Olympic success of Evenepoel and Van Aert could really cost the Belgian cycling federation

Quitting at the peak of your career is something that happens in top sports every now and then. And it might now apply to Belgian national cycling coach Sven Vanthourenhout. He feels flattered by offers from several commercial teams, who approached him even before Remco Evenepoel's Olympic double.

HLN reported that, among others, UAE-Team Emirates had reached out to Vanthourenhout, who eventually responded to this in Het Nieuwsblad. "I can't deny that I am charmed by certain proposals from teams I hadn't considered. Some were very specific. Last year, I also received an offer."

"At that point, I informed the federation as I should have, but also promised that I would focus 100% on the Olympics, the European Championships in Hasselt, and the World Championships. Soon, I will sit down with my employer. That conversation will also make things much clearer. The ball is not only in my court. They also need to be satisfied with my work," said Vanthourenhout.

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Federation president: "Mutual respect is great"

Federation President Tom Van Damme has also responded to HLN. "The planned evaluation is contractually scheduled. But now is not the time for that. The sports results take priority. After the Olympics, we still have the European Championships in our own country and the World Championships in Zurich. Only after that can and will there be serious discussions," says the head of Belgian Cycling.

"Sven does a great job, let there be no doubt about that. From our side, there has never been a word of criticism. The mutual respect between us is great. But of course, if other teams come knocking with certain 'oil dollars', well... Everyone knows that as a federation, we can't compete with that. Unfortunately."

Reading between the lines, it is clear that they anticipate his departure. "We will certainly try to keep Sven in a calm, positive and constructive atmosphere. But we will have to come to some future-oriented agreement. It's perfectly possible that he has other ambitions, just like Kevin De Weert and Rik Verbrugghe did in the recent past. If that's the case and he leaves, it will be in friendship and gratitude," concludes Van Damme.