Jumbo-visma
JLooking for: Roglič or Dumoulin for the yellow jersey... watch out Ineos
umbo-visma were exceptional at the Tour de France in 2019, placing Steven Kruijswijk third overall and becoming the first team since Movistar a few years back to challenge the long-standing supremacy of Team Ineos. While an injured Kruijswijk will have to sit this one out, the team’s since signed two of the world’s elite Grand Tour riders in the form of Tom Dumoulin and Vuelta a España winner Primož Roglič, so looks well placed to mount a serious bid for yellow.
Have they been a little hasty, though, in their preparations? Announcing their line-up right at the beginning of the year suggested a supreme confidence but perhaps betrayed a desire for control that is in practice unattainable in bike racing. A perfect example of this was when the team’s early season was affected by Dumoulin picking up an icky-sounding parasitic illness.
Such events may have reminded the team about ‘best laid plans…’ and of the need to be flexible when competing in the Tour. Dumoulin and Roglič, for example, are both rouleurs who specialise in maintaining a steady pace both in time trials and up mountains, and therefore would love the race to play out in as straightforward a manner as possible — the fewer variables, the better.
But this is the Tour, where just about anything can happen at any moment, from sudden crashes to unexpected mudslides blocking the road. Personalities, too, can be unpredictable, and one problem Jumbo-visma might encounter is potential disharmony between their multiple co-leaders. If we’ve learned anything from the in-fighting at Movistar in
recent years, boasting a talented squad replete with potential overall winners is by no means a guarantee of success. If Jumbo-visma are to win the Tour, they’ll need to mould stars into a coherent unit.
The team claims its Tour riders have come through lockdown in good shape thanks in no small part to their indoor trainers: “They have remained fit in a professional manner,” performance boss Matheiu Heijboer said on the Jumbovisma website. At the time of writing they were at an altitude training camp at Tignes in the French Alps, putting the finishing touches to their preparation.
STAR: Primož Roglič (Slv)
The Slovenian has continued to mature since his breakthrough fourth place finish in 2018. By registering a first podium finish at the Giro, then riding a flawless race for a first overall victory at the Vuelta, the transition from elite ski jumper to elite Grand Tour cyclist is complete. Looked imperious at the Critérium du Dauphiné, even though he ducked out while in the lead after a crash.
HITTER: Tom Dumoulin (Ned)
Boasting the brains of an intellectual and the jawline of a matinee idol, Dumoulin had become one of cycling’s biggest stars before a prolonged absence following a crash at last year’s Giro saw him fall off the radar. His peerless time trialling and deceptively agile climbing helped him finish second in 2018. A solid performance in the Dauphiné hinted at fine form to come in the Tour. Should be invaluable for favourite Roglič and capable of a high GC position himself.