Former Movistar teammate was already suspicious of Lazkano: 'When it smells like shit, sometimes, its just shit'

When the news of Oier Lazkano’s doping suspension became public, it sent shockwaves through the cycling world. His (former) teams were forced into full damage-control mode, and his teammates might have felt the blow just as hard. Mathias Norsgaard, who rode alongside the Spaniard during his time at Movistar, has now spoken openly about the man who has become the sport’s latest scapegoat.

Speaking to Feltet, Norsgaard said he found the whole situation strange. “Of course, you’re glad when cheaters are caught,” he began. “But I’m honestly quite surprised they can get away with it for so long. There are doctors working at Movistar as well, and I find it truly shocking that they didn’t pick up on the issue. What do we even have that system for, then?”

Lazkano was known as a real powerhouse, particularly strong in the Classics and capable of getting over a decent climb. But in 2024, he showed a new side of himself at the Critérium du Dauphiné, where he finished twice in the top five of demanding mountain stages and ultimately secured ninth place overall. His Danish former teammate - who will ride for Lidl-Trek next season - now sees that as a warning sign.

“I won’t go as far as saying I wasn’t surprised, because I always hope for the best in people,” Norsgaard said. “He was also incredibly fast, because we were in the same weight category and he could just push big watts. But damn it - When it smells like shit, sometimes, its just shit, unfortunately. Things were going fine in the Classics, but the Dauphiné was probably a bit too smelly.”

After his impressive performances with Movistar, the 26-year-old Spaniard earned a transfer to Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe. There, however, he failed to make any impact from the start of the season. Following a 117th place at Paris–Roubaix, he disappeared from view altogether, until the UCI broke the silence at the end of October and suspended him due to suspicious blood values in his biological passport.

Norsgaard, meanwhile, did run into him once more. “I saw him this summer in Andorra, and nobody had seen him since Roubaix,” Norsgaard recalled. “There, he said everything was fine, and then this came out. At first I thought it was just more nonsense circulating in the peloton, because that happens quite often in a season like this, but unfortunately it turned out to be very serious.”

The two never really got along at Movistar. “He was an extremely mysterious character,” Norsgaard said. “Very intelligent, interested in politics and always up to date on all kinds of topics. But he was also a bit strange. He would sit in the kitchen for hours drinking red wine with the chef after we had finished dinner. He was unusual, and I would definitely not call him a friend.”