Danish ex-pro believes Vingegaard never intended to perform at European Championship: "Eighty percent marketing"

Where others were disappointed with Vingegaard's performance, the former cyclist sees things differently. He does not consider the sporting aspect of being a European champion. “There was a chance that it would be 80 percent marketing and 20 percent results,” Holm explains to Ekstra Bladet. “You only know that after the race. After the race, we are all professors.”

It is precisely the financial aspect of Vingegaard's participation that makes it more than worthwhile. “I think it was worth it,” said the Dane, who was team manager at Quick-Step until 2022. “Because you have to see the marketing value in it. Some journalists who had never been to a European Championship before traveled to France.”

Vingegaard's participation came as a relative surprise, suddenly drawing a lot of extra attention to the race. This means that a significant amount of money will be deposited into the Danish Cycling Union's pocket. “In any case, the Danish Cycling Union will say that they got the money—their sponsors got ten times that amount back by letting him start.”

Holm knows how vital such a marketing stunt can be. He recalls an anecdote from his time as a rider with Team Telekom. "I remember we once bought a rider, Axel Merckx. I asked my boss, "What, he's not going to win that much, is he?" and he said, "No, he won't, but it's 80 percent marketing. Our sponsors are happy that we have Merckx on the team."

His presence was also good for the young participants in the European Championships, according to Holm. "The young riders who will one day grow old can say:' I once went to the European Championships with the man who won the Tour de France twice." I believe a few selfies were taken with him."

Finance and promotion were the goals, according to the Dane. According to Holm, we didn't have to take a good Vingegaard into account in France at all. “When he rode the Angliru stage in the Vuelta (13th stage of the Vuelta a España, ed.), he had a hard time. I spoke to Michael Mørkøv there and said, ‘He's definitely going to cancel the European Championships now.’”

After the Vuelta, the overall winner chose to stay at home. As a result, his preparation was not ideal. "Three weeks in Glyngøre and then he had to ride well for the European Championships. We knew it would be a difficult task. You could say that other riders should have been the alternative, but were there any? So I actually think it's great that he showed up."