'The end of a childhood dream' – WorldTour pro quits cycling for real estate career

After six years as a professional cyclist, Kobe Goossens began 2026 with a new job title in his Instagram bio: ‘vastgoedmakelaar’ – the Dutch term for a real estate agent.

The Belgian announced on New Year’s Day that, at 29 years old, he had called time on his cycling career. Goossens spent the past four years as part of WorldTour squad Intermarché-Wanty, but was left out of the team’s recent merger with Lotto.

“2025 marked the end of my cycling career. The end of a book, the end of a childhood dream,” Goossens wrote on Instagram.

“2026 will mark the start of a new book with ERA Vijfhoek [a real estate agency in the Belgian city of Mechelen – ed.].”

Already, the former WorldTour pro has swapped his Instagram picture to a LinkedIn-style headshot. He now appears in a beige turtleneck – instead of team kit – with folded arms and a warm smile.

Only eight riders from Intermarché-Wanty's 28-strong 2025 squad moved across to the new Lotto Intermarché, which brought the “unification” of the WorldTour squad and the former ProTeam Lotto.

Of the remaining 20 riders, Goossens is the latest of six to confirm their retirement. Tom Paquot, the youngest of the six at 26 years old, described himself as a “collateral victim” of the merger. Some, like Louis Barré, were given last-minute lifelines by other teams.

Meanwhile, eight riders from Intermarché’s now closed Wanty-Nippo-ReUz are yet to announce new teams.

After riding for Belgian Continental teams and competing in cyclo-cross, Goossens joined Lotto-Soudal’s under-23 squad in 2018 as a 22-year-old. He graduated to the WorldTour with the team in 2020, before joining Intermarché-Wanty in 2022, where he went on to spend four seasons.

The Belgian took part in all three Grand Tours across his career, riding the Vuelta a España three times, the Giro d’Italia once, and the Tour de France twice, most recently in 2024, when he won the combativity award on stage 10.

His closing palmarès counts two pro wins, which came a day apart in 2023, at early-season one-day races on the Spanish island of Mallorca.

Commenting on Goossens’s retirement, the rider's former agents at Wasserman Cycling wrote on Instagram: “A chapter closes, and a new one begins.

“Today we say goodbye to Kobe Goossens, who has decided to retire from professional cycling. After years of racing at the highest level, from victories on Mallorca to strong showings in Grand Tours, Kobe has chosen to turn the page and begin a new journey off the bike.”