Visma | Lease a Bike youngster Jørgen Nordhagen impresses again with a strong performance at Prato Nevoso in Giro NextGen
CyclingSunday, 22 June 2025 at 11:30
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Follow us on GoogleAlthough he is unlikely to win the GC, Jørgen Nordhagen is slowly returning to his best form after a spring full of setbacks. The 20-year-old Norwegian from Visma | Lease a Bike has impressed since joining the team, especially on climbs. Saturday's mountain stage to the summit of Prato Nevoso was no exception.
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Nordhagen's story is now fairly well known: a talented skier, Visma, signed him | Lease a Bike in 2024 after impressive performances on the bike and in tests. It was no coincidence that he became the junior time trial champion in Norway in 2022 and finished ninth in the same age category at the World Championships in Australia. After he also started winning stages and climbing the rankings in 2023, Visma had seen enough.
Nordhagen was offered a contract until the end of 2027 and started in the development team last season. There, he finished third in Liège-Bastogne-Liège for U23 riders, won the stage to La Planche des Belles Filles in the Tour Alsace, took the mountain jersey in the Lidl Deutschland Tour on behalf of the WorldTour team, and added a few Italian U23 races to his list of achievements. Last winter, he decided to switch to the WorldTour core team and gave up skiing for good.
Read more below the photo.
Nordhagen grows in Giro NextGen
His season debut was planned in Oman, but Nordhagen fell ill and made his professional debut with the big boys of Visma in Strade Bianche. He had to make up a lot of ground physically after a nasty virus and was back in action in May in the Tour de Romandie. There, he impressed by finishing eighth on a grueling mountain stage to the top of Thyon 2000. He finished ahead of Remco Evenepoel, among others.
After finishing thirteenth in the Tour of Norway, he headed for the Giro NextGen, also known as the Baby Giro. He started well with fifth place in the time trial on day 1 but saw many others gain time from breakaway attempts or late attacks. He entered the seventh stage as number nine in the GC, just under two minutes behind leader Luke Tuckwell of Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe Rookies. On Saturday, he climbed to fifth place in the GC on the way to Prato Nevoso.
Read more below the photo.
Nordhagen impresses in penultimate stage of Giro NextGen
Nordhagen's climb to Prato Nevoso was impressive. Early breakaway rider Pavel Novák stayed ahead but couldn't come close to the climbing time of the man who finished second in the stage. Cycling fan Mihai Simion calculated that Nordhagen climbed the 11-kilometer climb with an average gradient of 7.4 percent in 28 minutes and 28 seconds. That was 7 seconds faster than Bernard Kohl and Carlos Sastre in the 2008 Tour de France.
Thanks to this excellent performance, Nordhagen is now fifth in the Giro NextGen, 1.23 behind Tuckwell and 56 seconds off the podium. On the last day of the Baby Giro, there are no more major climbs, but there are still two steep 2.5-kilometer walls with a gradient of 12.4 percent to climb. The finish is down in Pinerolo after another 500-meter jump at over 10 percent. This will happen without big favorite Jarno Widar (Lotto), who crashed on Saturday and abandoned the race.
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'.
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Latest Comments
- - Enric saying “limit the damage” feels right, but he can’t keep giving Pog 5–10 seconds every summit. Minor gripe: the article glosses over Gall’s watts—would’ve loved some data. Grande etapa, pero faltan números, no?lindae28-08-2026
- - Red Bull-BORA with Roglič a minute back—does that gap matter this early or is it normal to let Pogačar have a cushion before the high mountains/time trial? Also, is Stage 9 a proper queen stage or just media hype?cadencekingm28-08-2026
- - Quick question: why did Decathlon take it up if it helped Pog in the end? Wouldn’t it have been better to sit on UAE’s tempo and wait? I’m still figuring out how these team tactics work on summit finishes.julien28-08-2026
- - Not sure I buy Mas’ “frustrated” angle. Pogacar just rode the numbers when Gall opened the gap, then closed and added six seconds for free. If that’s irritation, I hope my GC leader gets angry like that every day.samanthak28-08-2026
- - Gall looked sharp today. That Decathlon CMA CGM pull on the last climb actually made sense tactically—force UAE to respond, then Felix goes. Pog’s counter was vintage: measure, then sting. Stage 9 is going to be carnage if he’s already this comfy.patriciaw28-08-2026
- - Slightly sceptical about the piece framing it as frustration. The quotes from Pogacar read like he was in control. Maybe we’re overreading the body language?tourdeforce928-08-2026
- - “We’re here to win the GC, not to mess around.” That line says it all. He saved UAE’s matches and still gained time. Efficient as ever.andrewf28-08-2026
- - Can someone explain why Decathlon was pacing for Gall if he couldn’t follow when Pog pushed on? Is that a normal tactic or did it backfire?gearguru3328-08-2026
- - Mas stirring the pot a bit there. Don’t think Pog was “angry,” more like opportunistic when the gap opened. That steady-pace surge is his trademark. GC contenders behind must be fuming.patriciaw28-08-2026
- - Loved how Pogacar downplayed the drama. Classic Tadej: calm, clinical, and straight to the point. If Decathlon want to light it up for Gall, he’ll just ride them off his wheel anyway.lindae28-08-2026
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