Datalearning 2023: Best sprinters

In the run-up to 2024, one sprinter scores significantly higher than his competitors. Jasper Philipsen has had a great year. However, the battle for the best sprint score is not a done deal in 2024. Which sprinters will come close to beating Philipsen?

In this article, team CyclingOracle looks back on the 2023 cycling season, using our well-known (and improved!) AI model. Which riders have grown the most? Who has not been able to live up to expectations? And which sprinters are the best after 2023? 

In this article we look at the sprinters. How did the riders perform in 'sprints'? Also check out our other articles, in which we specifically highlight the riders from the following categories:

• Best riders
• Climbers
• Hill specialists
• Time trialists
• Cobblestone specialists
• Classification riders
• One-day specialists

Curious about how our improved AI model works? In this article we will take you through our considerations and adjustments.

Most progress in 2023 - sprinters

The AI-model calculates the quality of the sprinters at the beginning and end of 2023. This allows us to analyze which rider has improved the most in 2023.

The rider with most progress in 2023 is Jackson. He achieved his best performance last year in China, during the Tour of Lake Taihu. The 23-year-old Kiwi not only took victory in two sprint stages, but also won the points- and general classification.

ITT-specialist Ganna showed last season that he can also achieve good results in the sprint. Ganna already won a sprint stage in the Tour of Wallonie. In the Vuelta, the Italian finished second behind Groves in the fifth stage and shared the podium two weeks later with Dainese (1st) and Van den Berg (3rd). This has raised him to a score of 86, which puts him close to the big sprint names.

In the Tour of Norway reed Andresen rode to second place in two of the three sprint stages. A great achievement, especially considering the strong field of participants. He kept Jordi Meeus just behind him in both sprints. Andresen also entered the battle for the podium twice in the Tour of Guangxi, with Olav Kooij and Jonathan Milan, among others.

Biggest decrease in 2023 - sprinters

Amaury Capiot was unable to match his good 2022 season, which meant he dropped considerably in 2023. In 2022 he managed to achieve two more victories in sprint stages, but last season he struggled with his recurring knee injury, which meant he only qualified for the finals in August. took action first.

Rudy Barbier managed to win a sprint in the Tour of Brittain, but that was not enough to reach his 2022 score. Bouhanni also could not match his results in his relatively short 2022 season. In his last season as a professional, the Frenchman managed to achieve one more podium in his own country, when he finished third in a sprintstage of the Tour de l'Ain.

Best sprinters

King of Sprint Jasper Philipsen has increased his lead over his competitors thanks to a brilliant Tour de France. Philipsen could count on his Dutch teammate Van der Poel in the leadout in France. The Belgian took home four stage wins and the points jersey. Pedersen and Meeus turned out to be the only sprinters who managed to beat Philipsen during a sprint.

Groenewegen and Pedersen together left Jakobsen behind them and passed Démare. Groenewegen was the first to sprint across the finish line six times this year. Pedersen won seven times last season, including a stage of the Tour de France. Jakobsen unfortunately had to drop out during that Tour, a few days after a crash on the circuit in Nogaro.

While Jumbo-Visma was on its way to its third Grand Tour victory of the year in Spain last September, the Dutch team also managed to achieve great results in The Tour of Britain, with no fewer than four consecutive sprint victories and Olav Kooij's points jersey and the GC-victory of Wout van Aert. We are very curious to see how Kooij will measure up against the strongest sprinters in a Grand Tour next year.

Two riders who made a lot of progress among the fast men are Girmay en Meeus.  Girmay, still only 23, mad his Tour de France debut and finished 3rd in the stage to Bordeaux. Hij took victory in a stage of the Vuelta a Valenciana. maakte in 2023 zijn debuut in de Tour, waar hij in Bordeaux als derde sprinter over de streep kwam. In een etappe van de Ronde van Valencia pakte hij de winst. Meeus peaked at the right moment during the Tour by beating his feared competitor and compatriot Philipsen on the Champs-Élysées.

Contact

The countdown to 2024 has begun. The transfers and preparations are in full swing. Who are you keeping an eye on next season? Let us know through a DM at Instagram. If you have any questions or suggestions: feel free to connect. You can send us an e-mail at [email protected].