NOS Cycling•today, 10:00
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The Tour de France for men is still in full swing, but the women’s peloton is gradually counting down to their tour of France. The time has come on July 24.
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The selections are trickling in these weeks. The British Le Col-Wahoo has put three Dutch names on paper, including a surprising one: Eva van Agt, the granddaughter of former Prime Minister Dries van Agt.
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AFP
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The fact that her grandfather once led the Netherlands is not the most striking thing about the selection of the 25-year-old Limburger. Van Agt has not yet been a professor for three months.
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“It’s a beautiful story,” says her manager Tom Varney. “We saw her driving for the first time in April, in the Volta Limburg Classic and we knew right away: she has talent. She drove smart. And she was the only non-pro in the front group, in which she already managed to stand up nicely. to keep.”
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The team, which acts at continental level and received a wildcard from the Tour organization, wanted to know more about her. “Through the tests she did, we saw that she has it in her. She is super strong on a bike.”
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Where her talent has been hiding all this time? On an artificial turf field. “She actually comes from hockey. But during the lockdown she went cycling more often to kill time.” One thing soon led to another. “She rode criteriums last year and it showed what she can do.”
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Sports director Nicholas Marche is also enthusiastic about the debuting rider. “Eva is still figuring out what type of rider she will become, but we’re sure her talent can thrive in the hilly stages.”
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AFP
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Van Agt was immediately offered a contract with the British formation until 2024. “In the short time she has been with us, she has already done a few one-day races and a stage race in Germany,” said Varney. “She is developing well. She can climb, so we know she can handle the course in the Tour. And we also know that she can handle eight days.”
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She passed the other riders within the team, which also consists of many British talents. “We prefer to protect our young riders. One of them is still taking an exam. And we still have some injuries.”
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Moreover, Van Agt has also enforced it himself with, for example, a 23rd place in Thuringen. In June she finished tenth at the Dutch Time Trial Championships.
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Proud Grandfather
Meanwhile, pride will know no bounds in the Van Agt house. Grandpa has always been a cycling enthusiast and was Prime Minister at the ceremony of Joop Zoetemelk as the overall winner of the Tour in 1980.
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Van Agt was Prime Minister from December 1977 to November 1982.
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Cycling fan van Agt is there when Zoetemelk celebrates his Tour win in Paris
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That granddaughter Eva is participating in the first Tour de Femmes will come as a surprise. Incidentally, Van Agt junior gets a free role in the Tour from the team, which mainly dreams of daytime success.
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Possibly already on day one in the sprint with Maike van der Duin. The third Dutch is Marjolein van ‘t Faith, she is “an important link in the support of the team”.
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