Sven Nys' team Baloise - Trek Lions mourns loss of bikes in a theft: "Everyone in the team was affected and feels responsible"

The riders and staff of Baloise - Trek Lions are still a bit shook after having lost the most important piece of equipment - their bikes - in a theft . The team of course could no longer start the final stage in the Baloise Belgium Tour this afternoon.

"At 7 o'clock this morning I received a phone call with the bad news. I immediately jumped into my car and drove to Brussels. Police were on site, we made a statement. We lost about 14 bikes, because all riders had two bikes available here. It is a large amount, but I cannot put an exact figure on it yet," explains team manager Sven Nys.

"Everyone in the team was affected and feels responsible, even if you can't help it. Teams are aware of the danger and are doing everything they can to prevent thefts. It is very frustrating that this happens again."

"Teams are aware of the danger and do everything they can to prevent this. People sleep in the truck these days, but I won't go into detail about that. The man who normally does that for us had to go home earlier this time because he was sick," Nys conlcudes.