The Tour de Pollogne (open in new tab) will remember Björg Lambrecht (open in new tab), who will start in Chorzów on August 5.

Lambrecht's 143 race number has already been made permanent, and organizers have decided to name the Best Young Competition in honor of Lambrecht's young talent. The race will be preceded by a minute of silence before the start of the opening stage.

"Bjorg will be with us forever. We will never forget him. We want to remember him in several ways," explained race director Cheslav Lang.

Lotto Soudal (open in new tab) will send a strong team to the 2020 Tour de Pollogne in honor of his former teammate.

"I would like to pay tribute to Bjorg's memory and thank the organizers and Polish fans for their amazing support. They were with us in the most difficult moments and encouraged us. Just as we will never forget Bjorg, we will never forget that," said John Lerangue, team manager of Lotto Soudal.

"The number 143 is on our team car and is used for official team communication. We are very happy that at the end of the race a special Bjorg Award will be presented to the best young cyclist. It is very symbolic.

Lambrecht went off the road on stage 3 from Chorzow to Zabrze and hit a concrete culvert. The Lotto-Soudal team explained that Lambrecht suffered severe damage to his liver in the accident, which caused internal bleeding and led to cardiac arrest. His death caused an emotional outpouring at the race site and in his Belgian hometown. The peloton and Lotto-Soudal riders remembered him on stage 4 with a procession before the Lotto-Soudal riders rode to within 50 meters of the finish, followed by a minute of silence under a special banner.

Lambrecht was in his second year as a professional when he passed away. He had already won one stage of the 2018 Tour des Fjords in Norway as a professional, finishing second in the 2017 Tour de Lavenir behind recent Tour de France winner Egan Bernal and fourth in this year's Flèche Wallonne, He was widely regarded as one of Belgium's future stars.

Veteran Lotto Soudal rider Adam Hansen affectionately called Lambrecht "Matchbox."

"He left his wallet in the coffee shop so many times I remember picking it up," Hansen wrote. I remember trying to find my lost iPhone when he left it somewhere. ...... Now, Matchbox has left us behind: ...... He was a good boy ......" . Hansen said in a moving message shortly after his death.

Tomasz Martinski had planned a personal way to remember his teammate after Lambrecht's death at last year's Tour de Pologne.

"The memory of Bjorg is an additional motivation for all of us. I believe it will give us strength in important situations."

"We want to dedicate this success to him and fight for the highest goals. I will have something symbolic in memory of Bjorg. Maybe a symbol on my helmet or shoes."

Full details of the 2020 Tour de Pollogne will be announced on July 1.

This World Tour stage race was originally scheduled for July 5-11 as an alternative to the Tour de France before the Tokyo Olympics; the race was suspended due to the COVID-19 pandemic and is now an important early race in the revised race calendar. The race is now an important early race in the revised race calendar.