Three more years for two-time World champion but Hans Van Kasteren announces retirement saying “the fun has gone”
At a press conference this afternoon Hans Van Kasteren, manager of Telenet-Fidea, made a number of announcements on the future of the cyclocross team, according to Het Laatste Nieuws. The good news that he had to announce was that the team’s sponsors have extended their support of the team by a further four years, and that the team’s longest serving star has extended his contract for another three.
“Fidea will stay one more year with the possibility to extend as Telenet is cevering it,” he explained. “I have found a new sponsor: someone who has invested millions of Euros in football in the Netherlands, and now wants to try ‘cross.”
Bart Wellens has agreed to stay with the team, with which he has spent his entire professional career, for a further three years. There has been talk of the 32-year-old joining the new KDL team, which is being set up by recently retired former teammate Jan Verstraeten, but his decision to remain at Telenet-Fidea could mean that he sees out the end of his career with the team.
On a less positive note, Van Kasteren confirmed that Kevin Pauwels, who is just beginning to assert himself as one of the big names in the sport, will be leaving for Sunweb-Revor at the end of the current cyclocross season.
“Kevin has permission to start to ride for the team of Jurgen Mettepenningen from arch 1st,” he confirmed, “and I wish him all the best.
“I’ve never had any problems with him, just with the people around him,” he added, referring to difficulties he has apparently experienced with the rider’s management team.
Van Kasteren also announced that he will be quitting the team before the start of next year’s cyclocross season. “The fun is gone and I have to defend more and more lately against negative criticism,” he explained.
The Dutchman has been manager of the team since 2004, only yesterday he was speaking of his conflict with the International Cycling Union (UCI) over the colour of the sponsor logos on Zdenek Stybar’s World champion jersey. He was previously manager of Bart Wellens, will continue to look after the interests of a number of riders including Wellens and Tom Meeusen.
“I think I six world titles I not a bad thing to have achieved with my cross team,” he said. “I also will not sinking ship behind. Show me a team whose riders have four years guaranteed employment on offer; everything agreed with riders and sponsors.
“There are even some ideas to start a continental cycling team. This gives Zdenek Stybar [who has said that he would like to try to win a classic – Ed] the possibly win the way he intended, but that is work for my successor.”
Stybar himself was sorry to hear the news, as he commented via Twitter:
“Was very emotional moment to hear how difficult is for our manager Hans Van Kasteren to say, that he stop with his job!” he wrote. “Thanks to him for my career. We were working together from year 2005. I wish him good luck and nice time in Spain with his wife.”