Timo Roosen’s professional career starts last week with Australia’s Tour Down Under. Team LottoNL-Jumbo signed the 22-year-old Dutchman over the winter thanks to the fans who backed our ‘Support a Young Rider-project.’ During Roosen’s first year, he will update his loyal fans about his experiences on and off the bicycle with a monthly diary.

“My season began during the national speed-skating championships in Thialf. With a group of cyclists, we went to Heerenveen to support the skaters. It was nice to meet up with our ‘other’ team-mates. I used to speed-skate as kid, but I now watch the races when I have time, usually after a weekend training ride when I’m on the couch.

“Trainers and managers of the team are already busy exchanging ideas. The speed-skaters do a good job in the area of strength training, so we can learn from them.

“I spent two weeks in Alicante, Spain, this winter. The team training camp lasted one week, but with a group we chose to stay a little longer to train some more. It was nice to see my new team-mates regularly while preparing for the new season because racing with men you do not know well is always a bit weird. We started easy, but every day we trained longer and with more intensity. I did more hours of training than last year and I already feel that I have become stronger. I noticed it while doing sprints using my Pioneer power meter.

“It’s very special to make your debut in a WorldTour race like the Tour Down Under. Normally, Marc Goos would have gone, but he still has problems with his hip. That sucks for him.

“The trip to Australia went well flying in business class. Some extra legroom is very nice if you have to handle a 24-hour trip. I watched a lot of movies in the air and tried not to sleep too much because I wanted to get used to the time difference as soon as possible. That was hard because it’s not easy to resist the strong urge to sleep.

“I already took in the beautiful Australia countryside during our training rides. We rode some winding roads through forests and over hills. We saw many cyclists along the way and came across many animals like koalas, kangaroos and parrots.

“To prepare, I studied all of last year’s Tour Down Under stages. We have to tackle the same hills so I know it’s going to be a very difficult week. Besides that, the pace will be much higher than I’m used to and the race leader or favourite will control the race, which wasn’t the case racing at the level I raced at last year.

“I hope to do my work for the team as well as possible and I want to learn from my team-mates. I’m excited to get things rolling! I’ll talk to you everyone later. Thanks for your support!"

*Timo's sponsors received this diary last week in an exclusive newsletter.