place but, apart from that, has seemed only a figure of the man who won the Tour of Qatar last year.
During the 2010 season, Mol had a string of top twenty finishes he racked up in the first half of the year. “The first part of the season was good with the victory in the Tour of Qatar and some other good results but I didn't race the second part of the season because of a virus,” he told VeloNation.
“I'm not happy with [this] season so far. The virus of last year made the first part of this season difficult for me. The moment I thought it was going better I got a problem with the virus. The national championship was my first race after that injury…I finished in twelfth place there and that gives me a lot of confidence for the second part of this season.”
Dutch outfit Vancansoleil-DCM was promoted to ProTeam status this year, the highest ranking from the International Cycling Union (UCI). Apart from having Riccardo Ricco on their books for a few months, the team is renowned for bringing through lesser known riders who get results.
Mol says this is thanks to the aggressive racing style they have and added that he is very happy with the team environment. “We are winning races and are a lot of times in the front of the race. My contract ends at the end of this year but of course I hope I can sign a contract with Vacansoleil-DCM for 2012 soon.”
The 29 year old still holds out hope for the rest of this year however, having set some brave goals. Confident that he has recovered from his health struggles, he is on the start list for the Tour of Denmark that gets underway today.
“I will get back on the level I was in Qatar 2010, then I can go for the podium in every race with hopefully some victories. [This] week I'll start the Tour of Denmark, there I can see how my condition is at the moment. I hope it’s good enough to do some good finals,” he said.