Jumbo-Visma have confirmed their final eight-rider team for the Tour de France, building their squad around 2022 winner Jonas Vingegaard as they target a Giro d’Italia-Tour de France double.
Also in the roster are Wout van Aert, Dylan van Baarle, Sepp Kuss, Tiesj Benoot, Christophe Laporte, Nathan Van Hooydonck and Wilco Kelderman, offering Vingegaard vital support on the flat and in the mountains, while van Aert and Laporte will perhaps also target the sprint stages. Kelderman and Kuss will provide vital play a key role in the mountain, with the American super-domestique possibly riding all three Grand Tours in 2023.
“We exceeded our wildest dreams last year with six stage victories, the polka dot jersey, and most importantly, the green and yellow jersey. This year we are dreaming big too,” senior directeur sportif Merijn Zeeman said when the team was revealed.
“Our ambition is to bring the yellow jersey back to Paris. We have a super strong team led by our leader Jonas Vingegaard, and we believe in our plan. Winning the Giro has been a dream come true for us this season. Our riders are prepared for a double at the Tour.”
Primož Roglič raced alongside Vingegaard when he cracked Tadej Pogačar in the Alps in the 2022 Tour de France. This year Jumbo-Visma have divided their Grand Tour leaders, with Roglič winning the Giro d’Italia and set to ride the Vuelta a Espana. Vingegaard has proven his form with a dominant victory at the recent Critérium du Dauphiné.
The Dane is suited to this year’s mountainous Tour route but he and Jumbo-Visma face major opposition from Pogačar and UAE Team Emirates and a host of other podium contenders.
Jumbo-Visma will race in a new black and yellow jersey which the team says emphasises the power of dreams. Each jersey features a personalised starry sky symbolising the riders' dreams.
Van Aert won the Belgian time trial title last week, while Van Baarle is the new Dutch road race national champion and so will wear a red, white and blue jersey.
To inspire young children to follow their dreams, a storybook called “Look, I can do it!” has been created. It tells the story of the Velodrome via text and drawings. The booklet contains a QR code that allows the story to be read aloud in several languages by various Team Jumbo-Visma riders, including Vingegaard and Van Aert.
"When I was a kid, I wanted to be a professional cyclo-cross rider and win a cyclo-cross race in my hometown, just like my heroes. My dream came true in 2016 when I won the Belgian championship in my hometown of Lille. It inspires me to keep dreaming and pursue my goals,” Van Aert explained.
Jumbo-Visma for the 2023 Tour de France: Jonas Vingegaard, Wout van Aert, Dylan van Baarle, Sepp Kuss, Tiesj Benoot, Christophe Laporte, Nathan Van Hooydonck and Wilco Kelderman.
