Rasmussen: After Giro stage win, is Mads Pedersen Denmark's greatest cyclist? "Vingegaard must tighten his shoes"
Cycling
With his Maglia Rosa regaining victory on stage 3 of the 2025 Giro d'Italia, Mads Pedersen now stands at 52 professional wins in his illustrious career - more than any other Danish rider in the history of the sport. But does being the most winningest Dane of all-time make the Lidl-Trek leader his nation's greatest ever cyclist?
This question was given some analysis by another icon in the history of Danish cycling - Michael Rasmussen, on Viaplay, following Pedersen's sprint win on stage 3 of the 2025 Giro d'Italia. “There’s no doubt that Mads ranks very high on that list,” notes 'The Chicken', although understandably, two-time Tour de France winner Jonas Vingegaard also deserves a mention when it comes to debating the greatest Danish cyclists of all time.
"Should his (Mads Pedersen ed.) many, many victories really be weighed against two overall Tour de France wins and two additional podium finishes?" questions Rasmussen. "Let’s not forget that. To stand on the podium four times at the Tour de France — that's seriously impressive.”
In comparing merely the number of wins for Pedersen and Vingegaard, the difference is stark. Whilst Pedersen has the aforementioned tally of 52 after his latest success, the Team Visma | Lease a Bike leader has 38 pro wins on his own palmares. As touched upon already though, not every win is worth the same and two Tour de France titles for Vingegaard weigh heavily.
“It’s not an easy comparison,” Rasmussen concludes, perhaps revealing he falls on the side of Pedersen in his closing remarks. “But there's no doubt: if Mads keeps going at the pace he's going now, Jonas is going to need to tighten his cycling shoes if he wants to go down as the greatest.”
What do you think? Use the poll below to vote for who you think is the greatest Danish cyclist of all time!
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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