Tim Declercq signs with Lidl - Trek - "I hope to be of value to Mads Pedersen in the classics and the Grand Tours"
Cycling
Tim Declercq had been mentioned to be joining Lidl - Trek for months, and it has now been confirmed. The 'tractor' has been one of Soudal - Quick-Step's most valuable assets since 2017, but he now moves onto a different challenge.
“I think Lidl-Trek is a growing team with great values. They ride attractively and are stepping up their game every year. I’m super excited to join them," Declercq said in a press release. "It also looks like they are keen to start working more and more with a science-based approach and are open for innovation. With my background in physical education studies, I really look forward to working in that environment."
For several years Declercq had been a reliable domestique for the Belgian team for many years, both when it came to the cobbled classics and also working towards the team's sprinting ambitions. often enough, Declercq was the rider who spent long hours in the front of the peloton in the flat races where Quick-Step had contenders. “Of course it will be very strange to leave Quick Step after all those years. Some people of the staff and riders really became friends after all this time, and I’ve got some great moments together," he says of the separation.
"On the other hand, the last few years the team has also not been the same anymore and I really look forward to a new challenge. I know most of the Belgians quite well, and I think we will have a lot of fun during training camps. I also look forward to working for every rider the team wants me to, but for sure I hope to be of value to Mads Pedersen in the classics and the Grand Tours.”
In the American team he is expected to have the same role, however with a new set of leaders such as Mads Pedersen and Jonathan Milan. “We are thrilled to welcome Tim Declercq to our team. His remarkable dedication and exceptional skills make him the prototypical domestique," team manager Luca Guarcilena said.
"Tim has made a name for himself not because of his own results, but for his selfless spirit and willingness to give his all to the collective goal. For this reason, I believe Tim will be a valuable addition to our roster. We look forward to achieving great success as we take this new step together.”
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- He is boring
leedorney08-11-2026 - To Twoje przemyślenia te bla, bla :)
Dariusz08-11-2026 - Uwielbiam patrzeć, jak wyjeżdża na czoło peletonu i zaczyna się rzeź...Dariusz08-11-2026
- Yeah, unreal.
parisbound0008-11-2026 - there needs to be space in life for pointless comments!Ketterechts08-11-2026
- That is a very lazy way of putting it but so far on this website it seems like everyone is happy to look at everything lazily, even things that annoy them intensely. All they want to do is state their feeling and position but ask most to analyse a problem or come up with solutions or improvements and you’re stunned by silence. Nobody even really knows how this all happens. It’s very simple and quick to just say the UCI did it but I bet you they didn’t, I bet you not more than 2 people were involved, more likely just 1. The UCI may be ultimately responsible but it is not their decision, this is about hierarchy, power and delegation. The fact that protest is possible also means it isn’t over and that MORE people could get involved for a thorough review which could throw up anything. It is highly likely it was a sole commissar who decided and has that power in a first round. Therein might lie the problem the UCI has to consider, is it acceptable to give so much authority to one single person when it is quite possible for them to have a natural bias or be too easily susceptible to imposed bias. Who is to say an individual in this position isn’t susceptible to collaboration with outside players with interests in the results, nations, families, teams, betting companies, etc. On the one hand we have sports where these problems have been worked on way more to reduce such problems, on the other hand we have sports with far stricter and more draconian rules not even concerning safety or obstruction that nobody really questions like false starts or stepping out of lane or zones in athletics. If cycling hastowork on itself, it would be good if protagonists (all kinds) would start doing a little more than just moaning over outcomes.Jumpyjohn08-11-2026
- Yes, so why not make comments less pointless?Jumpyjohn08-11-2026
- What a race! I didn't expect Vanthourenhout to collapse like that, and Wyseure did take the fight to Nys, but there was no doubt at the end. I also wonder what Aubin Sparfel would be capable of were he to race in the elites now. In the U23 ranks he is making good work of Giel Lejeune, who himself is among the better riders in the elites, and a top 10 contender in the big races (3rd at Kleebergcross, 8th at Berencross and 5th at Heerderstrand). In the French Cup, Sparfel is significantly better than Romain Debord (8th at Koppenbergcross and 10th at the Euros) and Rémi Lelandais (12th at Koppenbergcross and 19th at the Euros).
Rafionain-Glas08-11-2026 - There really was nothing in it. Schreiber was so much faster, and Brand was fighting to stay in the wheel in the sprint. Schreiber did move a bit, but to say she closed the door doesn't make sense because Brand couldn't enter it anyway, abd she wasn't impeded.Rafionain-Glas08-11-2026
- He should have been allowed to go to Movistar. Right now both arent a good fit for each other and are just wasting each other's time and effortabstractengineer08-11-2026
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A rider that needs little introduction, because you've seen him lead the peloton for countless kilometers! 🚜 Welcome to the Team, @Tim_Declercq 2️⃣0️⃣2️⃣5️⃣ 📰 racing.trekbikes.com/stories/lidl-t…
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