Maciej Paterski (CCC Sprandi) is coming off arguably his best season in his professional career. He made his dream come true by winning a stage of the UCI World Tour race Volta a Catalunya but he is still eager for more and will try to make the 2016 season even more successful. 

"I had time to go on vacation but I preferred to stay at home," he told his team website. "I had so many racing days last year I traveled so much that I didn’t feel like going anywhere. I spent the off-season on recovering. 2015 was extremely hard and the final, autumn races took their toll on me. I came back to work in the beginning of November. I spent a lot of time in the gym, but the bike was also a part of my exercise."

In December he flew to Gran Canaria.

"When I was riding for Liquigas, I would usually spent December in Italy," he said. "Last year, Bartek Matysiak and decided to go to Gran Canaria and we really liked it. It offers great terrain and roads to ride the bike, perfect weather and also things to do, when you’re off the bike and you just want to get some rest. This time it was three of us since Grzegorz Stępniak joined us."

Paterski kicked off the year with a team training camp in Calpe.

"Last season cost me a lot of energy and it took me a long time to fully recover and get back the freshness. In Gran Canaria and then in Calpe I found my rhythm back and now everything is back to normal. I feel good and can’t wait for first races," he said.

"I will start the season in Spain, with Volta a la Comunitat Valenciana, Vuelta Ciclista a la Region de Murcia, Clasica de Almeria and Ruta del Sol. My plan is to be aggressive, get in the breakaways and switch my body to racing mode. Last year I was 6th in Murcia, and since the finale suits me, I hope to do well also this time. Ruta del Sol might be too hard for me, but I will still try to leave my mark there.

"Then I will take part in Strade Bianche, Tirreno-Adriatico and Milan-Sanremo. I’ll be aiming mostly at those two one-day races, since the course of both of them suit me well. This year I won’t be at the Volta a Catalunya, where I won the stage a year ago. That would be too much racing for such a short period.

"The off-season is almost 4 months long, the training rides are often tedious and after some time it gets a little bit boring. Racing is much more exciting and I think I’m prepared well enough to take on another season. There is nothing I should be afraid of.

"This year we are not going to Giro d’Italia, so I will focus on big one-day races. We have already Strade Bianche and Milan-Sanremo confirmed and the team has also applied for invitations to some other prestigious spring one-day races. If we get the opportunity to participate, I will do everything I can to take that opportunity and deliver good performance.

"In the last Amstel Gold Race I finished 9th and that result has given me a big moral boost. It gave me more joy than many of my victories. A few years ago I couldn’t imagine myself starting the final climb with the strongest riders, attacking in the finale and taking a top 10 spot. Now I know I’m capable of doing that."

Paterski will make one key change in 2016.

"Last season I lacked those 7-10 days in the middle of the season to take a break from my bike, rest and recover for the second part. There were so many important races which were hard to skip. I know from the time I spent at Liquigas, that a one-week break has good impact on my form. Hanging bike on a rack helped me build a second peak in the season, and usually it was even better than the first one. I would like to return to those methods."

Paterski also has his eyes on the Olympics.

"To take part in the Olympic Games is something that every athlete dreams about, including me," he said. "To deserve that spot you have to prove yourself at the Polish Championships and the Tour de Pologne. Those races will be the indicators of your form and will show the favorites for the Olympic nomination.  We all know the names of two riders who can be pretty certain to make the team (Majka and Kwiatkowski, ed.) but the race for the remaining spots will be very tight. I didn’t do the recon of the course in Brazil, but I am aware of its toughness. It’s very hard but if I’m in my top shape, I think I can be a very valuable part of the squad and also do some damage in a breakaway."