'This is organised crime' - Lefevere sounds alarm after bike theft surge

Writing for Het Nieuwsblad, Patrick Lefevere has suggested that recent bike thefts from professional cycling teams are the work of organised crime networks who intend to steal high-value equipment to order.

“There’s been a wave of burglaries in cycling. Twenty bikes were stolen from TotalEnergies in Poitou-Charentes, and eighteen from Visma | Lease a Bike in the Vuelta. There should be no doubt: this is organised crime, with thefts made to order,” said Lefevere.

There have been a number of high-profile incidents in recent months, some of which Lefevere highlighted, illustrating the continuous issue of bike theft, which has even affected some of the biggest professional teams at some of the biggest races.

During the Tour de France in July, 11 bikes were stolen from the Cofidis team truck overnight before the start of stage 2. The police were able to recover the stolen bikes for the Cofidis team. 

Fellow French team TotalEnergies had suffered the same fate twelve months earlier at the Tour, and were also the victims recently at the Tour Poitou-Charentes, where they had 20 bikes stolen.

There was even an incident of theft at the ongoing Vuelta a España, where several bikes were stolen from Visma | Lease a Bike overnight before the start of stage 3.

Visma | Lease a Bike released an official statement on the morning of stage 3 on 25 August, confirming the police were working on the incident, “Last night, our mechanics’ truck was broken into and several bikes were stolen. Our mechanics are working hard to ensure that the team is fully prepared for the third stage. The police have launched an investigation into the incident.”

Lefevere also noted the substantial value of some of the high-end racing bikes, adding further motivation for the thieves, referencing Visma | Lease a Bike CEO Richard Plugge’s estimate. “Richard Plugge mentioned a value of €250,000, and that’s probably not an exaggeration. A fully assembled professional cyclist’s bike can be estimated at €14,000 these days,” said Lefevere.

The former Quick-Step CEO also suggested that the thieves have specific markets for the stolen equipment. "These gangs know what they're looking for and have channels to sell them. Often in the former Eastern Bloc," he said, adding that his team still charges €6,500 for second-hand bikes at official sales.

Lefevere detailed the meticulous security measures teams need to employ to minimise the risks of theft. "We park the truck with the bicycles close to a wall so the tailgate can't be lowered. Or we park another vehicle in front of it for the same reason. If the tailgate does open at night, an alarm immediately goes off in the mechanics' room."

Lefevere also recounted a previous theft experienced by Quick-Step during a race in Tuscany, where surveillance footage revealed the sophisticated operation. "A gang drove their van through a vineyard all the way to the hotel fence, cut the wire, and broke into our van. It was unbelievable how quickly ours was empty and theirs full."

Soudal-QuickStep's headquarters, known as the Service Course, has now been fortified like "Fort Knox", according to Lefevere. "Everything is secured with bars, even the skylights on the roof. If anyone were to even consider doing something like that, just don't start."

During the pandemic, Lefevere revealed his fear of theft reached new heights when all team equipment was stored in one location. "I immediately called my CFO, Geert Coeman, to ask how much we were insured for. It was €500,000 at the time; it's tripled since then." The recent spate of thefts has highlighted the vulnerability of teams at races, where security often depends on hotel arrangements and parking facilities, rather than standardised protection measures.