In 2024, Team Visma | Lease a Bike starts a new era. A revamped look to their kit, a new sponsor on their name and a refreshed lineup. How close can they get to replicating their immensely successful 2023 however?
As part of Eurosport's Kop over Kop podcast, Jeroen Vanbelleghem, Jan Hermsen, Bobbie Traksel and Sander Valentijn discuss this question. As with all teams in the peloton, the Tour de France will be a key point in the campaign, especially for Team Visma | Lease a Bike as Jonas Vingegaard looks to make it a hat-trick of Maillot Jaune victories.
“I don't think it will be a problem in the Tour,” says Vanbelleghem about the notable departure of Primoz Roglic. “Last year Vingegaard was also the only leader, and it worked out then too. Maybe it will be a bigger challenge to win all three Grand Tours.”
Not the Slovenian but rather Wout van Aert will be the bigger miss next summer it is believed as the Belgian undertakes a different calendar this year, targeting the Giro d'Italia. “You will miss Van Aert more than Roglic in the Tour. What Van Aert has shown in the Tour over the last two years is more than phenomenal. He is not replaceable,” analyses Traksel.
Van Aert will be the team's leading light in the monuments though. “If they have a season like last year again, then it will of course still be a success. I do think that at least the Tour of Flanders and Paris-Roubaix are very high on Team Visma | Lease a Bike's list of priorities," says Vanbelleghem.
“There is a very strong foundation within the team. With Van Aert as the absolute leader. The team is very balanced,” Traksel adds.
“I think they have a clear purpose with the monuments," sees Hermsen. "Flanders and Roubaix are very important, but if they win Liège or Milano-Sanremo they will also be happy. After a monumental year, I think the team needs to win again.”
Place comments
0 Comments
You are currently seeing only the comments you are notified about, if you want to see all comments from this post, click the button below.
Show all comments