Visma | Lease a Bike (besides Kooij) in the spotlight: Bike (and Veenhoven?) in the water, Jorgenson with flashy glasses

Monday, 31 March 2025 at 09:00

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Visma | Lease a Bike would have preferred to be the topic of conversation number one on Sunday with a great result in Gent-Wevelgem, but instead, the team stood out mainly for issues on the sidelines. In addition to Olav Kooij's crash, two other notable moments involved the team in yellow and black.

Kooij's crash was a massive setback for the men's elite. The sprinter broke his collarbone just after he had begun to follow eventual winner and Alpecin-Deceuninck leader Jasper Philipsen fiercely. "On the plugstreet, Olav followed Pedersen's attack but missed a turn shortly after. The race could have turned out differently because we had a perfect situation with Victor in the lead and Olav on Pedersen's wheel. But that's racing too, unfortunately," he said afterward.

Instead, Kooij had to be taken to the hospital, and not much later, there was another crash in the women's race. Nienke Veenhoven had a nasty crash, and Visma | Lease a Bike quickly announced her withdrawal. This is not surprising when we see the images. While Veenhoven receives help after her crash, her very expensive Cervélo is pulled out of the water by someone (with the help of another Cervélo?). L'Equipe even claims that Veenhoven herself also ended up in the water.

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elsterrato

@elsterrato

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En la cuneta de la carretera, Veenhoven es atendida por los servicios médicos. Mientras, abajo, personal recogiendo las bicis caídas al agua #GW25 #UCIWWT

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4:23 PM · Mar 30, 2025

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Jorgenson's arrival in Flanders

And then there was Matteo Jorgenson. Matteo Jorgenson? Yes, Matteo Jorgenson. The winner of Paris-Nice wasn't supposed to do Gent-Wevelgem at all but was added to the selection due to a last-minute illness. "I wasn't even on the reserve list, but I still had six hours of training planned. Last year, I didn't like training after the E3, so I volunteered, and my coach thought it was a good idea."

That was not the only thing that stood out about Jorgenson's arrival in Flanders. The American turned up wearing very special glasses. The Oakley edition became a hit when basketball legend Michael Jordan made a name for himself with them in his heyday (and long after). He did not offer an explanation in his nearly three-minute mixed zone interview, only a compliment about his glasses at the start. "Thank you!"

Team Visma | Lease a Bike Supporters

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🇧🇪#GW25 | #TVLSlive Interview met Matteo Jorgenson vlak voor de start van de koers oa over Wout van Aert.

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11:08 AM · Mar 30, 2025

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Bram van der PloegEditor-in-chief

Bram van der Ploeg (35) is the proud founder of In de Leiderstrui, IDL Pro Cycling's parent site, launched in 2018. Finally, he could create stories about the sport he had followed since childhood. He is the editor-in-chief on paper, but prefers to be with his recorder next to a rider, a team bus, or in the mud at a cyclocross race. Every year, from February to the end of May, Bram follows the entire Italian cycling season, from the Trofeo Laigueglia to the Giro d'Italia, with the grand finale in October in Lombardy. During that time, he lives in Tuscany, where he has since come to call Italy his 'home'.

Bram van der Ploeg | Lindkedin | Email

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