Premier Tech has found a new destination to display its colors in the WorldTour next year: the Belgian team Alpecin and its star rider Mathieu van der Poel. The Quebec multinational brings with it its long-time protégé Hugo Houle.

The large-scale operation, made official on Friday at a press conference in Antwerp (Belgium), allows the company based in Rivière-du-Loup to extend its deployment in advanced cycling since it will also be the co-sponsor of the Fenix-Premier Tech women’s WorldTour team.

“This collaboration reaffirms our desire to be present at the highest level of this sport, and confirms our commitment to cycling for the long term,” said the president and CEO of Premier Tech, Jean Bélanger, in a press release.

“We are joining one of the most successful teams on the world circuit with athletes whose reputation is well established, such as Mathieu van der Poel, Jasper Philipsen and Kaden Groves for the men, as well as Puck Pieterse and Charlotte Kool for the women. The diversity, experience and depth of the team will allow us to accelerate the development of bridges at all levels of the sport, in addition to bringing out new talents. »

This announcement comes less than a month after Premier Tech’s surprise decision to end its co-sponsorship of Israel Premier-Tech (IPT), since renamed NSN Cycling Team and now operating under a Swiss license.

The training known since 2022 under the name Alpecin-Deceuninck therefore becomes Alpecin-Premier Tech from 2026 and until 2028, with a three-year renewal option. Deceuninck remains in the structure of the Belgian team founded by brothers Philip and Christoph Roodhooft, but in a reduced role.

After four seasons under the colors of Israel-Premier Tech, Houle will experience a “new start” with this Belgian squadron.

“My proximity to Premier Tech is no secret,” Houle recalled after the press conference for which he was present in Belgium. “From the moment they were taking a different path – and since there was an interest in me staying with them – the decision was quite simple to make. I am very happy with this new opportunity offered to me. »

The 35-year-old athlete sees this change very positively, which will allow him to put himself at the service of Van der Poel, one of the best riders of his generation with Tadej Pogacar and who has a world title and eight Monuments to his name (3 Tour of Flanders, 3 Paris-Roubaix, 2 Milan-San Remo). Belgian sprinter Philipsen. who raised his arms 10 times in the Tour de France, is the other great locomotive of Alpecin-Premier Tech.

“We are still joining a great team which has proven in the past to be capable of winning on the Monuments,” expressed Houle, “under contract next year and which maintains its intention to ride until 2027.” Not everyone can afford to do so and I hope to be able to bring my experience and contribute to the success of the team. “

The Quebecer also expects to get more opportunities to play his personal card on grand tour stages, he who would like to add another success after that of Foix at the 2022 Tour de France.

Hugo Houle does not hide it, the last few months have been trying with IPT, the object of the anger of pro-Palestinian demonstrators, which ultimately led to the departure of Premier Tech. The native of Sainte-Perpétue was marked by the protests surrounding the Quebec cycling Grands Prix in September. After the Montreal race, he had to be escorted by police.

“I am a runner, I want to have as much peace of mind as possible to be able to concentrate and be able to achieve the best in my sporting performance. It’s clear that there were difficult times. Returning to the hotel in a police car after a race, I had never experienced that before. »

As he did during his transfer from Astana to IPT in 2022, the year of his stage success at the Tour de France, Hugo Houle remains loyal to Premier Tech and to the man who became a friend in the person of Jean Bélanger. This will be his fourth training since his debut with AG2R La Mondiale in 2013.

Alpecin-Premier Tech will continue to be involved in cyclo-cross, mountain biking, gravel, three disciplines practiced by Van der Poel, as well as track.

Premier Tech is also involved with the French women’s ProTeam St Michel-Preference Home-Auber93, for which Quebecers Simone Boilard and Clara Émond will play next year, as well as Canadian champion Alison Jackson.

If the Canadian team was able to be represented in the women’s endurance events at the Track Cycling World Championships, it is largely thanks to Lily Plante. Because of the results she achieved this season, but also for the thousands of dollars she paid to be able to race on the international scene.

A context is required to fully understand this situation. By focusing only on the results, the Quebecer did not particularly stand out in Santiago. She ranked 19^e of the omnium, was eliminated from the Madison with Ngaire Barraclough and was stopped in the first round with her teammates in the team pursuit. We will come back to this.

The fact remains that the Quebecer’s sensations were better than at last year’s Worlds, despite complicated preparation. It was a close call for the track rider not to be on the starting lists at the World Championships, like the other Canadian women in endurance events elsewhere.

Plante took part in the Nations Cup in Türkiye and the Pan American Championships with the Canadian team. But she also traveled the world at her own expense for other competitions, without a coach or mechanic and taking care of all the organization. Between $8,000 and $10,000, according to his estimates, in order to participate in C1 and C2 category races which allow you to collect points in the world rankings. This ranking is the one which determines the places offered to each country at the World Championships. Plante also took care of all the planning surrounding accommodation and transportation during competitions.

Naturally, such management wears out over time. It generates uncertainties and additional stress.

“Reservations, trains and buses, accommodation and many other things mean that we spend a lot of energy in the preparation and logistics of the trip. It’s a big mental load that athletes from other countries don’t have, Lily Plante told Sportcom. My great quality is to be resilient, but sometimes I find it boring to be resilient! »

Last year, Plante reached the podium at the four days in Geneva, Switzerland. She then made three additional trips that took her to Portugal, France, Slovakia and Italy to collect points.

It was in August that she confirmed her 12^e place in the world rankings for endurance events. Failing to be one of the 16 countries qualified thanks to the ranking of nations, Canada, 18^ewas entitled to an entry for the endurance races at the elite Worlds.

Unlike last year, on the occasion of her first participation in the Worlds, Lily Plante wanted to lighten her schedule and conserve her strength.

“I find that I have taken a step”

So let’s go back to the results obtained at the World Championships last October. In the omnium, a discipline which includes four events, Plante finished 12^e in the scratch race, 20^e at the tempo run, 21^e in the elimination race and 19^e in the points race. Cumulatively, it stands at 19^e level with 21 points.

“There are a lot of positives to the omnium. I have improved my endurance a lot. I felt good at the end and wasn’t in agony like last year. The result on paper is worse than last year [elle s’était classée 17^e, NDLR]but given the level which was very high, I think I took a step forward. »

That same day, she was part of the Canadian team pursuit team alongside Ariane Bonhomme, Fiona Majendie and Alexandra Volstad. The quartet, which only had a few days of preparation for this event, was stopped in qualifying, ranked ninth 3.32 seconds from the last place giving access to the next round.

“It went really badly and I take a lot of the blame. I wasn’t up to it. I had a bad day and it affected the whole team. We placed ninth, even though we clearly had the potential to do better,” said Plante.

The Madison remains the priority

Lily Plante also took part in the Madison with Alberta’s Ngaire Barraclough. The latter suffered a concussion in July and remained on the sidelines for a few weeks. The Canadians were ultimately the last team to be withdrawn during the event due to falling too far behind the lead.

“We are a little disappointed with that. We qualified on the skin of our butts this year, so we were starting in the last ones. In these races, it’s difficult to get back together because it’s really chaos. We were already starting with a little difficulty and we struggled throughout the race without managing to get to the front,” summarized Plante about this relay event that she would like to complete at the Los Angeles Olympic Games.

In the coming months, the Canadian duo plans to go “hunting for points” in order to obtain a better world ranking and thus a better position on the starting line.

“We will be able to make sure we position ourselves well and take the right wheels in the first laps instead of spending energy at the rear. »

Lily Plante’s resilience will remain her greatest asset if she wants to live her dream of participating in her first Olympic Games in 2028. The Olympic qualification process will not begin until 2027, so there is still plenty of time for her to continue her progress.

“I don’t want to give up until I’ve done everything in my power to get there,” the athlete concluded. She will prepare for the Canadian Championships in January which will be held at the Bromont Vélodrome.

(Rome) After Albania, Bulgaria and still a last week at altitude: as has become accustomed to it, the Tour of Italy, the route of which was revealed on Monday, will leave in 2026 from abroad and will undoubtedly be decided just before its arrival in Rome.

Five months after the Isaac Del Toro show, eleven rosy days before breaking down during the penultimate stage against Briton Simon Yates, the Giro 2026 (May 8 to 31) is already dizzying.

This 109^e edition will take place over 21 stages for a total of 3,459 kilometers and a cumulative elevation gain of 49,150 m with twelve stages including the ascent of at least one pass, five high mountain stages, seven altitude arrivals and a “roof”, the Passo Giau, culminating at 2,233 m.

“It’s a more modern Giro with shorter stages, but more demanding,” summarized the emblematic Giro director Mauro Vegni who will bow out at the age of 66 in February after having designed the route for 31 editions of “his” event.

For the first time in its history, the most prestigious Italian stage race will start from Bulgaria where the peloton will spend three days.

This will be the sixteenth Grand Departure from abroad, a movement that has been accelerating since 2010, with the Netherlands (2010, 2016), Denmark (2012), the United Kingdom (2014), Israel (2018), Hungary (2022) and Albania (2025).

From Sofia, the Giro will reach Calabria after a first day of rest where it will begin its long climb towards the north of the country with a passage through Naples, the day before the first mountain stage (7^e), in Abruzzo, 246 km long on May 15.

Without Pogacar

After a single stage on the Adriatic coast, the Giro will turn towards the Mediterranean with in particular the only time trial on the program for these three weeks, on May 19 (10^e stage): 40.2 km as flat as a hand between Viareggio and Massa.

The event will then take up residence in the Alps with a formidable 14^e stage, between Aosta and Pila, including six passes and a new arrival in the high mountains (1803 m).

After a respite with a passage through Milan for an arrival promised to a sprinter on May 24, the day before the third and last day of rest, the sequence of difficulties promises to be formidable.

A short, but grueling foray into Switzerland for the 16^e stage, before the 19^e and 20^e steps which will undoubtedly determine the name of Simon Yates’ successor. It won’t be Tadej Pogacar, the superstar of the peloton, winner of the 2024 Giro, having made the Tour de France and the Monuments his 2026 goals.

During the 19^e stage, the big names will explain over 151 km in the Dolomites with six passes, including the Passo Giau, for a total of 5000 m of altitude difference.

The next day, they will have to climb the Piancavallo twice and its 14.4 km ramp with an average slope of 8.9% and passages at 15%.

Finally, after a long transfer to Rome, the winner will show off his pink jersey for 131 km in the streets of the Italian capital before arriving at the foot of the Colosseum.

“I would of course like to have bib No. 1 attached to my jersey, but I don’t know yet if I will be there. There are ongoing discussions,” warned Simon Yates, whose Visma Lease a bike team could favor the Dane Jonas Vingegaard in his quest for the last Grand Tour which is missing from his list of achievements.