Jonas Vingegaard was in the spotlight on Tuesday during Stage 10 of the Tour de France. He lost crucial time to Tadej Pogacar
and several other rivals. His post-stage analysis stood out, because he spoke about
his legs getting stronger and stronger, despite the losses. Before the start of stage 11, IDL Pro cycling headed straight for the
Visma | Lease a Bike team bus, largely because of what Vingegaard had said on Sunday evening.
Let’s go back to Monday, when Stage 10 hadn’t been raced yet and Vingegaard was enjoying a well-deserved day off. His only media obligation was to appear on Danish TV, where he did let a few things slip. Because, according to Vingegaard himself, he approached his team’s management last winter
and threatened to resign.
The climber explained that he began talks with Visma | Lease a Bike because he was starting to lose some of his enjoyment of the sport. “I already said last year that if things continued this way, I wouldn’t be able to keep competing or going on. That’s also why we’ve changed a few things,” he said, referring, among other things, to a new schedule that includes a little more time with family and a little less time away from home.
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Visma | Lease a Bike weren't surprised by Vingegaard's threats
Vingegaard’s decision didn’t come as a surprise to Visma | Lease a Bike, team manager
Marc Reef told us on Tuesday morning. “We’re always in talks with him, including at the end of last year. That’s how the program was put together—the one that’s now been rolled out—with the Giro d’Italia and the Tour de France as the two main goals. And the UAE Tour was also part of that plan initially.”
Vingegaard had to skip that race due to illness, but the Dane found another source of motivation in the Tour of Catalonia. “I think everyone has been able to tell since the winter that he’s happy—basically every moment he’s been racing. Jonas is very open and feels right at home; actually, everything has gone really well so far.”
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Visma | Lease a Bike will also hold talks with Vingegaard for 2027
Vingegaard said of his new program: “We’ve taken a step in the right direction, but it’s clear that it’s just one step.” When confronted with that comment, Reef responded that Visma | Lease a Bike will continue to explore new approaches in the coming period. “We’re always in dialogue with each other, so we’ll be reviewing his program this coming winter as well.”
For now, the focus is still on the Tour de France; after that, everything is up in the air. Might we see Vingegaard compete in one-day races as well? Or in other stage races? Reef left it open. “After the Tour, we’ll discuss that together, and then we’ll be able to share a bit more about it.”