“He wants to win all three Grand Tours” – Jonas Vingegaard’s mountain domestique lifts lid on ambition behind Giro d'Italia debut
Cycling
Jonas Vingegaard’s decision to add the Giro d’Italia to his programme in 2026 has sparked debate across the peloton. Some see it as a risk, others as a sign of confidence. Inside Team Visma | Lease a Bike, the message is simpler: this is about ambition, not compromise.
That much is clear from Wilco Kelderman, one of the riders who will be alongside Vingegaard in the first part of the season. Speaking to Eurosport during Visma's recent press day, Kelderman made it explicit what is driving the Dane’s new direction: “He wants to win all three Grand Tours.”
A new stimulus, not a safety net
Kelderman explained that this is not a last-minute idea, but a conscious shift after years of following the same Tour-focused build-up. “I have known that for a while. He has often had the same programme with the same build-up and is now looking for new impulses.”
That idea matches much of what has come out of Visma over the past week. Vingegaard has repeatedly spoken about needing fresh challenges, and several experts have framed the Giro as a way of pushing his physiology and motivation to a new level before facing Tadej Pogacar again in July.
Rather than hedging his bets away from the Tour, the Giro is being treated internally as part of a bigger project: using a different rhythm, different stresses and different race scenarios to sharpen him for his real measuring stick.
Kelderman’s role in “Team Vingegaard”
Kelderman himself will be part of that early-season structure around the Dane. He said clearly where his priorities lie: “I ride with Vingegaard up to the Giro. That means I will also ride the UAE Tour and the Volta a Catalunya all for him. I think I am a domestique he can always rely on. I have experience, and we are in the same phase of life, also with children. We understand each other well.”
That sense of stability is something Vingegaard has valued heavily in recent seasons. His Grand Tour squads have been built around familiarity and trust rather than constant rotation, and 2026 looks set to follow the same pattern, even with a new race added to the mix.
Kelderman will still have moments to race for himself later in the year, but he is realistic about what defines his season: “In the late season, I will still get some chances in Poland and Luxembourg, but my role is mainly a supporting one, and I help and guide younger riders.”
Why the Giro matters
Winning all three Grand Tours has become one of the rarest achievements in modern cycling. For Vingegaard, adding the Giro is not about padding his palmares. It is about reshaping how he arrives at the Tour.
After two seasons defined by the same duel with Pogacar and the same preparation arc, Visma clearly believe repetition is no longer enough. As Kelderman put it, this is about finding “new impulses”, not playing it safe.
That also explains why his support group is being chosen so carefully. The aim is not just to survive three weeks in Italy, but to come out of it with something gained, physically and mentally, for July.
Ambition before opportunity
Even for Kelderman, the logic is simple: performance comes before dreams. “Maybe a chance will come in a Grand Tour as well. But I always think: if the legs are good, it will come. To be able to ride a finale in a Grand Tour and be in a break does not happen often. I first need the legs and then those chances will come. So first I just need to train well this winter.”
That same thinking runs through Vingegaard’s Giro decision. He is not chasing novelty for its own sake. He is chasing a level that he believes can still move.
If he truly wants all three Grand Tours, the road to that goal has to start somewhere. In 2026, it starts in Italy.
Kieran WoodDeputy Editor-in-Chief
Kieran Wood is a sports journalist based in Wales and has been active in journalism since 2022. He regularly contributes to DartsNews.com and CyclingUpToDate.com, where he covers professional cycling and darts. In cycling, his work includes liveblogs from major races, including the Tour de France, the Giro d’Italia, and La Vuelta a España, alongside race reports and analysis. He has also conducted interviews with professional riders.
His reporting spans the full racing calendar, from one-day classics to stage races, with a focus on accurate, real-time coverage and clear contextual analysis. For statistics, results, and historical context, he regularly uses resources such as ProCyclingStats. To support reporting on rider activity and training context where relevant, he also references Strava.
In his work, Kieran places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles as new, verified information becomes available.
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