The first ever Estonian to be part of the team, Frank is a new member of Team dsm-firmenich’s Development program for 2023 as he makes the step up from juniors. Sociable and outgoing, Frank won’t be making that jump on his own as him and fellow rider Vlad [Van Mechelen] are “best friends” and have known each other since they were around 14 years old.
Seemingly destined for a career in sports, Frank’s family were and still are incredibly active with his dad a former skier through the U23 ranks, while his mum was a track athlete. Unable to continue with skiing due to a lack of funding, Frank’s dad took up cycling as a hobby sport and after young Frank was born and grew up, he took him wherever he went. Initially Frank just wanted to play football, “like almost every other kid”, but he soon was hooked and “everything clicked” one-day for him after he got a new bike.
Describing himself as determined, hard-working and focused, Frank’s go-getter of an attitude comes across when speaking to him, and he’s someone who won’t rest until he’s done a task to the best of his abilities…
“When I have school and I can’t get the question or problem right, then I almost can’t go to sleep until I’ve worked it out.”
Yet, away from the bike he can distinguish his life as a cyclist as Frank the teenager; something that he really appreciates as it allows him to switch off and reset when hanging around with friends and family.
A reflective person, looking back on his career as a junior, he says his 2021 was “quite poor”, but his 2022 was a solid “7/10”. His ride at the Worlds in Australia was probably his best day on the bike so far; as he rode the race tactically and smart and managed to get the best out of himself. Looking ahead to his time with the Development program, Frank is excited to be part of a professional environment, although the kid in him is “looking forward to all of the cool equipment.”
When he’s not fan-boying over our top-quality equipment you can find Frank listening to some older music on vinyl records as he looks to grow or his collection. You can also find him with his nose buried in a book or trawling through the internet, reading up on history or watching a variety of documentaries – with his favourite period to study either of the World Wars.
