"I have to make the most of this opportunity" - Toms Skujiņš ready to impress again at the World Championships in Montreal

When Toms Skujiņš takes the start line of the World Championships road race in Montreal this weekend, he'll be able to draw confidence from a string of truly impressive results in the burgundy and white jersey of Latvia. Since 2023, he's collected an 8th, 4th, and 5th place at the World Championships, as well as a 5th place finish at the 2024 Paris Olympics. For those who play fantasy cycling, these numbers speak volumes: when he dons the national jersey, Skujiņš becomes a different person.

The 35-year-old also knows the Montreal circuit well, having finished 6th at the 2024 Montréal GP wearing the Lidl-Trek jersey, and hopes to repeat that feat on Sunday with another strong finish.

For much of his career, Skujiņš has devoted himself to the role of a strong and reliable domestique, serving his teammates' ambitions, but has occasionally been given the green light to ride as a protagonist. His best ever result remains second place at the 2024 Strade Bianche , behind only an untouchable Tadej Pogačar but ahead of everyone else.

"It was the first and only time I had the full support of the team. Without that, I definitely wouldn't have made it to the podium. That year, I had not one, but two punctures, then I crashed and had to change bikes. Without the guys who helped me, I would never have gotten back into the group to fight for the podium," Skujiņš recalled, speaking to Cyclingnews before the GP Quebec.

Racing for the national team at the World Championships or the Olympics allows him to plan his preparation for that single big day well in advance, a luxury he doesn't have with Lidl-Trek, where he isn't among the designated leaders.

"So many things in sport aren't just physical preparation, but also mental. For these races, I know in advance that I'll be the leader. With Lidl-Trek, it's rare to know more than a week in advance whether I'll have a chance in a particular race," he explained.

"And even if I get a confirmation in the last week, you can't change the training. A few years ago [in 2023], I was at home with my daughter, still very young, alone with her. I'd take her to daycare, change in the parking lot, go to training, change in the parking lot, pick her up, we'd go home, make dinner for both of us, and only shower after she'd fallen asleep. It was the week before San Sebastián.

"A few days before the race, the team told me: 'You can be the leader.' And I thought, 'This isn't the preparation I would have done if I'd known beforehand!' And yet I finished sixth, my best result ever in San Sebastian. So, of course, when I get support, most of the time the results come too."

"I'm not someone who expects the team to run for me."

Skujiņš's character also plays a role: he's not the type to impose himself as a leader before a race, and he's made it clear that he often prefers to ride for a teammate—which, paradoxically, also increases his own chances.

"I'm not someone who's going to expect the team to run for me. And it's often to my advantage that people look to my teammates as leaders, because that way I can seize the opportunity," he said.

"Realistically, I'll never be able to match Tadej. To beat him, I need something special to happen. I need an extraordinary situation. And I don't like racing for a sixth place or a top 10; that's not what I race for. I want to race for the win, and I'd rather do it with a teammate who can actually win than hoping to finish in the top 10 myself."

In the Canadian WorldTour races, Skujiņš fulfilled exactly this role, still finishing with a respectable result. At the GP de Québec, he finished 20th in a very selective race after supporting Lidl-Trek teammates Quinn Simmons and Giulio Ciccone, who finished 2nd and 5th, respectively. At the GP de Montréal, Ciccone and Simmons finished 4th and 7th, while Skujiņš crossed the line in 29th.

For the World Championships road race, however, Skujiņš will be the undisputed leader of the Latvian team, and he wants to be in the final part of the race to fight for the rainbow jersey once again.

"I'm very good at reading the race, it's definitely my strength. The harder the race, the better it is for me. And races that turn into a man-on-man duel are the ones that suit me best," he said.

Latvia is a small nation with only three riders in the current men's professional peloton: Skujiņš himself, Emīls Liepiņš (Pinarello Q36.5), and Krists Neilands (NSN). However, only Skujiņš and Liepiņš will be at the start in Montreal.

"Krists would have been a great addition, but unfortunately he's injured, so I think his season is over. It's a tough blow for us, especially for such a small team, but we'll keep fighting," Skujiņš said.

The four-rider team will be completed by two athletes from the Continental circuit: national road champion Mārtiņš Pluto (Energus) and national time trial champion Kristiāns Belohvoščiks (Bike Aid), son of former professional Raivis Belohvoščiks.

"It's a bit of a tactical choice to bring four riders. It helps us have our own car, because the situation at the World Championships is unique. I remember my early years, when we often shared a car with the Slovakians during Sagan's world titles. It was really fantastic. But if you have control of the car, you can organize yourself much better. With four riders, we'll still have another nation with us, but they'll be with us, not us with another nation," Skujiņš explained.

Opportunities to seize in Montreal

The Montreal circuit, with the 1.8km, 8% climb of the Voie Camillien-Houde through the Parc du Mont-Royal, plus the shorter climbs of Chemin de Polytechnique and Avenue Pagnuelo and the final climb to the finish on the Avenue du Parc, is a course that is virtually never flat, which suits both Skujiņš himself and a smaller team.

"In Montreal, you can wait. You don't have to invest too much from a team perspective unless you have the big favorite and are controlling the race. You don't have to commit too many men because in the end, it's the legs that decide," he said.

Given his preference for racing for victory, the next question was a must: could he repeat the feat of Romāns Vainšteins, who won the rainbow jersey in Plouay in 2000, and actually win the World Championships?

"I think if Tadej had been there, it would have been better for me, honestly. But a lot of things have to go right for me to win the World Cup," he said.

"You say I'm an outsider. But honestly, if you ask around the cycling world, they won't consider me an outsider. I think only a few people have noticed my consistency in these races and think I have a realistic chance. For me, it's good to be a bit of a surprise coming from a small nation, because I need the big nations to fight among themselves to take advantage of the opportunity. I can't wait; these will probably be my last World Championships as a protagonist, so I have to make the most of this opportunity."

And even if more people were to consider him a real threat, his approach to the race wouldn't change much.

"In the end, it's still going to be a very tough race. Even without Tadej, there are many strong nations, and I'm sure everyone will be talking about how Belgium will ride, watching them closely. I like to fly under the radar, and luckily, many cyclists still think more about themselves than anything else. That's how it works for me."

Skujiņš will enter the World Championships in Montreal as an outsider. But if things turn out in his favor and he manages to find the right opportunity, anticipating the moves of the big favorites—as Magdeleine Vallières did in the women's elite road race in Kigali last year—another strong result, perhaps an improvement on his 4th place finish in 2024, is entirely possible and would not be a surprise at all. For those betting on him in fantasy cycling, this World Championships could prove to be a winning bet.