“What everyone was expecting was officially confirmed this Tuesday: Soudal-QuickStep and Remco Evenepoel will aim for the Tour de France in 2024, with the Belgian team continuing its evolution to support Evenepoel’s ambitions in the Grand Tour.
Patrick Lefevere, CEO of Soudal-QuickStep, celebrated the 55 victories in 2023 and expressed optimism about more triumphs in 2024 during the team presentation event at the Hotel Suitopía Sol y Mar Suites in Calpe.”
“Winning is the best doping.”
“This might not be the best way to put it, but winning is the best doping. It’s good for the mind and everything else,” said Lefevere.
“I hope we win early on and throughout the 2024 season. Last year, we won the entire season, but we also had some disappointments, like in the Giro d’Italia, which we could have won.”
“You have to reinvent yourself every few years, or else other teams will surpass you. We invest in cyclists and staff. We have young, new ideas, young strategies. There was a need to renew things.”
The merger with Jumbo-Visma destabilized the team.
“It was painful for a period,” admitted Lefevere. “This team has existed for over 20 years. We didn’t want to disappear, but everything happened above us.
“You’re stupid if you make the same mistakes. If you’re smart, you turn the page. We won’t forget what happened, but today is a new day. Today is the first day of the rest of my life. I want to look forward and win again with these guys.”
Remco Evenepoel will be an outsider in the Tour de France.
“If everything goes well, I am convinced that Remco can step onto the podium,” said Lefevere. “Knowing his character, he won’t be happy with just a podium; he will want to win the Tour de France time trial and some stages.
“He has nothing to prove. It’s better to be an outsider than a favorite, so let’s be the outsider. It’s always good when the outsider wins.”
