“I do not make a lot of friends because I am pushing a lot of Danish away from Jonas" - Jumbo-Visma boss critical of lack of Covid-protecting measures at Tour de France
Cycling
Jumbo-Visma are in the Tour de France with a lineup designed around it's ambitions to take the win in both overall and points classification, and have since day one been big protagonists in the Grand Boucle.
Team Jumbo-Visma manager Richard Plugge has told Velonews that “nobody is wearing a mask anymore. And people just do not understand how important it is to keep distance. That is mainly the biggest problem compared to a year ago.” Having suffered an outbreak at the Tour de Suisse, the Dutch team is well aware of the damage the lack of safety can lead to.
With an eye on the Tour de France, the main Jumbo-Visma block has been training and racing together for the good part of the month leading up to the Tour de France. Besides a big lack of presence at the national championships, it's riders and staff are also frequently using masks on most public appearances - something which over the year was slowly declining. With team DS Merijn Zeeman testing positive right before the start of the race, not only was it a disappointment for the team but also a high risk situation.
With riders and teams being pulled out of races due to outbreaks several times this year, Jumbo-Visma wants to take no risk. But Plugge is critical: "We are doing the same as we did to protect our riders and staff. The only problem is that you see around here that nobody is having protocols or measures. The rest of the world thinks it’s over, but it’s not over. It’s spiking at the moment in Europe, and maybe it’s even worse than last year during the Tour. That’s the big problem.”
Outside from the high number of Covid cases in the continent, the loosening of restrictions around the audience - both on the road and around the start/finish areas has led to a higher risk. “I do not make a lot of friends because I am pushing a lot of Danish away from Jonas and the rest of the riders. You want to maintain the distance. We also ask the fans to please keep your distance.”
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
- A great champion but a better human. jus' sayin'
Davide15-11-2026 - Congrats! It is done so now is time for CX.averagecyclist15-11-2026
- It's going to happen at some point. It will happen to Tadej as well, we all get older. Jonas was in pretty great form at the tour. I still consider him a top two or three cyclist in the world, until he's not.awp15-11-2026
- mij, I am not so sure of that. I have been on a spine ward at a Denver hospital that had quite a few spinal injuries from mountain biking.BDBigGuy15-11-2026
- Pogi takes care of his teammates in races and training. Tadej Pogačar is widely praised within the cycling peloton for his fair and egalitarian leadership, actively supporting his UAE teammates both on the road during races and behind the scenes at training camps. Rather than acting like an untouchable superstar, he has intense team loyalty by sharing daily chores, giving up personal glory to help domestiques, and publicly praising their sacrifices. Unlike some Grand Tour contenders, like Vingegaard, who occasionally train away from their squads, Pogi consistently attends team training camps alongside his domestiques, making the exact same sacrifices to build friendship. I love how Pogačar shares his teammates-domestiques, either when they succeed or win in races or when they simply just do a good job for him. It has to be a great moral boost for them. And then they work even harder and go even deeper for Pogi. This is teamwork.PogiSloFans15-11-2026
- Yeah, what he said!Lozza15-11-2026
- I’m sure Jasper Philipsen would disagree with you.Lozza15-11-2026
- Article says he was “out for a spin around the town”, implying not off-road.Lozza15-11-2026
- let’s be honest, Alpecin is all about one rider - MVDP. I’m sure he gets whatever he needs, the rest get the scraps.mij15-11-2026
- there are more vicious injuries on a road bike than a mountain bike far and away.mij15-11-2026
Loading
What an atmosphere during the opening weekend of the Tour de France!🤩 Relive the first three stages in this photo album📸
Write a comment