'I want to leave that in the past' - Gee-West on Israel exit and new start at Lidl-Trek

When Juan Ayuso made his first appearance as a Lidl-Trek rider last month, he prefaced his press conference by reading a prepared statement to ward off any questions about his fractious exit from UAE Team Emirates-XRG.

There was no such choreography when Derek Gee-West met media outlets including Domestique in a video call on Wednesday afternoon, though his team had suggested beforehand that questions should be focused primarily on his future at Lidl-Trek.

There was little chance of that, of course, given the dramatic nature of Gee-West’s departure from Israel-Premier Tech and the uncertainty that lingered over his future after he unilaterally terminated his contract in late August.

In his statement at the time, Gee-West said that “certain issues” had made his “continuation at the team untenable.” He did not expand on whether those issues were sporting, political or financial, though he later admitted to “an irreparable relationship with the team principal, as well as serious concerns related to racing for the team, both from a safety and personal-belief standpoint that weighed heavily on my conscience.”

Almost five months on, and after much legal wrangling and the intercession of the UCI Arbitration Board, Gee-West secured his exit from Israel-Premier Tech. On Tuesday, however, he was not prepared to outline explicitly the precise reasons for his desire to leave Israel-Premier Tech. The team has since rebranded as NSN Cycling Team following repeated protests at its participation in international sport amid Israel’s invasion of Gaza.

“There’s a whole bunch of reasons but, to be honest, like I said at the start, I just want to leave that in the past,” Gee-West said. “That’s definitely not something I want to get into. And yeah, I think out of respect for all the parties involved, it’s best to just leave it in the past for now.”

Gee-West did clarify, however, that the matter had been resolved by the UCI Arbitration Board, even if the governing body has ignored all media requests for comment on the case. “That’s all settled and done, there are no remnants from that left over,” said Gee-West, who denied reports that he had been in discussions about a move to Ineos Grenadiers in late summer.

“That kind of came out of nowhere, I would say. There wasn’t really any substance to that. I was as shocked as anyone to read that, but now I’m here, I’m stoked, I couldn’t have asked for a better landing spot.”

Gee-West’s decision to push to extricate himself from his Israel-Premier Tech contract left his career in limbo since the summer. With his old team reportedly seeking €30 million in damages, he looked set for a protracted legal battle. It wasn’t clear when he would be able to race again, though he insisted he was always confident he wouldn’t end up on the sidelines for an entire season.

“I never thought I’d have to sit out a whole year,” he said. “At some points, I was not confident that it would be resolved by the end of the season, but I’m eternally grateful that it was. Especially with the timing of it, I feel like I really, truly did not miss anything on the build-up to 2026. To be honest, it was a lot of uncertainty, so I had no idea how long it would go on for, but I think the timing was great.”

That response is contradicted slightly by what Gee-West told Spanish newspaper El Pais on Tuesday, when he admitted that he had feared for his career amid the legal machinations in the Autumn.

“I’ve experienced some truly dark days, with moments when I thought that, unfortunately, retirement was a very real possibility, especially given the enormous sum of money involved,” Gee-West said in an interview where he also explained why he had not explicitly linked his exit to Israel’s invasion of Gaza.

“In the end, I didn’t want to use what was happening in the Gaza Strip as a scapegoat to get out of my contract. I didn't think it was fair.”

Gee-West first linked up with Lidl-Trek at their training camp in Denia in mid-December and the signing was formally announced by the team last week. He was confident that he would be up to speed for the new season despite the fact that he hasn’t raced since the Canadian Championships in June. In the intervening period – “Obviously, it was very, very tough, incredibly so” – he continued to train.

“I’m sure the quality wasn’t great because I was my own coach, and I don’t know what I’m doing,” he joked. “But it’s ok, we got to December and the training values are where they were the year before, so everything’s all good. There are no major misses on that side. 

“I think the only thing that we could see going into 2026 is just that I’ve been out of the peloton for a little bit. But it’s the same if you break a collarbone, so it’s hopefully not too impactful and just step back into the new season normally.”

The Canadian will start his season at the Volta ao Algarve next month before riding the Volta a Catalunya and the Tour of the Alps as preparation for the Giro d’Italia. After placing fourth overall in 2025, he will look to go at least one better as the leader of Lidl-Trek’s GC challenge in May, while Ayuso leads the line at the Tour de France. 

“The goal on a team like this is to shoot for the podium,” said Gee-West. “I was hired to be a GC guy to move the team in that direction, the same with Juan.” 

Although Gee-West is 28 years of age, he is only entering his fourth season at the top level, having devoted himself to the track in the early part of his career. Indeed, he is very much a work-in-progress as a Grand Tour rider, having only turned his attention to the idea in the summer of 2024, when he finished ninth at the Tour de France.

“I went pro very late by today’s standards, and I only started GC at the Dauphiné in 2024, so I think there’s a ton still to go,” he said. “I think where I improved the most was just learning how to ride GC because that was very new, but I think even physically there’s still quite a bit of improvement to go again.”

That margin for improvement encouraged Lidl-Trek to add Gee-West to their roster even after securing the services of Ayuso. After an unexpected interruption to his career, Gee-West will hope to resume his upward trajectory in the weeks and months ahead, even if he was reluctant to talk up his prospects of reaching the same exalted level as men like the Giro favourite Jonas Vingegaard or Tadej Pogačar.

“I don’t put a ceiling on it, but I’m definitely not looking there,” Gee-West said. “I think there’s a lot of levels of rider between me and them. It’s just one step at a time, trying to improve, trying to reach that next level. I mean, those guys have both won multiple Grand Tours. My goal is to reach that podium for now and just try and chip away bit by bit.”