Bicycle Racing News and Opinion,
Friday, September 26, 2025
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2024 Tour de France | 2024 Giro d'Italia
My eyes are constantly wide open to the extraordinary fact of existence. Not just human existence, but the existence of life and how this breathtakingly powerful process, which is natural selection, has managed to take the very simple facts of physics and chemistry and build them up to redwood trees and humans. - Richard Dawkins
Bill & Carol McGann’s book The Story of the 2024 Tour de France: The Happy Warrior Triumphs is available print, Kindle eBook and audiobook versions. To get your copy, just click on the link on the right.
Current racing:
- September 21 - 28: World Cycling Championships
Upcoming racing:
- September 28 - October 5: Tour de Langkawi
- October 3: Mûnsterland Giro
- October 4: Giro dell'Emilia
- October 5: Coppa Agostoni
- October 6: Coppa Bernocchi
- October 7: Binche-Chimay-Binche
- October 7: Tre Valli Varesine
- October 9: Gran Piemonte
- October 11: Il Lombardia
- October 12: Paris-Tours
Latest completed racing:
- September 17 - 21: Tour de Luxembourg
- September 20: Super 8 Classic
- September 19: Kampioenschap van Vlaanderen
- September 17: GP de Wallonie
- August 23 - September 14: Vuelta a España
- September 14: Grand Prix Cycliste de Montréal
- September 14: GP de Fourmies
- September 14: Trofeo Matteotti
The team sent me this:
Lotto Cycling Team and Stéphane Heulot are parting ways. The CEO and the team have decided to end their collaboration after three years. “These were three intense years that I look back on with great pride,” he says.
Stéphane Heulot’s departure from Lotto Cycling Team comes on good terms and after mutual consultation. Heulot, who joined the team three years ago, has personally chosen to take a different path. “My departure is a well-considered decision,” says Stéphane Heulot. “I want to dedicate myself to other and new projects.”
Stéphane Heulot
Heulot looks back with warmth on his three years leading the team: “These were three intense years. We achieved great results and shared unforgettable moments, both on a human and sporting level. There was always one common thread: people with passion. I met hardworking staff members and riders who went through fire for each other. I’ve learned a great deal as well, and I’m grateful for the trust I was given, for the energy that came back, and for the team spirit that was there from day one.”
The team wishes to thank Stéphane Heulot for his commitment during his time at Lotto Cycling Team. His experience and involvement helped shape the team’s operations and contributed to the development of young cycling talent.
Lotto Cycling Team will continue to focus on the upcoming races and the remainder of the season. At the same time, constructive work continues with Intermarché Wanty towards a joint WorldTour structure from 2026 onwards.
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Here’s the team’s announcement:
Lidl-Trek are thrilled to announce that 23-year-old Spanish talent Juan Ayuso has signed a five-year contract with the Team.
Ayuso burst onto the scene in 2022 when he finished on the final podium of the Vuelta a España in his Grand Tour debut. He had another strong ride the next year, finishing fourth overall and taking home the White Jersey as the best young rider.
Juan Ayuso winning stage 12 of the 2025 Vuelta a España. Sirotti photo
A gifted time trialist and climber, Ayuso has already proven himself as one of the most exciting stage racers in the peloton. His palmarès features overall victories at Itzulia Basque Country and Tirreno–Adriatico, two stage wins at the Vuelta a España, a stage win at the Giro d’Italia, and four time trial triumphs.
His arrival strengthens Lidl-Trek’s stage racing ambitions and is a key step forward in the Team’s long-term goal of becoming the best squad in the WorldTour.
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“I’m really excited,” said Juan Ayuso. “Joining Lidl-Trek is the start of an important new chapter in my career, and I’m motivated to keep growing as a rider. Change always brings new energy and ambitions, so I can’t wait to get started.
“From the outside you can see the Team has built a strong identity, with a lot of unity and ambition. The long-term project they’re putting together is something quite unique and special. It feels like a place where I can take the next step in my development, surrounded by riders and staff who share the same goals. I want to keep improving in the biggest races; the Team has the ambition to become the best team in the world, so I’m really looking forward to contributing to that success.
“I feel super grateful towards the Team for giving me this opportunity and their confidence. I can’t wait to wear the Lidl-Trek jersey!”
“Juan is one of the brightest young talents in cycling,” said Luca Guercilena, Lidl-Trek General Manager. “He is already one of the best climbers and time trialists in the world, which makes for a very exciting package. At only 23 years old, he still has room to grow, and we are committed to giving him all the support he needs to reach his full potential. Bringing Juan on board is an important step in our long-term vision, and we are excited to see what we can achieve together in the years ahead.”
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Here’s the team’s update:
The last week of September brings a trip across the Alps for Team Polti VisitMalta, which will take part for the first time in two one-day races in northeastern France.
Tomorrow the Tour de la Mirabelle will warm up the riders’ legs with a couple of short climbs, before entering its decisive phase with the triple sequence of the Moivrons and Belleau walls, the final crest coming ten kilometers from the finish: Mirco Maestri is ready to lead a lineup completed by Samuele Zoccarato, Andrea Pietrobon, Diego Sevilla, Aidan Buttigieg and Javier Serrano.
Aidan Buttigieg in 2024
On Sunday Paris–Chauny will place its rolling terrain far from the finish and, for three years in a row, has ended in a bunch sprint. That’s why a seventh rider, Giovanni Lonardi — who not too far from here at the end of last month claimed his first victory of the season — will join the sextet from two days earlier.
Sports Director Orlando Maini: “We’ll race with our usual determination to achieve the best possible result and continue the trend we’ve been showing. On paper, the Tour de la Mirabelle suits strong rouleurs with a fast finish while Paris–Chauny favors the pure sprinters. But at the end of the season you deal with whatever energy is left, and nothing can be taken for granted.”
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