Team Visma – Lease a bike has revealed its roster for Tour de France 2024. Despite having to remove Vuelta a Espana Champion Sepp Kuss (USA) from its line-up due to illness, the team is sending a strong line-up to the greatest Grand Tour of this year’s professional cycling season.

The roster is spearheaded by defending Tour de France Champion Jonas Vingegaard (Denmark). The Dane has suffered a rough and challenging lead-up to this year’s Tour de France, because of the serious crash he suffered on April 4 during this year’s Itzulia Tour of the Basque Country. Vingegaard has not participated in a single bike race since his accident but has engaged in demanding and focused training to prepare for a maximum effort in this year’s Tour de France.

“I am excited to start this year’s Tour de France. The last few months have not always been easy, but I thank my family and Team Visma for their unwavering support,” a smiling Vingegaard told Roadcycling.com. “We have worked together to get to this moment and of course I am very excited to learn where I stand. I feel good and am naturally very motivated.”

Sporting Director Merijn Zeeman was eager to show his belief in Vingegaard’s form and his passion for the Dane’s commitment to a full recovery in time for this year’s Tour de France. “I am very proud of Jonas (Vingegaard) and the coaching team. Jonas is coming back from a serious injury and in the last few weeks he has shown what a true champion he is – both mentally and physically,” Zeeman told Roadcycling.com.

“We don’t know how far he can go yet, and we are being cautious because he has not been able to race and his preparation for the Tour has not been ideal. But Jonas will be at the start of the Tour de France in Florence, motivated and healthy,” Zeeman explained.

Adding to the strength of the Visma-Lease a Bike team roster for this year’s Tour de France is Belgian strongman Wout van Aert. Van Aert is multitalented on the bike and will be able to compete for stage victories for his team while also supporting Vingegaard in multiple terrains. Van Aert, however, has also been involved in a serious crash this season and is still working hard to regain his maximum strength. Van Aert crashed in Dwars door Vlaanderen but returned to racing in Tour of Norway and finished fifth in the Belgian National Championships. Both Vingegaard and van Aert will function as team captains during Tour de France 2024.

“I am really looking forward to this year’s Tour de France and its start in beautiful Florence,” van Aert told Roadcycling.com.

“After making good progress in the past weeks I really wanted to ride the Tour and the team agreed. Our main goal is to work for Jonas (Vingegaard) and a top finish for him, so I will contribute to this together with the rest of a fabulous team.”

Joining Vingegaard and van Aert on the roads of France and Italy in this year’s Tour de France will be American Matteo Jorgenson, who has shown his excellent talent in recent races and is stepping up the team ladder after Primoz Roglic left the team for Team Redbull-Bora-Hansgrohe. While Vingegaard and van Aert have yet to shine this season, Jorgenson has delivered excellent and impressive performances in both the Paris-Nice, in which he won the General Classification and the Youth Classification, and in the Criterium du Dauphine 2024, where he finished second in the General Classification and won the Youth Classification. 24-year-old Jorgenson from Walnut Creek, California, will be an excellent backup for the Visma – Lease a Bike team if Vingegaard falters in this year’s race.

Complete Team Visma-Lease a Bike roster for Tour de France 2024:

Jonas Vingegaard, Wout van Aert, Tiesj Benoot, Matteo Jorgenson, Christophe Laporte, Jan Tratnik, Wilco Kelderman, and Bart Lemmen.

Stay tuned to Roadcycling.com for additional coverage from Tour de France 2024 and the rest of the 2024 pro cycling season.

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