Zonneveld sees worrying trend in Visma staffing issues: 'Balance in the cycling world has changed'

Grischa Niermann’s departure from Visma | Lease a Bike has caused quite a shake-up in the staff of several teams. But losing Niermann could also create a difficult situation and is, moreover, part of an unpleasant trend in cycling. Dutch cycling journalist Thijs Zonneveld explores this trend on the In de Waaier podcast.

Niermann announced earlier this week that he will leave Visma | Lease a Bike for Lidl-Trek, where team boss Luca Guercilena is stepping down after 16 years. The news came as a bolt from the blue, which is why the Dutch team has taken Niermann off the Tour. Zonneveld does not understand how this can come out so suddenly. “How must that be for staff members who had known nothing about it all this time, but worked closely with him?” he wonders.

The Dutch analyst is fairly gloomy about Visma | Lease a Bike in general. “I do think they have a problem, because not everyone who has now left is replaceable.” Still, he does think that if there is one team capable of getting through this, it is Visma | Lease a Bike. “When Merijn Zeeman left, we thought that too, but they got through that as well.”

According to Zonneveld, however, the staff changes are a worrying trend for the Dutch team. “It is difficult enough that other teams are now not only going after your riders, but also your staff. Staff members do not earn the salary of team leaders, so they are more sensitive to a bigger bag of money. The differences can be huge there. So now you get the situation that your staff will also have to be paid more.”

Visma | Lease a Bike must also deal with an increasing number of wealthy teams. “The role of sponsors is becoming more and more important. Red Bull, Lidl-Trek and Decathlon now also have real money to spend. It is no longer just UAE and INEOS. Visma will have to defend itself against that.” The balance in the cycling world has changed quite a lot.

“It looks completely different now than it did five years ago.” The team, where Richard Plugge will take over Niermann’s role, must mainly defend itself by developing its own riders and staff. “Visma’s most successful riders, Van Aert and Vingegaard, are also getting older. They will have to find replacements for them too. And that is becoming more complicated.”

Author: David Bavin-Hobbs - [email protected]