De Lie opens up about his Spring collapse and miraculous redemption: "I felt miserable"

For many riders, winning the Renewi Tour would feel like a huge relief. "I already felt relief three months ago, after finishing third in the Brussels Cycling Classic," De Lie told HLN. "That’s when I started enjoying riding my bike again, when I felt like I could have fun out there. That third place meant a lot, not just emotionally, but results-wise too. After the Renewi Tour, I was mostly just happy. And proud. Proud that I could get back to my level. Around this time last year, I felt like I had taken a step forward. I have that feeling again now."

His spring collapse was all the more surprising given how well the winter had gone. "Then I got sick. That in itself wasn’t a huge deal, but for some reason it just hit me hard afterward. Everything suddenly felt… more complicated. I was still training, but not with the usual passion."

It wasn’t really a physical issue, De Lie had lost the joy of riding. "At the top level, that’s lethal. All the puzzle pieces have to come together to perform. I was still following my training plan to the letter. I did everything I was supposed to. I trained long enough, in the right zones, I’m sure of that. But the feeling wasn’t there. I just felt miserable."

De Lie’s spring actually started off decently. He won a stage at the Étoile de Bessèges and landed top results in the Volta ao Algarve and Clásica de Almería. But then things unraveled. He was brutally dropped in Omloop Het Nieuwsblad, foreshadowing the rest of his spring. After failing to finish Gent–Wevelgem, Lotto intervened. The team pulled him from racing so he could start from scratch.

Now the results are back, his victory in the Renewi Tour proves that. But what changed? “A lot. Everything, really,” De Lie says. “Physically, I can feel that I’ve made progress. But even more important is how I look at the sport now. I don’t have to train, I get to ride my bike. During that tough period, every morning was a fight to get out of bed and onto my bike. I had to rediscover that little spark. And I’ve found it again.”

“Now when I head out for a long endurance ride, I make sure the route offers me something special, so those hours on the bike are about more than just kilometers and watts. A beautiful church, for example. It can be something small. To outsiders, it might seem silly, but it isn’t to me. I try to mix things up more now. I ride my gravel bike a bit more. I go mountain biking when it fits. I ride with friends more often. That gives me oxygen.”

Fresh off his overall victory at the Renewi Tour, Arnaud De Lie will now head to the Bretagne Classic this Sunday. Two weeks later, he’s set to race the Canadian doubleheader. In Québec, he already proved what he’s capable of by winning in 2023. After that, the focus shifts toward 2026. But what exactly that will look like is still unclear. There’s growing speculation that Lotto will merge with Intermarché–Wanty, a move that has created plenty of uncertainty for both riders and staff, including De Lie.

Still, he’s choosing not to dwell on it. “I don’t really know much about it. The media might actually know more than I do. For me, not much changes. I’m under contract until the end of 2026, and I intend to see that through. I can’t say much more, because I don’t have any control over it. Just like I don’t control the weather. It’s up to me to adapt and focus on the positives. I’m not stressing over it.”