Belgium's new national coach, Sven Vanthourenhout, will take on new responsibilities on the road while the 39-year-old continues as national cyclocross coach for the 2021 season, which will be hit by the coronavirus and a pandemic.

He will lead his country's top riders in the upcoming Tokyo Olympics next summer, as well as the Belgian squad for the cyclocross and road world championships in Oostende next January and Flanders in September.

Though thrown in at the deep end, Vanhollenhout is hoping for the long haul and says, "I want this job to last a long time."

His predecessors, Rick Verbrugghe and Kevin de Waal, left the position after being lured by more lucrative offers to join the World Tour team staff, but Vanhollenhout says he is focused on the job at hand.

"It would be a very bad signal if I declared now that in the long run I dream of a position as sports director of a WorldTour team," Vandhoerenhout said on Sporza's "De Tribune" podcast on Monday.

"It's tempting (to be approached), but today my mind is completely on the job as national coach. 'If it were up to me, I would like to keep this job for a long time, and I think the federation thinks so, too.'

"I am still quite young," continued Van Hollenhout, who turns 40 in January. 'It's hard to put a number on it, but I might be here for the next five or ten years. But I might be here for the next five or ten years.

"If I don't win a single medal in the next five years, that means I wasn't good enough. Missing a medal just once is always possible, but as a national coach you are judged on other tasks, such as finding young talent."

De Waal left his position to join Lot Soudal as performance manager in 2019, and Verbrugghe accepted the position of sports manager for the Israel Startup Nation in 2021 last month.

Verbrugghe had hoped to combine his role on the national team with a new position on the Israeli World Tour team next season, but the Belgian federation was looking for someone who could focus entirely on the national team.

"2021 will be a very busy and important year," Belgian Cycling Federation director Jos Smets told Sporza last week. 'It will be difficult for Rick Verbrugghe because of his new job. We had an open discussion with him and were able to part on good terms."

Van Haulenhout met all the requirements as a replacement, Smetz said.

"Sven is a good coach. He talks and interacts well with the players. Next year will be challenging right away. And the World Championships will draw a lot of attention to us because we are hosting it in our own country."

"We are very happy to have Sven as our coach.

Vanhulenhout and Hagens Berman Axion director Axel Merckx were on the shortlist of national team members ultimately acquired by Verbrugghe for the 2019 season, and Merckx was considered once more before the position was handed to Vanhulenhout

He had already been considered for the national selection committee.

He has already received an endorsement from Wout Van Aert of Jumbo Visma, arguably the biggest star in Belgian cycling right now, and his background in cyclocross means that the two already know each other well.

"Good job, Belgian Cycling," Van Aert tweeted after the announcement of his new national coach. 'Good luck, Sven Van Hollenhout. "

Van Aert will be first on the list of Vanthourenhout to compete in the Olympics, Road World Championships, and Cyclocross World Championships, as he has already won the TT title at the 2019 UEC Road European Championships in Alkmaar, the Netherlands, and has one of two Olympic men's time trial berths.

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