As the Tour de France nears, the rider transfer market always comes alive, with Lidl-Trek and Fabian Cancellara’s Tudor team linked to a number of riders for 2024 as they look to strengthen their rosters early.
Trek-Segafredo will officially become Lidl-Trek on June 30, unveiling their new colours on the eve of the Tour de France. The arrival of the European supermarket chain will reportedly see a significant budget increase and the team management appears to be active in the transfer market, with Tao Geoghegan Hart and Jonathan Milan on their wish list.
Under UCI rules, teams and riders cannot reveal their future teams until August but deals are often done months in advance.
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Tao Geoghegan Hart was first linked to Lidl-Trek before his serious crash at the Giro d’Italia. He is currently recovering at home in London but Tuttobiciweb suggests he remains a target for Lidl-Trek for 2024.
Geoghegan Hart won the 2020 Giro d’Italia and seemed set to be a contender this year before crashing in the rain on stage 11 to Tortona and suffering a complex fracture to his hip area.
He has been with Ineos Grenadiers since turning professional in 2017 but the British team already have Tom Pidcock and Egan Bernal under contract and continue to court Remco Evenepoel. Geraint Thomas is expected to extend for at least 2024 but Carlos Rodríguez has been heavily linked to a move to Movistar.
Lidl-Trek appear set to sign emerging Italian sprinter Jonathan Milan as they use their bigger budget to expand their men’s roster alongside Mads Pedersen, Giulio Ciccone and Jasper Stuyven. The women’s team is also likely to be strengthened.
Milan was the Italian revelation of the Giro d’Italia, winning a stage and taking second on four others on the way to winning the points jersey. He needs to improve his sprinting skills and positioning but his track racing has given him the raw power and speed needed for modern sprinting. He would also bolster Lidl-Trek’s Classics squad.
According to Tuttobiciweb, other riders on the transfer market include Arnaud Démare and his Groupama-FDJ teammate Jake Stewart. Démare is hoping to ride the Tour de France despite David Gaudu’s public rejection but is linked to a move to Arkéa-B&B Hotels in 2024.
Stewart recently completed the Giro d’Italia and was the first rider to congratulate Mark Cavendish on his sprint win in Rome. According to La Gazzetta dello Sport, the British sprinter could move to Astana, where Cavendish will apparently have a post-racing role managing the team’s sprint ambitions.
Italy’s Lorenzo Fortunato could also move from Eolo-Kometa to Astana, while Cees Bol has apparently extended his contract with the Kazakhstani team.
The Swiss-based Tudor team managed by Fabian Cancellara will stay in the ProTeam ranks in 2024 but are expected to strengthen their roster after a successful debut in 2023.
Matteo Trentin has been with UAE Team Emirates since 2021 but the 33-year-old Italian could play a key road captain role at Tudor in 2024, according to La Gazzetta dello Sport, with Bahrain Victorious' Gino Mader also linked to the Swiss team.
La Gazzetta dello Sport also claims that Ineos Grenadiers directeur sportif Matteo Tosatto, who managed the team at the Giro d’Italia, has also been approached to work with Cancellara and Tudor, with Lidl-Trek also interested in the Italian directeur sportif.
