A whole decade has passed since the mud-encrusted face of John Degenkolb outsprinted Zdenek Stybar and Greg van Avermaet in Roubaix velodrome to claim the biggest victory of his career.
But, even if the 36-year-old is now more frequently seen in a team captain's role in races, and for all the seasons roll by, when it comes to the cobbled Classics of Belgium and France, Degenkolb remains a real reference point.
Indeed, Degenkolb's performances have been strong enough and reliable enough for his contract with Picnic-PostNL to be extended for a further two seasons over the winter. As he said during the recent Volta ao Algarve, his main role during this time will be to continue to act as the "connecting point between the team car and the guys on the road, that's what I really enjoy a lot."
"Also", he adds, "my passion for the Classics is still there and I'm really aiming to be good in them, so let's see how far we can get there, too. My big dream is to be up there in the final for Paris-Roubaix."
First, though, there's Omloop Het Nieuwsblad, where Degenkolb will be participating for the sixth time in his career. While some argue that it's next to impossible to perform well from Omloop all the way to Roubaix, Degenkolb thinks the current trend in training for Classics stars means that particular unwritten law is no longer valid.
"That's changed since a few years ago now," he tells Cyclingnews, arguing that it's possible to combine Roubaix and Omloop because "the really good riders just turn up at one specific race, they're in absolute top shape for that but then they go back to training again and turn up at the next race."
"Maybe they simulate races better [in training] than they used to in the past, but for me it was never possible to peak at the beginning and the end of the Classics. Guys like Mathieu [van der Poel] and Wout [van Aert], though – they are capable of doing that."
Everybody has to start somewhere, be they Van Aert or a first-year pro and Omloop is where the action will begin for a large proportion of one day racers. But as Degenkolb says, Omloop is more of a race to get an initial idea of the condition, rather than the be-all-and-end-all of anybody's season.
"It's always a nice first test to see how you are, just as the Classics season is really starting," he argues. "In my case, after that I'll go to Paris-Nice, to practice our leadouts and sprints, working in the crosswinds and building up for the high part of the Classics season."
Degenkolb argues that anything that happens before Omloop Algarve, "doesn't tell you so much about the Classics, but you can gain a lot of confidence and you can build up in a good way,"
Even in Portugal, as you might expect of a team captain, Degenkolb was already working out how his squad would play their cards in Opening Weekend.
"Omloop is not our main objective, our main goal will be Kuurne to sprint with Pavel [Bittner]" – Degenkolb explains about the up-and-coming 2024 Vuelta a España stage winner.
"We had a big downer with losing Nils [Eekhoff, who fractured his jaw in a crash – Ed.] in Saudi, he's back training now but I don't think he will be back for Opening Weekend.
"So we'll have to make sure to just show ourselves in Omloop, maybe put somebody in the break, be in the race and hang on as long as possible towards the final."
Although he's already done the AIUIa Tour, the Figueira Champions Classic and is talking to Cyclingnews in Algarve – "my third race already", as he says – for Degenkolb in some ways the 2025 season started back over the winter when he signed his contract extension.
"I'm really happy about that," he confirms. "It's not getting easier when you get older, but it's a big sign of trust from the team and it gives me the confidence to guide the team in the best way possible. And hopefully, I can get one or two results for myself, too."
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