Thomas de Gendt of Lotto Soudal says that holding this year's Tour de France in some form is essential to maintain the interest of team sponsors.

The Tour could be held on a new date, and there have been recent indications that it could be held from the last week of July through mid-August, but nothing is certain while the coronavirus has blockaded much of the world and the sport.

"We hope the Tour de France will take place. Because not only our sponsors, but many other sponsors are calculating their budgets based on the Tour's visibility.

"If the Tour is cancelled, many teams will pull out at the end of the year because their sponsorship will disappear. It could be a very bleak situation for cycling

"It would be disastrous for cycling if the Tour de France does not take place. As far as the coronavirus crisis is concerned, the Tour de France is insignificant, but for us riders, the Tour de France is our whole world."

"I don't understand why there are no people along the roadside during the Tour. If they are in small groups, scattered all over the place, like Paris-Nice, it's not dangerous at all, especially if you only allow those who need to be present at the start and finish (i.e., not the general public). The experience would be completely different, but the change would be better than no tour at all."

De Gendt's Lot Soudal team is one of the teams where both players and staff have agreed to pay cuts while the coronavirus epidemic continues to affect the sport.

"Nobody likes to give money away," de Gendt says. 'But our main sponsors, Lott, Soudal, Caps, and Ridley, are losing a lot of their revenue.'

"If we just stick to our contracts, we will run out of money at the end of the year and the team will go bankrupt. Otherwise, the team would not have existed by the last three months of the season."

The alternative during this period of no actual racing was increased indoor training and racing using systems such as Zwift and BKool. The "Virtual Tour of Flanders" (called the Tour of Flanders Lockdown Edition) was held over the weekend on the latter system, and de Gendt was one of the many famous riders who took part, with Greg Van Avermaat of the CCC team taking the win.

"In the absence of an actual race, I think e-race is a real solution," de Gendt said. If the peloton returns to normal, I don't expect many professionals to participate in virtual racing, but perhaps it will still exist as another area of cycling.

"We are all road cyclists. We know how to react in the peloton and what to do if someone suddenly swerves in front of us. On the home trainer, that aspect completely disappears. It becomes purely about power. But I might be taking part in the virtual Tour de Suisse later this month."

In the meantime, de Gendt said he will keep in shape and will not allow himself to go back into "winter mode."

"If I don't, I will gain weight. But none of us are going to the Tour prep races, none of us are going to the high altitude training camps. We all end up in the same situation."

"The Italian, French, and Spanish riders are not allowed to train on the road at the moment, but you won't see a difference between those who were able to ride outside this month and those who weren't," de Gendt said. The Tour is still a long way off. In a month, riders from other countries will be free from restraints and will have two months to prepare. That is enough time to get in shape for the Tour.

"Besides, unlike the Belgians, they will be able to run in the mountains, so they may have an advantage."