“Why did you want to get back into the business as sports director?
After the end of my career (Paris-Tours was his last race, October 8, 2023), I didn’t take a vacation, I had lots of energy, I wanted to stay active. From the (previous) winter, I knew that it was my last season, people started talking to me about becoming a sports director, it matured in me. I wasn’t mentally worn out.
How did the transition go?
Some sports directors may still be runners in their heads, while I’m not at all, I’ve got some hair on my feet! (smiles) People on my staff tell me that it’s impressive how I made my “switch”. But, in January, I still took on the job of sports director head on! I had never used a computer in my life, I bought one, I started from scratch. Before, I used tablets to watch series but I didn’t use Excel. I had to learn on YouTube. Same for Powerpoint. And I’m still learning. It’s a profession that I discovered because strangely, even though I had an uncle (Alain) and my father (Joël) in the profession, I had no interest in this reconversion.
“I didn’t even finish my first race, I went straight to the hospital with one of my runners”
And in your relationship with the runners, certain former teammates or adversaries?
The first days, I shared my room with Marc Wauters whom I watched on television and who was my sports director (at Lotto) when I took the Yellow Jersey. I don’t know who’s getting old, him or me (laughs). But it’s a question of balance, some DS are very close to the runners, like friends, which is not good because we are afraid of hurting people when we have to make decisions. And others never speak, are super distant, just there to drive the car. You have to find the words, the little phrases that I liked to hear when I was a runner. It’s not much, but it’s touching. I knew all the emotions felt by the runners. When I tell them to be placed on the descent at a certain kilometer, I know it’s not easy, I’m not going to tell them ten times on the radio.
How was your first race as DS?
At GP La Marseillaise, I picked up two riders on the ground and it’s hard. I didn’t even finish my first race, I went straight to the hospital with one of my runners (Liam Slock), that puts you in the mix. We were in car three, we saw everything, it would have been cool to follow the end. In the evening, the staff congratulated me, the runners also told me that I had been clear on the radio. »
