Lefevere unhappy about new transfer leak to the press: "I suspect the source is within our team"

Patrick Lefevere knows how things work in professional cycling, but even the 'Godfather of the sport' is sometimes caught off guard. This happened last Friday when he read in the Belgian newspaper HLN that Valentin Paret-Peintre will be joining Remco Evenepoel's climbing train next season.

In his column in Het Nieuwsblad, Lefevere revisits the rumor. "It's a bit embarrassing: I haven't even informed my team directors yet, and yet Paret-Peintre's transfer is already in the newspaper. Let me neither confirm nor deny officially – nothing has actually been signed yet – but I'm not happy about this leak to the press. Since it's in a Belgian newspaper, I suspect the source is within our team. And I would have expected more discretion," said the CEO of Soudal Quick-Step.

The fact that Paret-Peintre performed so well in the recent Giro and even won a stage is not good for Lefevere's wallet. "Paret-Peintre has immediately confirmed ‘Lefevere's law’. It's almost unbelievable, but every cyclist we approach spontaneously starts winning races. In this case, a stage in the Giro. You only need to be half a businessman to understand that the asking price immediately goes up when that happens. From Mapei to now, it's the story of my life."

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Lefevere wants to sit down with Alaphilippe again

Another Frenchman, Julian Alaphilippe, is also currently without a contract for next year. "His file is still on the table. His agent Dries Smets has suggested a new meeting. I don't know if it's out of politeness or genuine interest to stay. Because, of course, the Giro has also changed his market situation. I really hope I can sit down with him again. Face to face, without agents and without a negotiation agenda on my side. Just a good conversation to clear the air personally and professionally."

"Julian has been with our team since he was seventeen. I won't call him a son, but it's not far off," says Lefevere, who earlier this year had a strained relationship with the former world champion after some harsh comments. "What happened, happened. I've said what I said. But I want to be sure that nothing remains unresolved. Should our paths separate after this season, it should be in a way that we can still meet and preferably look each other in the eye in the future."