15 October, 2024
Lotto-Dstny finishes a great season in Lombardy
The days grow shorter, cold mornings are approaching and cycling is no longer watched in between naps on hot summer days.
Without even noticing October is here bringing the Race of the Falling Leaves. There is no sadder and more beautiful name.
The last Monument brings certain nostalgia and it takes us back a few months ago to the beginning of the year: we were expectant, anxious and unaware of what the season had in store for us. It feels like we are right back there in Belgium, eagerly putting together those first red and blue bikes for a group of cyclists who were turning the pedals of their new Orbeas for the first time.
We look back at the season and enjoy reliving that weird Ruta del Sol. We are thrilled again seeing Lennert win the UAE Tour and Maxim step onto the podium at Strade Bianche. It hurts to feel the cold that Van Gils experienced as he claimed a piece of history at the Flèche Wallonne. It’s unbelievable to travel back to Tro Bro Leon, knowing now what we still didn’t know then—that Arnaud would also become the brilliant Belgian champion just a few days later. We swell with pride seeing the blue and red colors fill the U23 podium at Omloop, recalling the stage win at the Tour de France, or thinking on Thalita’s victories and remarkable consistency throughout the whole season.
The starting shot in Bergamo snaps us out of the daydream. This year it’s Como’s turn and honor to welcome the riders as they cross the finish line after 252 grueling kilometers.
The predictions were clear and almost all eyes were on that one man in the rainbow jersey. However, Lennert had made his stance clear a few days ago:
“Of course, Tadej Pogacar is once again the top favourite. But that shouldn’t stop us from racing. We can’t just submit to his supremacy, can we? […] I’m determined to finish the season on a positive note.”
And that’s exactly what he did. After a magnificent effort by the entire team, the last few kilometers were thrilling. The Belgian fought almost to the very last breath for a spot on the podium. In the end, cycling, with all its twists and turns, wrote Lennert Van Eetvelt into the seventh place in this chapter of the Italian Monument history.
It’s almost time for a break. The Lotto-Dstny riders have certainly earned some vacation.
Meanwhile, at Orbea, we keep working. It’s time to put together everything we’ve learned over the past months from the feedback of riders, mechanics and directors, and lock ourselves in OOLAB to explore, research and develop what’s to come. We’ll look back from the future on this moment and feel proud of what we will have achieved. We have no idea what emotions next season will bring and we just can’t wait for it.
