Caleb Ewan ended his contract with Lotto-Dstny 1 year earlier and the Belgian team confirmed that after a mutual agreement was reached, he will move away from the dire situation and race with another team in 2024.

An announcement from Jayco-AlUla soon followed to confirm that the Australian rider would return to the team where he began his career.

Ewan achieved 5 of his 61 UCI victories in 31 seasons with Lotto, but 2023 was a tough year from the start.

There were a lot of painstaking near misses, with only 1 win, but things got worse at the Tour de France. He was nearing victory in 2 early sprints, but then struggled through the mid-race mountain stage before abandoning to stage 13.

It sparked the ire of new team manager Stephen Hewlett, who very publicly conveyed his outspoken criticism of Ryder. The Belgian team is increasingly turning to Belgium's Arnaud de Lie as a key sprint option, and Ewan made the move after long negotiations with Lotto-Dstby and Jayco-AlUla to leave Ewan by the end of 2024, when his contract expires.

"We are pleased that Caleb can continue his career elsewhere," Hewlett announced Ewan's departure in a statement on Wednesday.

"Caleb has earned a lot for the team and we are grateful for it, and like relationships and marriages, you have good and bad days together. 2023 was a difficult year for Caleb. We all know that he has a lot of talent, but now he has not shown it in our team, so it is better to break up. We don't want Caleb back to this new opportunity he has, so we decided to allow him to continue his career elsewhere."

Ewan will return to Jaco Arula, which includes not only his old teammates but also many new faces, Luke Prapp will also join the team from the Ineos Grenadier in 2024

Dylan Groenewegen will join the team as the lead sprinter in 2022." He won the stage in 2022 and in 2023 took 4 top 5 results.

"It's very special to have another Australian rider whose calibre like this joins us and he's another great to challenge for a sprint finish

"We're working hard to add depth to the men's team and we've got another top-level sprinter on the line. By adding to the link, Caleb and Dylan Lai

Ewan acknowledged "five fantastic years" with Lotto-Dstny, but it was clear they were ready for a change and return to the Australian WorldTour team.

"I'm definitely coming back to the team as a more experienced rider, in the last few years I've won the biggest race of my career and I think I've developed a lot as a rider and also as a leader," Ewan said, "I've been a part of my career." "I think I developed a lot as a rider and also as a leader,"

"I was so young when I first joined the team because I was 19 or 20 years old. I learned a lot from experienced people who were already there and used it in the future in my career.

"I am growing as a person, as a rider, and I look forward to coming back to more leadership roles. It's great to be able to help young Australian riders, reach their potential and give back to the team in that way.

"The main thing for me is to get back to the winning way and I hope it will bring a lot of success to the team.

Jayco-Alula used a video inspired by Crocodile Dundee to announce that Ewan has returned to the team.