"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."

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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."

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