Team Visma | Lease a Bike's Lennard Hofstede retires with immediate effect

Team Visma | Lease a Bike's Lennard Hofstede has decided to call time on his career as a professional bike rider, just days after his 29th birthday.

"To be clear, this is not a difficult or unpleasant decision. I felt it was coming for a while," begins his farewell message to the team's official website. "I was not completely fit lately and I gradually lost the pleasure in riding races. And that is the essence of my professional cycling life. Therefore, this decision feels good and I am especially grateful for the many great experiences I have had here. I am really stopping with a smile."

Having been within the Visma set up since their Rabobank days back in 2013 (aside from a short spell with Sunweb ed.) Hofstede has proven himself capable in some of the biggest races, including the 2020 Vuelta a Espana where he helped Primoz Roglic secure overall victory. "I am also going to miss the whole Team Visma | Lease a Bike family. They were very beautiful and intense years together," he concludes.

"We are definitely going to miss Lennard," adds sports director Merijn Zeeman. "He was always of value. It is also brave of him to make that decision. He can be proud of his career, and so are we. We wish Lennard all the best in his further life."