0
Profile

CEO Stéphane Heulot looks ahead to the new season

With the team presentation in Temse, Lotto Cycling Team has officially kicked off 2025. CEO Stéphane Heulot shares his outlook for the season: "Returning to the World Tour remains our main goal."
General 03 January 2025
Previous Next
To the sounds of Daft Punk, under red lighting and showcasing the brand-new team kit, Lotto Cycling Team launched its new season this morning in Temse, Belgium, at the team’s new Service Course. During the presentation for sponsors, partners and the press, CEO Stéphane Heulot provided a preview of the upcoming season.

"As with every year, the counter is set to zero," Heulot said. "You must always approach a cycling season with humility. Our group has changed significantly, so we’ll see how things unfold. But we’re determined to continue along the positive path we started on last year."

That path included highlights such as a Belgian national championship, overall victories in the UAE Tour and the Tour of Guangxi, and a stage win in the Tour de France. "Thanks to all our great performances, we’ve been in the UCI World Ranking top 10 for two years now. The points we’ve accumulated exceeded our expectations. Even with a team that seems less strong on paper, we aim to maintain our position. We’ll try to achieve this by adding more one-day races to our calendar. For example, we won’t compete in the Giro d’Italia, Paris-Nice, or Tirreno Adriatico, as we hope to gather more UCI points in one-day races. Our ultimate goal remains to return to the World Tour in 2026."

Stéphane Heulot was pleased to welcome everyone to Temse, the new beating heart of the team. "I wouldn’t call this a new beginning, but it is certainly a new chapter for us. The building, our Service Course, is an important step for our development and future growth. It’s not just for our staff—it’s already a place where our people enjoy coming together—but also for our partners. This will serve as a base for Orbea, we have solar panels from MR Solar on the roof, and much more. Of course, we are eager to welcome new partners. It takes time, and these are not the easiest economic times, but we remain confident in the value of our team. It would be great to have news by the Tour de France. In the meantime, we are fortunate to have the continued support of Lotto and our other sponsors."

 

 

Pictures: PhotoNews