Elder brother confirms decision to leave Saxo Bank and is grateful to team management
The day after his brother Andy broke the news that they would be leaving the Saxo Bank team; Fränk Schleck has confirmed it to be true. The elder brother expressed gratitude to team manager Bjarne Riis for giving him the opportunity to rise to the top of the sport of cycling.
“Bjarne gave me the chance to grow in the sport,” Schleck told TV2 Sport, “and through Bjarne I was a good rider; he was a big part.
“For me, Bjarne is one of the best managers I’ve ever met,” he added. “I have worked with him closely for eight years and we have a very close relationship.”
Schleck signed for what was then Team CSC-Tiscali as a 22-year-old stagiare in September 2002; he had previously ridden for third division De Nardi-Pasta Montegrappa in 2000 and had a period as a stagiare at Festina in 2001. When he was taken on by Riis, half of his salary was reportedly paid by a group of Luxembourg sponsors.
Schleck developed steadily under Riis, but his big breakthrough year came in 2006, when he won the Amstel Gold Race and came 10th in his first Tour de France. Younger brother Andy signed for the team as a 19-year-old stagiare in September 2004, and has ridden his entire professional career under Riis.
“Andy phoned yesterday and asked if it was okay to break the news,” Riis told DR Sport, “and I said it was fine by me. That’s what I expected, and something I’ve known a long time.
“They both started with us very young and had a quiet build up,” Riis added, “We have led them to what they are today, and I’m proud. They’ve been fantastic years.”
Both riders are moving on, Shleck said, to seek new challenges.