Patrick Lefevere grew to become a sports activities director in 1979, the yr Margaret Thatcher got here to energy, through the Chilly Warfare, in a world that appears so distant to 2024. Over 40 years on, it was introduced earlier this month that the Belgian would go away his function as CEO of Soudal Fast-Step, the crew that he has been answerable for for the previous 22 years.
For a exceptional 11 of these years, Fast-Step in its varied iterations received probably the most races of any biking crew on the WorldTour, profitable 981 races in whole in response to ProCyclingStats. Throughout Lefevere’s time on the helm, the crew received 22 Monuments, together with eight editions of the Tour of Flanders, which gave it a repute as the lads to beat within the Classics. He additionally oversaw a transition right into a GC crew, led by their newest star rider, Remco Evenepoel, who claimed Fast-Step’s first Grand Tour victory, the 2022 Vuelta a España. Additionally they received 124 Grand Tour levels.
Over time, the celebs he has managed have included Tom Boonen – 120 wins for the squad – Mark Cavendish (59), Evenepoel (57), Julian Alaphilippe (42) and Paolo Bettini (42).
One other of these stars, Johann Museeuw, who labored with Lefevere from his days as a sports activities director at Mapei to Fast-Step, received 43 races whereas they labored collectively.
“Tactically, he was an excellent sports activities director,” he advised Biking Weekly. “You don’t must be a particular rider to be an excellent sports activities director. He knew easy methods to win bike races and management the crew, even when there have been plenty of huge riders there. He didn’t appear to ever have any issues with this.
“He was in biking for such a very long time, but in addition with the identical sponsors, that’s fairly distinctive. He was a gentleman with the sponsors. It was within the final years that the crew modified a bit, it was not a lot of a Classics squad any extra, with Remco as a GC rider. We’ll bear in mind him as top-of-the-line for the spring Classics, although, completely.
“He has it in him to manage and work with champions. Champions are a bit bit completely different to different individuals, they don’t seem to be straightforward to work with, however he was at all times there to assist when it was obligatory. He had a particular solution to inspire the riders.”
Additionally at Fast-Step from 2012 to 2022 was Brian Holm, who labored as a sports activities director beneath his rambunctious CEO.
“What I at all times preferred about Patrick was that he was by no means afraid to gamble a bit and take some probabilities,” Holm defined. “He might make individuals winners and one of the best instance of that was taking again Cavendish [in 2021]. He grew to become a star once more that yr however you could needless to say once we re-signed him everybody was laughing at us, individuals actually took the piss. Folks spoke about it prefer it was a giant joke however Patrick was decided to offer Mark an opportunity once more and look what occurred, he acquired him again on monitor.
“On the finish of the day individuals like him or they don’t and that’s it. However he’s been in administration since 1979 and that’s fairly one thing, there’s no person else like him.”
“It’s nice what they began to do recently with Remco Evenepoel however for me it was at all times in opposition to the crew’s DNA,” Holm continued. “I preferred the outdated Classics crew, the cobblestones, the cross-winds, loopy guys doing loopy stuff. Now it has was a GC crew and when you’ve a GC man you don’t gamble.”
Away from races, Lefevere was a controversial determine, publicly criticising his riders at instances, together with Sam Bennett, Alaphilippe and Kasper Asgreen, in generally vibrant language.
Earlier this yr, he apologised for making derogatory remarks about ladies, after being threatened with a hefty advantageous by the UCI.
“Fast-Step had been most likely one of many final quaint biking groups the place you had a giant boss, Patrick, who makes the principles,” Holm mentioned. “Patrick at all times had your again too, he’d say the press don’t management my crew, I do. He actually cares about his workers.”
The crew, as Museeuw and Holm have referenced, have change into extra of a GC car, for Evenepoel, than a Classics squad in its outdated guise. Because of this, maybe it was time for Lefevere to maneuver on.
That may be tough, although, with the lack of his data and perception, constructed up over the 4 a long time he spent at biking’s highest stage. “It will likely be fairly tough for the crew with out him,” Museeuw concluded.
