When
Lander Loockx joined Bas Tietema's ambitious ProTeam project at the end of last year, it seemed like a strange gamble on a less known cyclocrosser without many results to speak of both; in the field and on the road. Little did we know
TDT-Unibet's scout is not far from genius, spotting the untapped climbing potential in the currently 27-year-old Belgian.
Before joining TDT, Loockx has never really taken road seriously, racing only handful of smaller races in summer with the Belgian cyclocross-focused formations. Though there were glimpses, such as his 8th place overall at the Oberösterreich Rundfahrt (2.2) last year.
However it was his progress this season what left many (myself included) staring with their mouths wide open as the previously basically unknown Loockx quickly established himself as a top-tier GC rider for any climby stage races up to the 2.Pro level. Adding stunning consistency to the mix, Loockx was 6th at Tour of Turkiye (2.Pro), 14th at Tour of Hongrie (2.Pro) - his worst result, 5th at Oberösterreich Rundfahrt (2.2), 7th at Sibiu Tour (2.1) and most recently 8th at Arctic Race of Norway (2.Pro).
"In 2023, Bas received a message from a cyclo-cross rider who wanted to discover his potential on the road. We thought it was a great idea, because we also wanted to be active in cyclo-cross," the team reflects in a message on socials on the origins of the collaboration.
"So we embarked on the adventure together. We already knew that he was strong in cyclo-cross. He proved that again at the end of last year, but now for the first time in our colours."
"It was impressive to see him quickly become a regular rider at the top of the general classification in multi-day races," TDT-Unibet continued. "It speaks volumes about the enormous potential he has. That's why we're very happy that we can continue to explore that potential together over the next three years until the end of 2027!"
Needless to say, we are also very curious to see what's next in store for the talented Belgian. Hopefully we get to see TDT at an even better schedule in 2025 as their brand rapidly grows in popularity.
