"In the cemetery or in a retirement home" - Patrick Lefevere on where he sees himself in ten years

Long-term boss of the Soudal - Quick-Step team, Patrick Lefevere is keen to wind down his professional career in the coming years. Now aged 68 years old, he is slowly but surely delegating his duties.

"I need to sleep more and think about my health more. I take care of myself as best I can, but I fear that I will be presented with the bill for my debauched life. Where do I see myself in ten years? Unfortunately, there are only two options: in the cemetery or in a retirement home," Lefevere says in conversation with De Tijd following the announcement of Jurgen Foré arriving as COO. "I don't think I will be able to live alone by then. My wife is eleven years younger. I don't want to burden her or the children with the care. Of course I will still watch the race, but postponed, so that I can analyse all our mistakes."

Following the Vuelta a Espana earlier this year, Soudal - Quick-Step were part of what would have been one of the biggest stories in cycling history, a merger with Jumbo-Visma. Although that ultimately didn't transpire, Lefevere doesn't rule out the possibility of such a deal being struck in future.

"My obsession is finding the future of the team without me. I would think it would be a shame if it suddenly stopped without me," he explains. "I have already experienced a few mergers. One recently collapsed because the shareholders wanted to move too quickly, although I don't rule out the possibility that it will still happen."

Given the immense longevity of his career in cycling, Lefevere has also seen plenty of changes during the years although not all of these have been positive. One such example of change he doesn't particularly enjoy, is the attitudes of modern riders.

"As CEO I am further away from my riders than I would like. My office is on the first floor, many of them don't even dare to come upstairs," he explains. "It's a shame. Even worse is when they don't want to talk to you 'because their managers don't let them'. I think that's terrible," Lefevere laments.