Deceuninck’s departure as Quick-Step sponsor to sign for Mathieu Van der Poel’s Alpecin-Fenix has caused some surprise in Belgian cycling. A break that, the head of Quick-Step, Patrick Lefevere, has confessed that “does not pose any problem for him.”
However, in an interview with the Belgian media Het Nieuwsblad, the CEO of Deceuninck, Francis Van Eeckhout has confessed the neglect that Lefevere has had towards them after rescuing the team when they began their sponsorship. “We did not want to expand our collaboration with the team. We were working on a project for five years, we were a helping hand but they got a lot in return. When we joined the team either we were the main sponsor or the team disappeared. Some cyclists already had notice to leave. I am a bit disappointed in Patrick Lefevere. He says he has had great years with us as a sponsor, but he forgets to say we saved him. I’m disappointed that he’s forgetting it so quickly now that he’s had success with Evenepoel, Alaphilippe or Asgreen, but that’s life. “
Another reason that has motivated Deceuninck’s departure is Lefevere’s lack of support for women’s cycling, something that they do support in the Alpecin-Fenix structure. “We are delighted to help the Alpecin-Fenix plan and brothers Philip and Christoph Roodhooft. We also want to participate in women’s cycling, which is more gallant than men’s racing. We also talk about women’s cycling with the Quick-Step, but Patrick is Patrick. He was also determined to win a big lap, and that is an expensive business. The budget for these teams is 20 million more than that of teams like the Alpecin-Fenix ”.
Finally, Van Eeckhout also analyzed the importance of the presence in the team of Mathieu Van der Poel and how it will help them to give visibility to their brand in more countries and also in the cyclo-cross after the conclusion of the road cycling races.. “Van der Poel is a young, unassuming and down-to-earth cyclist. He is also popular in the Netherlands, Belgium and France., which are three very important countries for us and few cyclists have that combination. Furthermore, it is true that road cycling stops from September to February when we want our brand to be seen in that period as well, and cyclo-cross can take care of that. “