"Visma seems like a pile of loose sand" - Belgian pundit disappointed by the way Dutch team races at the Giro
Cycling
It's not the same Visma | Lease a Bike that ruled the world two years ago. That also shows at the on-going Giro d'Italia. Maybe it's a fear of crashing, maybe lack of cohesion between the key links. But only Edoardo Affini was present in the final of stage 4 to help the sprinter Olav Kooij.
"I can't really put my finger on what exactly is wrong with Visma | Lease a Bike, but what I did see is that they raced in a spread-out formation," Michel Wuyts analyzes in the Wuyts & Vlaeminck podcast. The pundit saw yellow jersey scathered across the peloton, but rarely together: "They were everywhere in the peloton, but never concentrated around men like Wout van Aert or Simon Yates."
According to Wuyts, Van Aert benefits from more selective races: "Van Aert needed Kelderman in the first stage to bring him back, otherwise he would never have been able to ride a sprint. But in stage three, it was everyone on their own at Visma again, then I asked myself the question, what's going on there?"
Wuyts also noticed Visma's strange race behaviour in the spring. Their highlight (and downfall) was the Dwars door Vlaanderen, when the team absolutely dominated the race. Until the fatal tactical mistake. But other than that, it was mostly down to individuals to try and break through.
And as far, there doesn't seem to be a positive trend at the Giro. Despite the two second places of Van Aert and Kooij, something is still not right. Hopefully, the Dutch formation can find that missing piece and provide its supporters with a deserved spectacle. "Visma seems like a pile of loose sand to me at the moment. And whether that will turn out well and become more homogeneous, I also wonder," Wuyts concluded.
Ondrej ZhasilCycling Journalist
Ondřej Zhasil is a cycling journalist at CyclingUpToDate and has been part of the team since 2023. He is based in Ostrava, the third-largest city in the Czech Republic, and covers professional cycling across the main UCI competitions, including the Tour de France, the Giro d’Italia, and La Vuelta a España. A key focus of his work is startlist analysis and pre-race coverage, where he examines team selections, rider line-ups, and tactical scenarios ahead of major events.
Alongside WorldTour coverage, Ondřej has developed specific expertise in junior cycling and in racing across East Asia, including competitions in China and Japan. He also maintains a broad working knowledge of other disciplines and levels, including cyclocross, while continuing to expand his understanding of mountain bike racing.
Ondřej holds a bachelor’s degree in Mathematics and Physics, which supports his analytical, data-driven approach to performance and race analysis. In his reporting, he regularly uses ProCyclingStats for results, statistics, and historical context. He places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles promptly when new, verified information becomes available.
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