This will be the first gathering of members of the team since before the start of the Coronavirus outbreak in Europe and will hopefully be part of the process that can see a return to racing in August.
The camp will be held on the week commencing 15th June and will consist of three days of training in Northern Belgium. Rather than a hotel, the use of a large house has sourced, meaning that those attending do not have to take any unnecessary health risks and contact to those outside of the team can be kept to be a minimum. The Deceuninck – Quick-Step medical team are also working on a plan to ensure that all of the riders and staff attending the team will be tested for Covid-19 either before they travel or immediately upon arrival, with stringent medical protocols and precautions being in place throughout the camp, to help minimise the chances of infection.
Speaking of the camp, team coach Koen Pilgrim said: “It is more a case of getting the group together, rather than having any hugely structured training sessions, as most of the guys have been following structured programs that the coaches have set for them for several weeks now. We will also be using it as an opportunity to recon the routes of some of the cobbled classics, like Flanders and Gent–Wevelgem. We would like to do Roubaix too, but we would have to cross the border, which may be complicated right now, but we will get in some good training anyway. More than anything it is about getting the group together and having some fun on the bikes after such a long time apart.”
The team will also be looking to hold an altitude training camp in June, with details still to be confirmed.
Photo credit: ©Sigfrid Eggers