Team Visma | Lease a Bike renew with the rider who has unexpectedly made it to the Tour de France - "It is incredibly insightful to work with riders like Jonas Vingegaard"

Team Visma | Lease a Bike recognize talent and make an effort to keep it. Bart Lemmen is in his Tour de France debut and has been making a great impression in the Dutch team this year, which has earned him a contract extension at the start of the race's second week.

"I feel at home in this team. I have only been a professional rider for two years and I am continuing to develop. I have learned a lot this year," Lemmen said in a press release issued by the team. "It is incredibly insightful to work with riders like Jonas Vingegaard, Matteo Jorgenson, Sepp Kuss, and Wout van Aert. I feel the trust from the team and that means a lot to me. I am very happy to be able to extend my contract by another two years."

Lemmen is commonly known for being the rider who made a switch from the Dutch military to cycling and has had a fast rise within the sport. Turned pro in 2022, in 2023 he moved to the American Human Powered Health and caught the interest of World Tour teams. This season he made the switch to Visma and in his debut he immediately impressed with a fifth place at the Tour Down Under. He was also tenth at the UAE Tour shortly after.

"Bart has made a meteoric development. He only turned professional two years ago and now he's already riding in the Tour. We were impressed by his abilities last year, and this year he has stepped up even more," team DS Merijn Zeeman added. "We believe he can continue to develop, which is why we are happy to extend his contract. He is an excellent climber and has already achieved great results this year in the Tour Down Under, UAE Tour, and Tour of Norway. He is also proving his worth in the Tour by skillfully supporting Jonas Vingegaard."

Lemmen was not originally outlined to race the Grand Boucle but found himself in the unexpected position after the bout of injuries and illnesses that have struck the team. However, it is unlikely that he has shown his true colours in the race yet, as there has only been one mountain stage thus far. But his physical and psychological attributes have assured the team he's a man to bet for the future: "His personality and maturity are also very strong. He is self-aware, attentive to everything needed to improve, and is a true team player."