"The culture of our organization is: work smart, play always" - Bas Tietema tells about his team's ideology

The men from Kop over Kop were guests at the premiere of the Tour de Tietema film and spoke with Bas Tietema himself. He retired as a rider this year and will work full-time as a team leader in 2024. The YouTuber wants to grow with his team TDT-Unibet, but also does not want to lose the fun.

"We have always had fun and we still do," Tietema says in the new episode of Kop over kop. "People may think that we sometimes have too much fun, but we always approach things professionally. But when I go to a race we still have a lot of fun. That's not going to change. The culture of our organization is: work smart, play always. We do not put the team's performance first."

The fact that the team wants to be competitive at the highest level next season will have an impact, as Tietema himself sees. "I would like it if we kept our feet on the ground, but continued to think big. A lot will change next year pro-continental. Expansion of the service rate, expansion of the number of people in the team. However, we remain true to our corporate identity when it comes to bicycles and uniforms."

Next season, TDT-Unibet will be the third professional team with Dutch roots and they can gain access to the really big races via a wildcard. "I believe that we have a good team in terms of sport, but no names for which you usually receive a wild card," Tietema explains. "Yet we can be an enormous added value in the peloton. Especially in terms of the entertainment and enthusiasm that we bring to an event with our fans."