Fabio Jacobsen, a third-year Deceuninck-QuickStep pro, enjoyed a strong start to the season with three sprint wins before the closure of COVID-19 postponed the race from mid-March onward.

The 23-year-old is currently preparing for his return to racing in August in the Dolomites with his teammates and has already participated in a practice race, GP Vermarc Sport, earlier this month.

Dutch champion Jacobsen took stage wins at Volta a la Comunitat Valenciana and Volta ao Algarve, earning him three podiums and the Portuguese points jersey.

He finished fourth behind winning teammate Kasper Asgreen in the Coulee Brussel-Coulomb, and won the Monserre GP.

"I am happy to say that I have already won two races. I'm happy with how I drove and it's encouraging to win. I want to show something in the first two upcoming races, Heist Paille (August 1) and the Tour de Pollogne (August 5-9).

"It's been a while, but I'm still the same guy I was in March, so all is not lost. It's been four months since then and I have the same goals for the postponed race."

Jacobsen will compete in the Giro d'Italia with Remco Evenpole in October, the second Grand Tour of his career. With seven sprint stages on the demanding mountainous route, it is no surprise that training in the Dolomites is ideal preparation for the race.

"It's definitely good for physical conditioning," Jacobsen said. 'It's a group with sprinters, lead-outs, and classic riders. Sometimes we simulate sprints, sometimes we do special sprint training or strength training in the gym.

"We also did motor pace on the flat roads in the valley, but at the end of the day we have to get back to the hotel. Of course, there have been a lot of uphill climbs in the last few weeks, some of them really tough for me.

Team trainer Cohen Pilgrim added that the team's sprinters should respond well to the mountain training camp and that sprint-focused training will come later.

"But it's also good for the sprinters to run uphill. They will benefit from this over the next few months," Pilgrim said.

"When they return home after the training camp, they will undergo a more sprint-specific training program in the last few days before the race. And of course, two and a half weeks of recovery in Val di Fassa will be essential."

Sam Bennett, the team's lead sprinter, will make his return to racing at the Vuelta a Burgos later this month and then compete in his first Tour de France since 2016.