"He can’t go there just to be there": Lidl-Trek weighs up a potential Giro d'Italia return for former winner Tao Geoghegan Hart

The 2025 campaign was meant to mark Tao Geoghegan Hart's rebirth, but instead became another frustrating year with small glimpses of the type of rider he was back in the day and too many disappointing performances, besides of long periods away from competition.

Lidl-Trek had invested heavily in the British rider when they signed him two years ago, but everything still seems to trace back to May 2023, when a heavy crash on the Giro d’Italia stage left him with serious fractures. Lidl-Trek head coach Josu Larrazabal gave an interview recently to talk about Geoghegan's current situation.

“Last year, once again, Tao was overwhelmed by a wave of bad luck. But it was also a good investment, and it would be nice to finally reach the point. With 2026 we enter the last chapter of his project: he had a three-year contract. The first two years went badly for various reasons, but I’m optimistic. We finally managed to have a good winter. We’re keeping our fingers crossed, but so far it’s been ideal. He feels it too, he’s happy. He’s had a period without setbacks,” Larrazabal said to bici.pro.

In 2025, Geoghegan Hart was scheduled to ride the Tour de France and had worked extensively towards that goal, only to suffer another setback after the Tour de Suisse. When such a pattern repeats itself, physical and mental consequences inevitably follow.

“No matter how strong you are, no matter what you’ve won in the past, when you go through such a long period where nothing goes right, it becomes hard, very hard,” Larrazabal explained. “One time it’s a crash, another time a rib, then an illness at the wrong moment, the chain dropping when the others attack… No, this time we’re taking it one step at a time. And for now, the only certainty is that the winter went well.”

Lidl-Trek, however, are not standing still, and they are changing the approach for the upcoming season. “We’ll change a bit,” Larrazabal continued. "We won’t do the initial altitude camp at Teide like before, partly to try new paths and give him different stimuli. But above all because we decided to work on the medium term. That means not having a rigid programme and being able to adapt."

Larrazabal also revealed some of the races in Geoghegan's schedule. "After the upcoming January training camp, we’ve decided to give him continuity and have him race straight away at the Volta a la Comunitat Valenciana. The goal is to start well in February, put him in the right position, and then decide whether to do Tirreno-Adriatico or the Volta a Catalunya."

That inevitably raises the question of a long-term objective. Could a return to the Giro d’Italia be on the table for the British rider? Remember he won it back in 2020.

“This year we are talking about the Giro with Tao,” Larrazabal said. “But be careful: a rider like him, to line up at a race like the Giro, needs to be in certain conditions. He can’t go there just to be there. It’s a race he has won. To return, he first needs to rediscover himself, his confidence, and the stability that has been missing in recent years.”

Lidl-Trek is currently undergoing a period of significant evolution, with new leaders arriving such as Juan Ayuso. Giulio Ciccone recently said he would be ready to support Ayuso at the Tour de France. Would Geoghegan accept going to the Tour as a domestique for the Spaniard?

“Tao at the Tour supporting Ayuso? It doesn’t make sense to talk about that now,” Larrazabal said. “Let’s remember where we’re coming from. It’s a conversation I’ve also had with him. We don’t even know if we’ll do the Giro, because first we have to take several steps. The priority is health, then continuity. I’ll give an example: last year Tao got a very good result at the Tour of Slovenia. Everything seemed fine, but a few days later we weren’t able to repeat those performances at the Tour de Suisse. That’s why I say we need continuity, health, data and confidence,” he concluded.