'I wasn’t on the couch playing PlayStation' - Andy Schleck defends surprise Lidl-Trek promotion

Last month, Lidl-Trek confirmed that longstanding general manager Luca Guercilena would depart the team, with Schleck promoted to the newly created role of CEO. The team announced a slate of changes at the same time, including the imminent arrival of Grischa Niermann from Visma | Lease a Bike as chief sporting officer.

Speaking to reporters including Daniel Benson on the eve of the Tour de France, Schleck pushed back against criticism of his sudden elevation to managing one of the biggest teams in the WorldTour.

Since retiring as a rider in 2014, Schleck’s activities had included owning a bike shop, working with the Tour of Luxembourg organisation and serving as a brand ambassador for Skoda. He joined Lidl-Trek as deputy general manager last December before his rapid elevation to his new position.

“You have to start with some way if you’re going to do this, but looking back over the last 15 years I wasn’t sitting on the couch playing PlayStation,” Schleck said. 

“I built different things and the Tour of Luxembourg is also a structure with 300 people, we have the Gran Fondos too and it’s about bringing people together, building bridges between, and also with the shops so I’ve been active behind the scenes.

“In cycling I’ve been active from being a rider, since being a kid from a small country growing up in the WorldTour, to winning big races, retiring and then building up. By having gone through all these stages, it’s given me the qualifications to lead a team like this.”

Guercilena took over the reins at what was then RadioShack-Trek in late 2012, steering the team through stormy waters after Frank Schleck had tested positive at the Tour de France and after former manager Johan Bruyneel had been banned for life following the release of the USADA Reasoned Decision on the Lance Armstrong case.

The Italian steadied the ship to considerable effect, with Trek buying the WorldTour licence a year later on the proviso that he stayed at the helm to develop the team. Guercilena remained in situ until this summer, when it was announced he would depart after the Tour. He will take up a key role in the Giro d’Italia organisation later this year.

Andy Schleck’s arrival at the team last winter coincided with Lidl’s acquisition of a majority share in the team, and he acknowledged that taking over at the top of the hierarchy was a part of his long-term thinking.

“Of course this was what I had in mind, but I gave it four or five years, frankly. I also didn’t expect a CEO role; it came quickly,” Schleck said. “I thought I could be the right or left hand for Luca, and I know him as a sports director, and I saw how his role evolved from the coaching role to the GM, but I didn’t expect it.”

That period of “four or five years” instead proved to be a matter of months, with Guercilena forced out by Lidl and Schleck rapidly promoted to his current position. What changed?

“Maybe I’m the wrong person to ask, but the acquisition of the team by Lidl as a majority certainly made the team go in certain direction than before,” Schleck said. “Before, Lidl-Trek was really focused on Classics as a team. We did Grand Tours but with focus on winning stages and green jerseys. We still have those goals, but now we want to be competitive in more than just Classics.

“The direction of the team changed. We’re going in a different direction, but maybe you need to ask Luca, and he understood; he brought the team to a certain level, and maybe this was the end of the road for him in this position. 15 years is also a long time. Maybe he also wants a new challenge.”

Guercilena was a popular figure among riders and staff, but Schleck looked to downplay the idea that there was significant upheaval within the team following the news of his departure. He also added that there were no further changes to management planned in the coming months.

“There was maybe anxiety at some point, as I said, people were nervous, but as of today we keep on working with the people that we have,” Schleck said. “There are no layoffs, and we just want to reinforce with new knowledge coming in the existing structure. There’s no need to be scared.”