The affable American might be in trouble if he gets selected for the 2026 Giro d’Italia.
(Photo: Getty Images )
Updated November 23, 2025 04:39AM
Matteo Jorgenson won the world over this summer playing the “loveable nerd” sidekick to Victor Campenaerts in their “on the team bus” Instagram vlogs.
Well, just a few months later, the affable American has gone and offended a whole nation.
Italian readers, you’d better click away now.
We’re about to discover what the 26-year-old enjoys as a post-ride meal.
“I’m having gnocchi, and going to put eggs on top. And I’m going to put kimchi in it,” Jorgenson says in a “Day in the Life” video released by team Visma-Lease a Bike.
“I think in Italy I could be arrested,” he acknowledges.
And as if Jorgenson’s bowl of fermented cabbage, potato dumplings, and sunny-side eggs isn’t enough to provoke outrage, he slathers it in Sriracha.
Call it “Korean-Italian fusion,” call it what you like – it significantly ups the stakes from some of cycling’s recent culinary misdemeanors.
Mathieu van der Poel’s fondness for ketchup on spaghetti or pineapple on pizza pales in comparison.
Not even the final shavings of cheese – presumably Parmesan – on Jorgenson’s recovery snack will save him from the ire of a nation steeped in culinary tradition.
Worst of all? The ever-cool Idahoan doesn’t even care.
“Edo’s going to be so pissed,” Jorgenson says, referring to his extremely Italian teammate Edoardo Affini.
“This is ridiculous. I’m sorry to all the Italians, but this is what I’m eating,” he says, resolute.
The man’s a monster.
Culinary sacrilege but nutritionally sound
Oh Matteo, what have you done? (Image: Visma-Lease a Bike YouTube)
The Italians will be pissed, but Jorgenson’s nutritionist will be stoked.
Two fried eggs, 100 grams of gnocchi, some kimchi, and a sprinkle of cheese provides 300+ grams of carbs, 20+ grams of protein, a microbiome-pleasing portion of ferments, and some electrolyte-balancing sodium, too.
Suitably satiated after his lunch, Jorgenson saunters off into downtown Nice for an afternoon French language class.
He’ll no doubt swing by some hipster cafe for a post-11am cappuccino along the way.