Merijn Zeeman sees turning a team with "unsafe working environment" into a world-class structure as "their greatest achievement"
Cycling
Despite harsh starts, Visma | Lease a Bike has become one of the world's two strongest cycling teams. The direct successor of famous Rabobank was taken over by two men - Richard Plugge and Merijn Zeeman, who together built an empire can be proud of six Grand Tour titles, among other great successes. But the success story ends here as Zeeman accepted an offer to move on from cycling and become the general manager of football club AZ Alkmaar from 2025.
"The Tour de France felt like the final event for me. For me, these are really the last few weeks now, that I now realise that these are the last times. It is double. On the one hand, I am looking forward to something new, but on the other hand, it is saying goodbye to a sport. And even more so, saying goodbye to people with whom I have shared joys and sorrows and experienced so much," Zeeman told In de Leiderstrui ahead of the Vuelta a Espana.
In 12 years with Visma | Lease a Bike, Merijn Zeeman managed to build an empire. However his starts with the team then knows as Belkin were far from idyllic. "Those early years were the hardest," the head sports director told
with De Volkskrant about the rough starts. "Actually after Rabobank had stopped as a sponsor. The culture and the atmosphere in the team were in every way the opposite of what you aim for."
"Thwarting each other, gossiping, every man for himself, leaking to the media. It was in very basic things: handing over follow-up cars dirty or not filling up the tank. If you're talking about an unsafe working environment, that's where it was. It was very unpleasant," Zeeman continued. "That we managed to turn that around, I see as our greatest achievement. No more leaning back, no more belittling others, no longer always shooting down every idea."
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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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- Are you MrMauMau 2.0? Nothing you are saying is really relevant. Vaguely connected, but irrelevant. The conversation is whether Schreiber impeded Brand or not.
Rafionain-Glas08-11-2026 - He is boring
leedorney08-11-2026 - To Twoje przemyślenia te bla, bla :)
Dariusz08-11-2026 - Uwielbiam patrzeć, jak wyjeżdża na czoło peletonu i zaczyna się rzeź...Dariusz08-11-2026
- Yeah, unreal.
parisbound0008-11-2026 - there needs to be space in life for pointless comments!Ketterechts08-11-2026
- That is a very lazy way of putting it but so far on this website it seems like everyone is happy to look at everything lazily, even things that annoy them intensely. All they want to do is state their feeling and position but ask most to analyse a problem or come up with solutions or improvements and you’re stunned by silence. Nobody even really knows how this all happens. It’s very simple and quick to just say the UCI did it but I bet you they didn’t, I bet you not more than 2 people were involved, more likely just 1. The UCI may be ultimately responsible but it is not their decision, this is about hierarchy, power and delegation. The fact that protest is possible also means it isn’t over and that MORE people could get involved for a thorough review which could throw up anything. It is highly likely it was a sole commissar who decided and has that power in a first round. Therein might lie the problem the UCI has to consider, is it acceptable to give so much authority to one single person when it is quite possible for them to have a natural bias or be too easily susceptible to imposed bias. Who is to say an individual in this position isn’t susceptible to collaboration with outside players with interests in the results, nations, families, teams, betting companies, etc. On the one hand we have sports where these problems have been worked on way more to reduce such problems, on the other hand we have sports with far stricter and more draconian rules not even concerning safety or obstruction that nobody really questions like false starts or stepping out of lane or zones in athletics. If cycling hastowork on itself, it would be good if protagonists (all kinds) would start doing a little more than just moaning over outcomes.Jumpyjohn08-11-2026
- Yes, so why not make comments less pointless?Jumpyjohn08-11-2026
- What a race! I didn't expect Vanthourenhout to collapse like that, and Wyseure did take the fight to Nys, but there was no doubt at the end. I also wonder what Aubin Sparfel would be capable of were he to race in the elites now. In the U23 ranks he is making good work of Giel Lejeune, who himself is among the better riders in the elites, and a top 10 contender in the big races (3rd at Kleebergcross, 8th at Berencross and 5th at Heerderstrand). In the French Cup, Sparfel is significantly better than Romain Debord (8th at Koppenbergcross and 10th at the Euros) and Rémi Lelandais (12th at Koppenbergcross and 19th at the Euros).Rafionain-Glas08-11-2026
- There really was nothing in it. Schreiber was so much faster, and Brand was fighting to stay in the wheel in the sprint. Schreiber did move a bit, but to say she closed the door doesn't make sense because Brand couldn't enter it anyway, abd she wasn't impeded.Rafionain-Glas08-11-2026
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🇪🇸 #LaVuelta24 𝐅𝐨𝐫𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫 off season. The very, very 𝐥𝐚𝐬𝐭 dance, after 18 years. 🥹 Today we are honoring a 𝐥𝐞𝐠𝐚𝐜𝐲. Enjoy your last ride, dear Robert! ❤️
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