Former professional rider Lieuwe Westra has died at the age of 40. His biographer, Thomas Sijtsma, reported that the Dutch rider died Saturday afternoon.
According to Dutch media, Westra was found unresponsive at his work place in Zwaagdijk, the Netherlands, and CPR was ineffective; Sijtsma later clarified that at this stage "suicide is not a possibility."
The Dutchman, nicknamed "The Beast" during his career, raced for Vacansoleil and Astana in the peloton for eight years, retiring in January 2017 with 13 wins.
Westra was set to continue racing in Wantigover that year, but at age 34 he abruptly announced the end of his career. He went on to run a cycling hotel in Spain and admitted to suffering from depression following the end of his career.
SIjtsma wrote in a Twitter post on Sunday, "The former cyclist fought himself in recent years and lost. Rest in peace, beast."
Westra, who turned pro at the relatively late age of 26, had several major victories in his career, most memorably his mountaintop finish victory at the 2014 Criterium du Dauphiné Finaux-Emoson.
This stage was memorable because Westra had lost a two-man breakaway sprint the day before in Poissy, but he succeeded again on the mountain stage, dramatically catching and passing Katusha's Yuri Trofimov and Egor Shirin on the final 200m climb He left.
His solo victories on the Paris-Nice stage 5 in 2012 and the final stage of the Volta a Catalunya in Montjuïc Park in 2014 remain his WorldTour victory record.
In 2014, he was part of the Astana team that led Vincenzo Nibali to victory in the Tour de France, playing a key role in stage 5, where he rode the yellow jersey across the wet cobblestones of Paris-Roubaix to win the Combat Award.
Throughout his racing career, Westra was known for his combative and aggressive riding style, showing strength in the mountains as well as on the flats and time trials. In addition to his most notable victories, he has racked up wins at the 2016 Drydag de Panne, the 2012 Post-Danmark Lundt, the opening round of the 2013 Tour of California, and two national time trials in 2012 and 2013.
Westra would later reveal in his 2018 autobiography, The Beast, that he faked an injury to obtain a TUE for cortisone during his Astana days. He also admitted to using tramadol and caffeine in Driedaagse De Panne in 2016.
Many former teammates and fellow players paid tribute to Westra on social media after his passing was announced.
Johnny Hoogerland, a former teammate of Vacansoleil, wrote: "Leuwe, my friend. What has happened to you over the past years ...... I am very saddened that your life has already ended today. I am very sorry that I could not be of more help. We will never forget what you did for us when we were teammates. May you rest in peace on us."
Enrico Gasparotto, a teammate of Astana's in 2014, said, "Lieuwe, rest in peace. One of my most loyal teammates, a man with a big heart."[27
His former Astana Kazakstan team said, "We are shocked by the terrible news about the untimely death of Lieuwe Westra. We extend our deepest condolences to his family and loved ones..."
Numerous Dutch riders, including Maarten Jaringi, Steven de Jong, Bobby Traxel, Kane de Kort, Jetze Bol, Thomas Dekker, and Theo Bos, also paid tribute to Westra in Twitter posts.
Dekker wrote: "The beast is gone. Liuwe, the loneliness you have felt all these years cannot be expressed in a pen. What a painful battle it must have been. I hope peace will come to you. Sad loss and strength to all involved."
Cycling News would like to extend its condolences to Westra's family, friends, and former teammates.
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