"It would not have been good for the sport" - Tim Declerq shares relief at collapse of Visma-Soudal merger

Although Tim Declerq will depart Soudal - Quick-Step for Lidl-Trek ahead of the 2024 season, the 34-year-old Belgian powerhouse has shared his relief at having seen the proposed merger between his old team and Jumbo-Visma collapse.

"Riders would find accommodation. But the staff? What would happen to them? That really kept me busy. Someone has to pay the toll if a team is lost," Declerq says in conversation with Het Nieuwsblad. "Moreover, it would not have been good for the sport if two of the best teams had to go together. I'm glad the merger didn't happen."

As mentioned however, merger or no merger, Declerq's time at Patrick Lefevere's team has come to an end. "'In recent years I rode for a Belgian team that had a lot of foreign input. Now I cycle for a foreign team that has many Belgian touches," he explains of his move to Lidl-Trek. "It provides me with extra motivation. I have to prove myself again. But there are also many similarities, such as the medical screening, which has of course been more important to me since last year," he adds referring to his past heart issues.

So what differences are there between Soudal - Quick-Step and what he's seen of Lidl-Trek so far? "It's all a bit more American," Declercq says. "They have been very direct from the start at Lidl-Trek. This way I already know where I will fulfill which role. Sometimes you will see me at the head of the peloton again, sometimes I will ride more in the background. But whatever my role, I will do what the team asks of me. Keep leaders out of the wind, support them."