Derek Gee on his goals for Tirreno – Adriatico
The Canadian took his first pro stage race at O Gran Camiño but has plenty of bigger goals for 2025
On March 2, Israel–Premier Tech’s Derek Gee took his first stage race win as a pro, O Gran Camiño.
The Osgoode, Ont., rider took over the lead from Dane Magnus Cort (Uno-X) after a stellar time trial. He then followed up the remainder of the Spanish race with some strong performances in the mountains.
His result adds to his impressive palmarès that has continued to improve these past few years, including a ninth at the Tour and a podium at the Critérium du Dauphiné in 2024.
He won his first pro stage win at the Dauphiné and took over the lead. However, that yellow jersey was a little different than .
Confidence booster after Spain
“I can’t really compare the two races as the next stage in the Dauphiné was a TT, so I ended up doing no road stages at all in the yellow jersey,” he said. “But the pressure was a little bit similar.”
Derek Gee sixth fastest in Tirreno-Adriatico’s short opening chrono
Although he would relinquish the jersey to Remco Evenepoel, Gee still finished on the podium. But in Spain, he defended the jersey until the final stage.
As for that stage, he had no goal of winning it—Cort would take another win. The final stage had several tough gravel climbs at the finish, for which he made sure to stick right at the front of the field.
“It was all about just the jersey defence. I think the biggest thing was just trying to get through the gravel without any mishaps, and yeah, the team did a great job keeping me in position and keeping me out of trouble,” he said. “The gravel ended up not being, I think, as bad as we thought it might be.”
Tirreno–Adriatico
Gee is racing Tirreno–Adriatico next, from March 10 to 16.
“It’s obviously a higher-level race, a WorldTour race, so my goal is to see where the legs stack up and how the GC prep has gone over the winter, just to measure up against a higher level of competition and see how the legs are, just as another step towards the Giro.”
Although the Spanish win was a good stepping stone for him, his strategy remains the same for the Race of the Two Seas.
“I think maybe I have a little more confidence in the legs and in the TT setup and the work we did on that over the winter, but yeah, I think regardless of the result in Gran Camiño, the processes would all be the same,” he said.
His big goal for 2025 is the Giro d’Italia. Two years ago, it was a breakout race for him where he was the hero of the event, although since then, he’s gone from an underdog to a favourite.
“Obviously, there’s still a lot of work to do between now and the Giro, but hopefully, it’s another good confidence booster,” he said. “Just getting a little more work with the guys who are going to be at the Giro and working together as a cohesive unit.”