Before retiring, one of Visma's veterans will teach young teammates how to race a Grand Tour - "Do the right things, make the right choices..."
CyclingSunday, 16 August 2026 at 13:02
Steven Kruijswijk joined the professional peloton 20 years ago already in 2006, and jumped to World Tour level in 2010. He is one of the riders who has lasted the longest in the modern peloton and, at age 39, he will do his final race as a professional at the Vuelta a España. He will be a key member to Team Visma | Lease a Bike, supporting its leaders and teaching its youngsters how to do a three-week race.
Retirement brings excitement back into Kruijswijk's final races
"It's maybe with the same feeling as I had when I started as a professional, you know," Kruijswijk said in words to Domestique. "You're looking forward to the first race you do, and now it's the other way around. It's the last race I'll do as a professional. So it's a good feeling, but also a strange feeling."
With only two professional wins but a very illustrious career both as a leader and a domestique at Visma, spanning its third decade now, Kruijswijk believes it is the right time to hang up the wheels.
The Dutchman has ridden 23 Grand Tours throughout his career, finishing on the podium of the 2019 Tour de France and coming close to winning the Giro d'Italia back in 2016, before a crash into a snow bank took the pink jersey away from his shoulders. For many years he is now in a supporting role on the team that has marked his career, and the decision on when he would retire became clear once he learned of his schedule for the year.
"When I heard last year the Vuelta would start in Monaco, I said that would be the perfect moment for me, as a rider, to have my last race there," he explains. "A nice opportunity, close to my family. We have been living here for ten years in the area, in Monaco."
Steven Kruijswijk will retire at the 2026 Vuelta a España
20 years in the peloton worth of experience
"I'm feeling pretty well. I had a good preparation as well in the months of June and July, towards these races," he assures. The Vuelta was always the plan, and the veteran was able to finish every race he started this year, meaning that most aspects have gone according to plan for the Dutch team.
"In Burgos, we went there with a few guys who will go to the Vuelta, so it was good racing and to get back into the routine," he added. There he teamed up with Ben Tulett and Matthew Brennan, the team's young leaders for the Vuelta.
"Also, the heat there was already like temperatures of 40 degrees, so it was good to adapt, and we had some nice successes with Matthew".
Read also
The team will have Wout Van Aert as well, likely in a leadout role for the bunch sprints, stage hunter on a few specific days and potentially domestique for his GC leaders as well. Both Tulett and Jorgen Nordhagen should have freedom to pursue it.
"My main goal will be helping the guys get stage victories and achieve a good result in the GC, being supportive in any way I can. We have some experience, myself of course, but also with Wout there. And a few guys will be doing their first Grand Tour, so I’d like to share my experience."
With 23 Grand Tours ridden, Kruijswijk has experience and knowledge that can't be learned in any other way. Taking into consideration the team is backing up riders doing their first, the presence of riders such as him is invaluable towards the learning process.
"Especially the young guys, who sometimes are a bit excited, maybe going too much into details. In the end, it’s a long race. It’s three weeks, and especially with the heat, it takes a lot out of you. I hope I can help the guys stay calm, do the right things, make the right choices, and give them confidence in the race."
Rúben SilvaEditor-in-Chief
A founding contributor to CyclingUpToDate since its launch in January 2022, Ruben Silva has played a central role in shaping the site’s editorial direction and long-term growth. Before joining the project, he built his experience through independent blogging at Echelons Hub and by producing race previews for Ciclismo Internacional, developing a strong analytical voice rooted in daily engagement with professional cycling.
Beyond editorial work, he has been closely involved in the expansion and coordination of CyclingUpToDate’s wider network, helping establish and support sister platforms across multiple languages. This includes ongoing collaboration with CiclismoAlDia (Spanish), CiclismoAtual (Portuguese), WielrennenUpToDate (Dutch), and RadsportAktuell (German), contributing to a shared editorial vision and consistent international coverage.
He also helps oversee editorial governance across the network, setting standards for accuracy and consistency and coordinating updates or corrections when needed.
Originally from the Porto metropolitan area in Portugal, he holds a bachelor’s degree in Geography. His path into cycling journalism was shaped not through formal media training, but through independent reporting, community engagement, and sustained on-the-ground involvement in the sport.
Over the course of his career, he has conducted approximately 100 interviews across road cycling and cyclocross, ranging from one-to-one conversations and online formats to press conferences and on-site pre- and post-race coverage. His interviews include leading riders, team managers, and prominent figures within cycling media: Tadej Pogacar, Jonas Vingegaard, Mathieu van der Poel, Primoz Roglic, Wout van Aert, Joao Almeida and Tom Pidcock; managers like Patrick Lefevere and Joxean Matxin; and YouTube personality Bryan Kennedy (BKXC)...
Within 18 months of launch, he helped grow CyclingUpToDate’s English-language platform into one of the most-read cycling news websites, built entirely from the ground up. As both a professional journalist and lifelong cycling enthusiast, his focus remains on delivering accurate, timely, and well-contextualized coverage.
claps 0visitors 0
Just in
Popular news
Latest comments
- The only team who would want him, who has spare money and has good relations with is Ineos . Movistar is out of question. UAE dont need him. No other team that require that kind of rider has money lying around to pay for contract breaking.abstractengineer16-08-2026
- i think riders who have been dropped and are alone need to start following traffic rules to avoid these incidents. Pushing speed in a downhill just increases risk with no benefitsabstractengineer16-08-2026
- This is just poor excuxes we dont need that. What happened in Volta Portugal hasnt happened before, at any race and shall never happen. Volta Portugal is not fit to host a race at any capacity going forward.miguel16-08-2026
- As much as I admire his chatacter and the resilience that forged his way into cycling, I believe he should've end his cycling career after 2024 vuelta, because it's hard for me to see any more big results from him at the moment.BenAflec16-08-2026
- Bora signed up Roglic on the cusp of still being a contender. A bit like the israeli team and Froome. The gamble like that venture never really bore fruit. Can he win the Vuelta? I would love to think that he could challenge Pog. Is that likely? I doubt it. Off course Pogacar could get ill or crash. Top 10 at best is my guess. His best placing this year I think was 8th in Tour de Suisse. I hope he surprises us though. Wouldn't that be great?Cyclingsbestfan16-08-2026
- The fact is, even if Jonas didn't crash out and would have been second in the Tour, he still can't win the WC. Wouldn't even come close. The WC will have the best one day specialists like MvDP, Van Aert, Mads Pedersen, Remco, Pogi and others. Why would Jonas go to a race like that? Just to lose it? Trine knows very well why she won't let him race... and it's not because he's injured. She just knows!!!PogiSloFans16-08-2026
- My "dear" maumau... I have a loving family, grown up kids, three grandsons and two granddaughters. We understand each other, joke around, most of the time we're having a good time. We're all healthy and happy for the time being. So don't talk to me about life, I'm doing just fine. But do make sure to take care of your own, not too much of your incomprehensible philosophy, just common sense, respect and love to your family. I wish you the best.PogiSloFans16-08-2026
- He's easily won P-N, Catalunya and Giro and was 2nd in the Tour before he crashed out. Doesn't sound like someone brokenvappaxbipmv16-08-2026
- How can Froome possibly be 2nd if we only take 2016 onwards into account? At the very least, Jonas is before him and should easily be 2ndvappaxbipmv16-08-2026
- Stop acting like a fool. You're the one mixing up details with your immature comments. So let me explain it to you, but unfortunately I can't hold your hand to get the message to your grey cells... UAE paid Ayuso to be Pogi's domestique, but Ayuso betrayed everyone. Capish?PogiSloFans16-08-2026
Loading
Write a comment