"Something has to be done and we shouldn't make it a political process" - Richard Plugge demands more be done for rider safety after tragic death of Andre Drege

The cycling world was again rocked by the sudden death of one of its riders last week in Austria as Norwegian prospect Andre Drege, on the verge of a move to World Tour level, had his life tragically cut short following a crash on the penultimate stage of the Tour of Austria.

This has once again brought forward the topic of rider safety and the need to improve things. Arguably no one has been as outspoken in this regard, as Team Visma | Lease a Bike boss, Richard Plugge. Following another tragic occurrence, the Dutchman has once again come forward to demand more safety for those whose job it is to entertain us on their bikes.

"It's very sad," reacts the CEO of Team Visma | Lease a Bike in conversation with Het Nieuwsblad. "We don't want anyone from the cycling family to be left behind on the asphalt and die. Our condolences to his family and team. It shows again that something has to be done. Cycling is dangerous and will always be that way, but we now have to look at how we can fall safely."

"We need to make much more haste with that and we shouldn't make it a political process," continues Plugge, who previously attempted to spearhead the introduction of SafeR into the professional peloton. "There are countless ideas. Above all, we need a professional organization that intervenes in this. Not a political organization, which is what SafeR is threatening to become."

"You have to look at this as a business," Plugge concludes. "Because this is about lives and about the health of the riders. And then also about the image of the sport. There are more things to gain and achieve together if we look at this in a different way. But let us now focus on that boy, because that is the most important thing at the moment."