Jonas Vingegaard reportedly following in Tadej Pogacar's example: "His cranks have been filed down and repainted so that you can't read anything on them"
Cycling
Team Visma | Lease a Bike was contemplating the use of shortened cranks by their riders, but after Wout Van Aert already tested the new setup this winter, it now seems like the Dutch team finally gave in to the temptation and will follow the example set by world champion Tadej Pogacar.
"Copying has always been a thing," Richard Plugge tells Het Laatste Nieuws. "There is nothing wrong with good stealing."
"As a novice team manager, I watched Shayne Bannan's Orica GreenEdge a lot in 2014. After that, Team Sky and INEOS were the examples. We are aware that UAE Team Emirates became number one last year because they copied things from us cleverly, just as we in turn watched them carefully."
You won't notice it on the first sight, but according to the Visma boss, these shorter cranks should close the gap that opened up between his team and UAE Team Emirates - XRG. "We saw that Pogacar and other riders from Team UAE were racing with shorter cranks. We were also investigating that option, but they were the first to dare to implement it, and apparently it works."
Jonas Vingegaard
Team Visma | Lease a Bike doesn't want to give too much information, but Het Laatste Nieuws writes that 27 of the 29 riders have switched to shorter cranks. The newspaper writes that it is possible to read how long cranks all riders are riding with on their bikes, based on the layouts of specific models. Except for one: Jonas Vingegaard.
Het Laatste Nieuws writes: "His cranks have been filed down and repainted so that you can't read anything on them. In the peloton, it is whispered that Vingegaard has gone even lower than 160 millimeters, which is extreme. His cranks should even be specially developed by the manufacturer."
Soudal - Quick-Step sports director told Het Laatste Nieuws that the big change in crank setups is quite surprising to him, highlighting that it used to be mostly a climbers' thing: "It surprises me that big bears like Van Aert ride with shorter cranks, it seems to me mainly something for climbers."
Ondrej ZhasilCycling Journalist
Ondřej Zhasil is a cycling journalist at CyclingUpToDate and has been part of the team since 2023. He is based in Ostrava, the third-largest city in the Czech Republic, and covers professional cycling across the main UCI competitions, including the Tour de France, the Giro d’Italia, and La Vuelta a España. A key focus of his work is startlist analysis and pre-race coverage, where he examines team selections, rider line-ups, and tactical scenarios ahead of major events.
Alongside WorldTour coverage, Ondřej has developed specific expertise in junior cycling and in racing across East Asia, including competitions in China and Japan. He also maintains a broad working knowledge of other disciplines and levels, including cyclocross, while continuing to expand his understanding of mountain bike racing.
Ondřej holds a bachelor’s degree in Mathematics and Physics, which supports his analytical, data-driven approach to performance and race analysis. In his reporting, he regularly uses ProCyclingStats for results, statistics, and historical context. He places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles promptly when new, verified information becomes available.
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- many people advise him to grow slowly and rather do giro and/or vuelta instead of tdf. but i can totally understand that he is not satisfied with taking over once pogi declines, but instead beat him in his prime. so if he goes for tdf again, i‘m all for it. let‘s hope that pogi recovers soon!Ketterechts07-11-2026
- So gracious to offer something no-one would be prepared to pay for. The Giro is not the Tour and doesn’t command the same interest or attract the same “elite” (those willing to pay to be a part of something they consider has ego boosting potential). Roadside viewing will always largely remain free for everyone outside circuits. Introduction of a symbolic entrance to mountain climbs is worthy of exploration. Asking 1-2€ isn’t going to repulse real fans (most will spend 50-100€ on their outing that day all things included) but will prevent a portion of the total knobhead thrillseekers who will join in any large gathering as long as it’s free, just because they’re attracted to crowds, without which it it difficult for them to work up their anti-social behaviour.Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- How is radio going to help when someone went over a cliff or bridge or off the roadside into a forest unnoticed and is laying there unconscious?Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- Yep, next we’ll be accusing F1 drivers of avoiding Le Mans.Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- But on what is that opinion based? Are you holding him to a different standard than others? Are you saying he should do learn to like something he doesn’t Are you saying he hasn’t achieved enough Are you saying he pretends to be better than his results? It’s actually a really strange opinion to oust if you consider it objectively or rationally. Try applying it to others or yourself by asking if not EVERYONE should then be doing more? Nobody in athletics or swimming gets criticism for not expanding their repertoire when a rival or someone else does. In fact, most who move to another event get accused of running from their rival. Opinions are boring, the reasons behind them are what count.Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- for a medical chief to throw things like is just bad. There are already radios which were banned for spectacle. allow radios. Gps trackers are not a complete solutionabstractengineer07-11-2026
- Yeah man...PogiSloFans07-11-2026
- any rider less than 25 whether they are really ready for the position of leadership of GT is probably not the case. I think Pogi himself suffered when he was defeated by Jonas in the TDF twice. But that would be the team's job to ensure support so that they can bounce back. It requires a team and time to get back up and win after getting knocked down.abstractengineer07-11-2026
- I'm very glad he got the big late Quickstep Vuelta win and I hope he has a few left for Euskaltel-Euskadi.flyer07-11-2026
- My memories of Ivan Basso aren't good but I liked his sister Elisa ok.flyer07-11-2026
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