Quick-Step & cycling:
25 years of the perfect click
Dive into the history of the Quick-Step cycling team
Quick-Step over the years
1999-2002: Mapei-Quick-Step
Quick-Step was first seen in the professional men’s peleton in 1999 as a co-sponsor of the iconic Mapei team. They got off to a dream start: in that year’s Paris-Roubaix, the entire podium was occupied by the team's riders. Andrea Tafi in first, Wilfried Peeters in second and Tom Steels in third.
One year later, the team once again achieved success in the Hell Classic. This time, Johan Museeuw was the first to cross the line. His victory gesture on the track in Roubaix is now legendary. Museeuw pointed to his knee, referring to his heavy fall in Waller’s Forest two years earlier.
In the Mapei period, there were two Paris-Roubaix victories in Liege-Bastenaken-Liege (Paolo Bettini in 2000 and 2002), a win in the Tour of Flanders (Andrea Tafi in 2002) and a world title. Oscar Freire won the first rainbow jersey for Quick-Step in 2001.
Photo: © Getty Images
2003-2004: Quick-Step-Davitamon
In 2003, the marriage between Quick-Step and Patrick Lefevere began. Quick-Step was the main sponsor of the team in that year, riding in the peloton under the name Quick-Step-Davitamon. With Paolo Bettini’s win in Milan-San Remo, the success of Mapei had never been better.
Paolo Bettini is worth his weight in gold to the team. Literally. In 2004, he grabbed Olympic gold and got to raise the very last World Cup the third year in a row.
The team also made the headlines in the Grand Tours. In 2003 and 2004, Richard Virenque won the mountain class in the Tour de France.
Photo: © Getty Images
2005-2007: Quick-Step-Innergetic
Unleashing a new talent: the Belgian Tom Boonen. In 2005, he won the double Tour of Flanders and Paris-Roubaix and became world champion. There was no shortage of rainbow jerseys, as time trial rider Michael Rogers took the jersey three years in a row in time trials (2003, 2004 & 2005). 2005 was a real boom year for the team. Paolo Bettini played his part and won the Tour of Lombardy, known as the race of falling leaves, for the first time and the points ranking in the Giro d'Italia (Maglia Ciclamino).
In 2006, the Belgian line-up, now called Quick-Step-Innergetic, continued this momentum. Filippo Pozzato won La Primavera with a cheering Tom Boonen in the background. A few weeks later, Boonen could cheer again, with his second consecutive win in Flanders’ Finest.
Paolo Bettini would be the world champion on the road in the autumn and completed a fantastic season with a win in the Tour of Lombardy. In the meantime, he won the points ranking in the Giro d'Italia for the second year in a row.
In the summer of 2007, Tom Boonen once again got in on the action with the green jersey in the Tour de France, the first of its kind for the team. In the autumn, Paolo Bettini extended his world title on the road.
Photo: © Getty Images
2008-2009: Quick-Step
Patrick Lefevere’s riders lived up to their reputation as the classic team. Stijn Devolder won the Tour of Flanders in 2008 with an impressive solo. The following year, he recreated that impressive work of art. Tom Boonen found inspiration in the double: he won twice in succession in Paris-Roubaix, good for his second and third cobblestone event.
Photo: © Getty Images
2010-2011: Quick-Step Floor
After the boom of recent years, the team experienced a difficult period in its sport. It dropped to 18th place in the UCI ranking. Many riders left the team and the question arose as to whether this would be the end of the Quick-Step era. At the end of 2010, the team was thrown a lifeline via Czech businessman Zdenek Bakala. He not only injected capital, but also an ambitious, sporting plan for the future.
Photo: © Getty Images
2012-2014: Omega Pharma-Quick-Step
In 2012, the team rebounded. Tom Boonen took the double Tour of Flanders and Paris-Roubaix again and Tony Martin became world champion in time trials. But the highlight of 2012 was the world title in the team time trial for brand teams.
“For me personally, this is a victory worth more than the Tour of Flanders or Paris-Roubaix,” said an exceptionally emotional Patrick Lefevere in Valkenburg in 2012.
In 2012, 2013 and 2014, Quick-Step was the most successful team of the season for three years in a row. It was a period with 20 wins by Mark Cavendish in one season, new world titles in the team time trial and time trial and fresh success in Roubaix: in 2014, Niki Terpstra took the cobblestone. In the same year, the Colombian Rigoberto Uran would be the first rider of the team on the final podium of a Grand Tour. He finished second in the Giro d'Italia.
Michal Kwiatkowski provided the moment in 2014. In the last few kilometres of the world championship in Ponferrada, the Pole raced to the rainbow jersey. Earlier in the season, he had already been successful at Strade Bianche.
Photo: © Getty Images
2015-2016: Etixx - Quick-Step
In 2015, the team adopted the name of Etixx – Quick-Step and once again the riders took the most victories. Highlights included: the victories of Michal Kwiatkowsk i in the Amstel Gold Race and Zdenek Stybar in Strade Bianche and the victory of Iljo Keisse in the final stage of the Giro d'Italia.
Tony Martin, Mark Cavendish and Zdenek Stybar each won a stage in the 2015 Tour. The German rider Martin also rode in yellow for a few days, but eventually had to give up after a heavy fall. One of the most rewarding memories of fans and the team is the image in which Tony is pushed over the line by his teammates.
Etixx – Quick-Step started 2016 with a collective victory in the team time trial of Tour de San Luis. The team continued to win until the world championship in Qatar, where it won the gold twice: in the team time trial and with Tony Martin in time trial.
Photo: © Getty Images
2017-2018: Quick-Step Floors
In 2017 Philippe Gilbert put an end to the monumental drought. In Tom Boonen’s farewell year, he won the Tour of Flanders after a memorable solo of 55 km. A few weeks later, he added a new victory to his track record in the Amstel Gold Race.
In the Grand Tours, the riders achieved a total of 16 victories: 5 in the Giro d'Italia, 5 in the Tour de France and 6 in Vuelta. Bob Jungels also won the youth ranking in the Giro d'Italia for the second time in a row. Fernando Gaviria, in turn, took the points ranking, the first rider in the team to succeed in doing so since Paolo Bettini.
Elia Viviani repeated the feat a year later. 2018 was a truly first class year with 73 UCI wins. Niki Terpstra won the Tour of Flanders and later Bob Jungels won the Liege-Bastenaken-Liege. But he was not the only one that excelled. Julian Alaphilippe, who was part of the training team, rode an impressive Tour de France with 2 stage victories and wins in the mountain class. He followed in Richard Virenque’s footsteps and became the new darling of French cycling and the Quick-Step supporter. Enric Mas succeeded in the Vuelta with a second place in the final ranking. The prestigious world title of team time trials was also once again on the list of honours.
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2019-2021: Deceuninck-Quick-Step
Quick-Step is the classic team. This was proved by Julian Alaphilippe (Strade Bianche, Milan-San Remo and Walloon Arrow in 2019 and the Brabant Arrow in 2020), Philippe Gilbert (Paris-Roubaix in 2019) and Kasper Asgreen (E3 Harelbeke and Tour of Flanders in 2021). But in 2019, Julian Alaphilippe had the team dreaming of the yellow on the Tour de France. The Frenchman rode in the leader's jersey for 14 days and only had to give up his jersey on the 19th stage.
The blue brigade also turned a little green. In 2020, Sam Bennett won the points ranking in the Tour de France; the first time since Tom Boonen in 2007. In 2021, it was the turn of Mark Cavendish. He enjoyed one of the most remarkable comebacks at the age of 36. He won no less than 4 tours and, with 34 victories, he equalled Eddy Mercx’s record in the Tour.
In 2021, a year after his horror crash, Fabio Jakobsen won the points jersey in the Vuelta. Talk about a comeback! And if tha’s not enough, Remco Evenepoel and Elia Viviani won the European Championships for time trials and road respectively. And as icing on the cake, Julian Alaphilippe won the 2020 World Championships and followed it up in Leuven in 2021.
In 2021, Quick-Step announced its contract extension. The flooring brand will continue to be a partner of the team until 2027.
Photo: © Getty Images
2022: Quick-Step Alpha Vinyl
Spring started off a bit hesitantly. There was no major victory in the Flemish classics. However, Patrick Lefevere remained calm and wanted to wait until after Liege-Bastenaken-Liege to take stock. It was as if it was a premonition, because Remco Evenepoel won his first major event there in an impressive way.
2022 would be the youngster's breakthrough year. He won his first Grand Tour round in September at the Vuelta. The very first Grand Tour since the team came into existence. Two weeks later, he succeeded his teammate Julian Alaphilippe as world champion. And with Fabio akobsen,, the team has both the European champion and the world champion in its ranks.
Photo: © Getty Images
2023: Soudal-Quick-Step
Floor brand Quick-Step and Soudal join forces in 2023. With Remco Evenepoel in the rainbow jersey, the team wins Liège-Bastogne-Liège for the second year in a row. And it doesn't stop there. Evenepoel continues the impressive line and wins the Classica San Sebastian, the World Time Trial Championship and the mountain classification at the Tour of Spain for the third time in a row.
Photo: © Wout Beel
Quick-Step: a guarantee of champion's jerseys
The rainbow jersey collection
“For me personally, this is a victory worth more than the Tour of Flanders or Paris-Roubaix,” said an exceptionally emotional Patrick Lefevere in Valkenburg in 2012. The team won its first World Championship team time trial with branded teams, and did so again in 2013, 2016 and 2018. Ask Lefevere what his best wins are and he often comes back to these world titles. It’s not so strange, because it’s the ultimate team effort and that’s what Wolfpack stands for. Or to put it in Julian Alaphilippe’s words: “Wolves never hunt on their own, they are only invincible when they form a pack.” Although they can also race against the clock alone. This is illustrated by Michael Rogers’ (2003, 2004 and 2005), Tony Martin’s (2012, 2013 and 2016) and Remco Evenepoel's (2023) world titles.
The team also won world titles on the road:
- Oscar Freire (Lisbon 2001)
- Tom Boonen (Madrid 2005)
- Paolo Bettini (Salzburg 2006 & Stuttgart 2007)
- Michal Kwiatkowski (Ponferrada 2014)
- Julian Alaphilippe (Imola 2020 & Leuven 2021)
- Remco Evenepoel (Wollongong 2022)
With another one in cyclo-cross riding, Zdenek Stybar (Hoogerheide 2014), Quick-Step has no less than 20 world titles in the bag.
Photo: © Getty Images
Shining in European championships
In 2019, Quick-Step achieved a double European Championship. 19-year-old Remco Evenepoel won the European Championships for time trials in Alkmaar ahead of his teammate Kasper Asgreen. A few days later, Elia Viviani became European road champion.
Fabio Jakobsen was crowned the European road champion in Munich in 2022. In a mass sprint he was the fastest ahead of Frenchman Arnaud Démare and Belgian Tim Merlier.
Photo: © Wout Beel
Remco wins the Vuelta
Remco Evenepoel made history in 2022. He won his first Grand Tour, 44 years after the last Belgian to do so. It was an absolute first for Quick-Step in 24 years of sponsorship.
"All of the sacrifices of the past two years have paid off. I haven't always had an easy time. The crash in Lombardy, the fight back to my old level... And then these three weeks, which I have put together well, but in which I was often under attack. They really hurt me at times, you know. Fortunately, I was able to rely on an excellent team. I won the red jersey, but this final victory is first and foremost a collective triumph for the team." (HLN)
Photo: © Getty Images
3 green jerseys
In 2007, he wouldn't win a major event, but Tom Boonen once again made history for the team by being the first to win the points ranking in the Tour de France and the accompanying green jersey. "It took me three weeks of stress, and I’ve been working on it since I started in London. I absolutely had to have that green jersey." Boonen won two stages in that Tour.
It’s a long wait for a successor. The Irishman Sam Bennett took the green jersey home after winning the 10th stage and the prestigious final stage along the Champs-Élysées.
But the green jersey that many fans will remember is that of Mark Cavendish one year later. Cavendish, at the end of his team’s contract, seemed to be forced to retire until Patrick Lefevere threw him a lifeline. Nobody believed in the Brit until the 36-year-old Cavendish replaced the injured Sam Bennett at the start of the Tour de France. He surprised both friends and enemies by winning no less than 4 stages and the final ranking of the points jersey. That made it one of the strongest comebacks in sporting history. "I don't really know what to say. Just being here was already special enough. I never expected to return to this competition. There were so many who no longer believed in me. These guys still believed in me."
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Giro d'Italia points classification Maglia Ciclamino
Paolo Bettini won the second stage of the Giro d'Italia in 2005 and took home the Maglia Ciclamino. In 2006, he once again won a stage and succeeded himself as the winner of the points ranking.
Between 2010 and 2016, the Giro's points jersey would change colour: purple became red. It is that colour that Cavendish was allowed to take home in 2013 after winning no less than 5 stages. He has now won the points jersey in every Grand Tour and has passed the 100-professional victories mark.
In 2017, Fernando Gaviria started his first Grand Tour. What a debut for the talented Colombian. He won 4 stages and wrote his name all over the final ranking of the points jersey. In 2018 it was the turn of Elia Viviani. He also triumphed 4 times and put the Maglia Ciclamino around his shoulders.
Photo: © Getty Images
Jakobsen: from the crash to the Vuelta's points jersey
The events, the setting and the leading players are famous, the images are burned on the retina: 5 August 2020, Tour of Poland, first trip, the barriers, the hospital, the induced coma...
249 very hard rehabilitation days later, he was on the starting line on the opening stage of the Tour of Turkey on 11 April 2021: “I feel like the old Fabio still has something left.” And how! With a contract extension in his pocket, he first won two stages in the Tour of Wallonia and then three stages and the points ranking in the Vuelta. "Who would have thought that possible last year? Back then I was still sitting around with missing teeth, and now I’m part of the team again. I’m super proud of that. It really motivates me."
Photo: © Getty Images
Three polka dot jerseys
Following his doping confession and suspension, Richard Virenque, the “darling” of French cycling, was snapped up by Patrick Lefevere. He lived up to his name as a king of the mountain and won a stage in 2003 and 2004 and the mountain classification in the Tour de France and the accompanying polka dot jersey. In 2004, he was awarded the prize for the most aggressive rider.
Who else but Julian Alaphilippe would follow him up in 2018. The Frenchman won 2 stages and managed to scrape together enough points along the way to win the mountain classification.
Photo: © Getty Images
World Cup
The World Cup existed from 1988 to 2004. It was a regularity criterion in which riders could score points in 10 important one-day races. Paolo Bettini is the only rider to have won three World Cup competitions in one season. He did so in 2003. He won the World Cup three times in a row: in 2002, 2003 and 2004. That’s another record.Photo: © Getty Images
A jersey celebrating 25 years of #DesignedToPerform
The jersey is a reference to the legendary jersey of Mapei-Quick-Step in 1999, which cycling heroes such as Johan Museeuw, Paolo Bettini and Andrea Tafi were proud to wear. The well-known blocks were given a stylish upgrade and accentuate the evolution of the iconic blue, which was a common theme throughout the years. It also represents the desire to constantly push the boundaries. As a leader in innovation and design, we want to be the best cycling team and the best flooring brand.