today, 3:05 PM | by Tom van der Salm
Bart Lemmen will race for Jumbo-Visma for the next two years, the Dutch team announced on Wednesday. The 28-year-old driver, who as a former soldier has only been a full-time professional for one year, comes from the American Human Powered Health. He will be Jumbo-Visma’s 27th rider for 2024.
“We are very curious to see how he will develop once he becomes acquainted with our guidance program,” says sporting director Merijn Zeeman in a press release. ‘Bart has only just started practicing cycling as a top sport. Before that, he had intensive military training and combined cycling with a tough job in defense. That triggers us. Despite little training and guidance, he has shown interesting things in competitions and his physical values show a lot of potential.’
Lemmen himself is of course also overjoyed. ‘I’m really looking forward to this new chapter in my atypical cycling career. It was already a big change at the beginning of this year to switch from an officer in the Air Force to a full-time professional cyclist. I have made great strides in recent months physically and in getting used to life as a top athlete,” he explains.
Lemmen is ‘extremely eager’ to move to Jumbo-Visma
‘It’s fantastic that this is now paying off and Team Jumbo-Visma sees my potential. I am proud that I have the opportunity to make the most of it together over the next two seasons and am confident that it will be a success. I am extremely eager to achieve results with the team, and to develop myself as much as possible as a rider,” said Lemmen.
Last year he finished fourth at the National Championships and came fifth in the Tour of Slovakia. ‘The development process with the team will show where I can be of most value. I expect this to be a wonderful journey of discovery. In any case, I am very much looking forward to working with the team, both in the preparation and in the races,” concludes the driver, who sees himself mainly as a time trialist and hill specialist.
Read the article on the mobile website
Not inside
2023-10-18 13:05:00
#Surprise #JumboVisma #28yearold #exmilitary #Bart #Lemmen #twoyear #contract #Leaders #Jersey
