The reason for this uproar?
Jumbo-Visma's plan to conquer all three Grand Tours and the related sacrifices that would entail. "There were several things: boys who would not ride a Grand Tour, because they wanted to win all three. I thought that looked good on paper, but in practice... it was such a big goal that it almost became unrealistic," he analysed.
"So many sacrifices were made that were beyond repair," he continues. "For example, Olav Kooij, who deserved a Grand Tour. But Gijs Leemreize, who competed three times for a stage victory in the Giro, was also not going to ride a Grand Tour. We have always trained riders to a higher level, and that completely disappeared. None of those young guys went on to ride a Grand Tour."
"The initial reaction was not what I hoped for, because I wrote it with the best intentions. It was at the very beginning of the season and I wanted to have another good year," he recalls. "That's what I said: Merijn, I assume you only want yes-men."
Ultimately though,
Merijn Zeeman would prove to be right as Jumbo-Visma completed the hat trick. "I sent him a message saying: we're not talking about it anymore," van Emden laughs. "And now he also quotes me in interviews!"