"We are not the best 8 riders for this job, but we threw ourselves every day" - Thomas De Gendt praises Lotto Dstny's Vuelta performance

Achieving their target on just stage 2 as Andreas Kron took victory, The Lotto Dstny team bus has been a relaxed and enjoyable place for most of the 2023 Vuelta a Espana.

"The atmosphere was very good in this Grand Tour," the team's most experienced rider, Thomas De Gendt confirms to Sporza. "We still laugh a lot. If you suffer, the stages are sometimes less fun, but this group was fun. We are not the best 8 riders for this job , but we threw ourselves every day. We certainly can't complain."

After the tragic death of their junior rider, Tijl De Decker, the Lotto Dstny came into the race with an extra fire in their belly and the stage 2 success of Kron saw an outpouring of emotion. "We started off on a tear, but we won straight away," Lotto - Dstny sports director Marc Wauters reflects. "This relieved a lot of stress and after that we continued to race with motivation. We rode a lot of attacks and we often finished in the top 10. We can say that we rode a good Vuelta."

"A few days ago we had a transfer by bus for 3 hours. The riders were not silent for a minute," he concludes. "They laughed and those hours flew by. In the past, it could be quiet for an hour."