"What he did with Ayuso, I thought crossed the line" - Tadej Pogacar criticized by Dutch pundit
Cycling
Thijs Zonneveld has talked about Sylvan Adams and his alleged involvement with NSN Cycling Team and also the gap between Tadej Pogacar and Juan Ayuso which formed in 2024. He criticized the World Champion over his reaction to what happened at the 2024 Tour de France.
"Over the past year, we’ve seen him hit his ceiling in terms of what he can handle in one season. The most beautiful thing is always when he’s beaten on his own merits, by the next generation," Zonneveld said on the In de Waaier podcast on the Slovenian. "That’s always the best, right? When the champion is finally defeated by those coming after him."
Zonneveld is fully aware of the historical figure that is currently marking the sport and the 2020's, however not everything is spotless with the rainbow jersey. "What he did with Ayuso, I thought crossed the line," he says. Reportedly the rift that emerged between Pogacar and Ayuso was ultimately a meaningful part as to why the Spaniard departed the Emirati team.
At the 2024 Tour there was a lot of discourse around Ayuso's reluctance to work at the Col du Galibier, and with him later abandoning the race before the mountains with Covid-19, he ultimately proved to be far from a valuable teammate to Pogacar who ultimately won the race.
The two have not teamed up once this year, and with Ayuso also having serious Grand Tour goals, matching him with Pogacar was simply not logic in the three-week races and put another obstacle in his way. "Over the past two years, you see that ego surfacing a lot more. But if we’re comparing him to Armstrong, of course, there is absolutely no comparison."
Ayuso at the Kigali World Championships. @Imago
Sylvan Adams and NSN Cycling Team
Zonneveld also spoke about the 'new' NSN Cycling Team, which took over the license of Sylvan Adams. Initially, it had been said that Sylvan Adams would no longer be having his role in the team. However in recent weeks, speculation that he is involved with the team grows stronger and stronger as no-one has denied his presence in the team.
And the team's last-minute salvation may have been aided by the Israeli billionaire, who was virtually pushed out of the sport due to his pro-Israel rhetoric and the use of the team for what many term to be sports washing for the Israeli state.
"That party cannot possibly have enough money to take over the full sponsorship. It strongly looks as though Adams has very close ties to the Swiss investment bank, and that his stake in the team is still running through that bank," the Dutchman said.
"At such a late stage, it’s incredibly difficult to find a new sponsor — especially for a team that’s been under so much scrutiny. The only way is for Adams, as a billionaire, to cover a large part of the bill himself. But how long does he still find that fun, paying for all this while he’s not allowed to claim anything or project a political message anymore?"
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Rúben SilvaEditor-in-Chief
A founding contributor to CyclingUpToDate since its launch in January 2022, Ruben Silva has played a central role in shaping the site’s editorial direction and long-term growth. Before joining the project, he built his experience through independent blogging at Echelons Hub and by producing race previews for Ciclismo Internacional, developing a strong analytical voice rooted in daily engagement with professional cycling.
Beyond editorial work, he has been closely involved in the expansion and coordination of CyclingUpToDate’s wider network, helping establish and support sister platforms across multiple languages. This includes ongoing collaboration with CiclismoAlDia (Spanish), CiclismoAtual (Portuguese), WielrennenUpToDate (Dutch), and RadsportAktuell (German), contributing to a shared editorial vision and consistent international coverage.
He also helps oversee editorial governance across the network, setting standards for accuracy and consistency and coordinating updates or corrections when needed.
Originally from the Porto metropolitan area in Portugal, he holds a bachelor’s degree in Geography. His path into cycling journalism was shaped not through formal media training, but through independent reporting, community engagement, and sustained on-the-ground involvement in the sport.
Over the course of his career, he has conducted approximately 100 interviews across road cycling and cyclocross, ranging from one-to-one conversations and online formats to press conferences and on-site pre- and post-race coverage. His interviews include leading riders, team managers, and prominent figures within cycling media: Tadej Pogacar, Jonas Vingegaard, Mathieu van der Poel, Primoz Roglic, Wout van Aert, Joao Almeida and Tom Pidcock; managers like Patrick Lefevere and Joxean Matxin; and YouTube personality Bryan Kennedy (BKXC)...
Within 18 months of launch, he helped grow CyclingUpToDate’s English-language platform into one of the most-read cycling news websites, built entirely from the ground up. As both a professional journalist and lifelong cycling enthusiast, his focus remains on delivering accurate, timely, and well-contextualized coverage.
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- From your writing it sounds like you’ve been sharing your views with people here for quite a while, quite presumouptuous for a new profile.Jumpyjohn12-11-2026
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- PogiSloFansUpToDate: The Tadej Pogačar Foundation has awarded scholarships for the 2026/2027 school and academic year in Slovenia. It received more than 60 applications from young people who have faced cancer, and all of them were approved. This year, Pogi's Foundation has therefore signed scholarship agreements with 63 recipients, totalling €166,000. This is almost double last year’s amount, when it awarded 35 scholarships worth €94,000. Pogačar: "We believe in you and your dreams. Now I’m cheering for you."PogiSloFans12-11-2026
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