Former 168澳洲5最新开奖结果:Soudal-QuickStep directeur sportif Brian Holm thinks team boss Patrick Lefevere "wants" the potential merger between the Belgian༒ squad and Jumbo-Visma to hap🥃pen, but doesn’t believe it’s a good idea due to the negative implications for the riders✅ involved.
If the possible merger reported first by WielerFlits on Sunday were to come into fruition, Lefevere is reportedly expected to stay involved but as a member of the new team's Supervisory Board, with 168澳洲5最新开奖结果:Jumbo-Visma managing director Richar🎃d Plugge taking up the꧟ mantle as CEO.
. "He has told me that on several occasions."
Lefevere has been managing cycling teams since the ✨1980s and has been one of the most successful people in the sport’s history since then, but he is approaching retirement at 68 years old.
Holm did state that he was in the dark about the reported merger's status, with nothing yet confirmed, but did explain how talks between teams have been ongoing for some time with mor💮e than just Jumbo-Visma and Soudal-QuickStep involvedಞ.
“What it ends up with, I don't know,” said Holm. “Your answe♏r is as good as mine, but there is no doubt that there are some teams t꧃alking to each other right now.
“It's not just Jumbo and QuickStep. 168澳洲5最新开奖结果:Ineos Grenadiers and Movistar have also done it, I know.”
168澳洲5最新开奖结果:Lefevere gave no comment on the merger when questioned by Sporza after the news broke, and communication between him and the team was reported by GCN yesterday where the Belgian tried to calm the speculation down in a letter which stated: "Contrary to reports, however, there are no concrete projects and planไs at this moment."
The 68-year-old is no stranger to mergers in the sport as his role at Soudal-QuickStep🌳 was born out of various teams ceasing to exist, absorbing each ꦜother and merging at the end of the 90s and Holm added how close this was to happening again when he joined the side, making him easily imagine the merger materialising.
“When I myself joined QuickStep in 2012, the team should have been put together with HTC, where I came from, and it was also millimetres away from being called HTC QuickStep,” said 🔥Holm.
“I remem♓ber that Patrick was then satisfied with the details of that agreement🧔 because he actually wanted to retire, and it has been over 10 years now, but he had no problem with not being a team owner.
"He lived well with a board position, and he has actually wanted that🌟 ever since."
Holm’s opposition to a merger comes in defence of riders' peace of mind. The complexity that comes with such a big deal could put them into difficult positions without knowledge of wꩵhere their future career will take them.
When asked if he thought it was a good idea, the Dane simply replied: “No I do not think so. Because there are a lo🌊t of riders who do not have an agreemeꦐnt in place for next season. They go and wait to see what happens.
“Eve𓆉ry﷽ time rumours like these start, there are many riders who don't sleep so well at night.”
There are currently 50 riders under contract for 2024 between Jumbo-Visma and Soudal-QuickStep which obvio🐼usly doesn&rs🃏quo;t add up to the limit of 30 on a team. That would mean a full roster worth of riders could be at risk with no guarantee of WorldTour racing if the merger happens – not to mention the uncertainty for all staff that don’t end up at the merged team.
The reports have re-ignited the rumour mill with riders such as 168澳洲5最新开奖结果:Remco Evenepoel and 168澳洲5最新开奖结果:Primož Roglič at the head of much of the speculation as the two teams joining could free up cont💛racts and allow them to move should they want to, but any new ‘mega-team’ t൲hat might form would of course want to keep such big stars.
