What to expect this year
In short – improvement. The Belgian team, hampered by injury to team leader Jurgen van den Broeck, were the lowest ranked team in the UCI Rankings last year of those to have retained their license – with only the now-defunct Vacansoleil-DCM below them. A year which started so well, with Andre Greipel winning three stages at the Tour Down Under, ended with the Gorilla bagging a further ten individual victories at all levels – but nobody else came close. Van den Broeck’s injury – sustained at the Tour de France, curtailed his season in July but the Belgian is back, and determined to go at least one better than his two fourth-placed Tour finishes in 2010 and 2012.
Greipel too has a point to prove after being somewhat overshadowed by Marcel Kittel last year, and he will want to regain his title of Germany’s number one sprinter. Meanwhile Adam Hansen will likely feature heavily in Lotto-Belisol’s Grand Tour campaigns having started – and finished – the last seven Grand Tours. Away from the Grand Tours, Jurgen Roelandts’ third place at the Ronde showed he can challenge on the one-day scene, but he is yet to do so regularly.
Who’s new for 2014?
Vegard Breen (NOR) from Joker-Merida, Stig Broeckx (BEL) neo pro, Sean de Bie (BEL) from Leopard-Trek Continental Team, Maxime Monfort (BEL) from RadioShack-Leopard, Kris Boeckmans (BEL) from Vacansoleil-DCM, Pim Ligthart (NED) from Vacansoleil-DCM, Sander Armee (BEL) from Topsport Vlaanderen-Baloise, Boris Vallee (BEL) from Color Code-Biowanze, Tony Gallopin (FRA) from RadioShack-Leopard.
Who has left?
Dirk Bellemakers (NED) retired, Maarten Neyens (BEL) released, Sander Cordeel (BEL) to Vastgoedservice-Golden Palace, Frederique Robert (BEL) to Wanty-Groupe Gobert, Brian Bulgac (NED) to Parkhotel Valkenburg, Jurgen van de Walle (BEL) retired, Vicente Reynes (ESP) to IAM Cycling, Gaetan Bille (BEL) to Verandas Willems, Francis de Greef (BEL) released, Joost van Leijen (NED) retired.
Riders to watch
Andre Greipel – Greipel proved his sprinting class at the Tour Down Under and will want to re-iterate it in 2014
Jurgen van den Broeck – Recovered from injury, the Belgian is desperate to shake his ‘nearly-man’ tag.
Adam Hansen – Seven consecutive Grand Tours is quite an achievement, and his Giro stage win last year proved he is not just there to make up the numbers.
