Team Visma | Lease a Bike’s Paris-Nice TTT win marks significant milestone for the team

Team Visma | Lease a Bike delivered a commanding performance in the team time trial at Paris-Nice, securing a one-two in the general classification with Matteo Jorgenson taking the leader’s jersey ahead of teammate Jonas Vingegaard. The display of collective strength was a clear statement of intent and power, not just for the remainder of Paris-Nice but for the season ahead.

Beyond the immediate impact on the race, this victory marks an important milestone for the team. It is their 10th team time trial win, including those achieved under their former team names. This latest success continues a rich tradition of excelling in the discipline, with Visma’s past TTT victories spanning Grand Tours and major stage races.

Their most recent Grand Tour team time trial victory came in the 2022 Vuelta a España, where they beat INEOS Grenadiers by 13 seconds. That lineup featured Primoz Roglic, Sepp Kuss, Rohan Dennis, and Robert Gesink, among others. However, despite their strong start, that Vuelta did not end well for Visma, as Roglic crashed out before the finish and Remco Evenepoel went on to take the red jersey.

Going even further back, their last Tour de France TTT win came in 2019, when they won in Brussels over a 27.6km course. That squad included Wout van Aert, Steven Kruijswijk, George Bennett, Tony Martin, Mike Teunissen, Laurens De Plus, Dylan Groenewegen, and Amund Grøndahl Jansen.

Their winning margin was an impressive 20 seconds over a star studded INEOS Grenadiers team featuring the defending champion Geraint Thomas and soon to be champion Egan Bernal. That performance set the tone for an exceptional Tour just as Visma were ascending to the top, culminating in Kruijswijk finishing third overall in Paris.

To trace Visma’s first success in a team time trial, one has to go all the way back to 1993, when they took victory in Classic Brugge-De Panne. The discipline has long been part of the team’s DNA, and their ability to perfect the discipline over the years has made them one of the strongest TTT squads in modern cycling.

What do you think of TTT’s? Do you think they should feature more often?