DSM-Firmenich PostNL have announced their eight-man roster for the upcoming Tour de France, with sprinter Fabio Jakobsen and climber Romain Bardet their headline riders as they chase stage wins.
It’s been a tough season for former Tour stage winner Jakobsen after joining from Soudal Quick-Step at the end of 2023, having only managed one win in 2024.
His Grand Tour debut for DSM-Firmenich-PostNL also went poorly at last month’s Giro d’Italia and ultimately ended with an abandon after a crash on stage 11, without showing much form.
“I am really excited to take on my first Tour de France with Team dsm-firmenich PostNL. We bring a really strong group to the race that can go for stage success on every terrain. I have a nice group around me to target the sprint stages, but with Warren, Frank, Oscar, and Romain, we also have really strong riders for the hilly and mountainous stages,” said Jakobsen in a team release.
“We aim to show strong teamwork and really fight for each other, and if we perform at a high level, I believe we can have a great race together. I can’t wait to get started.”
Leading out the Jakobsen, 27, in the six or seven sprint opportunities will be the experienced John Degenkolb, also a former stage winner at the Tour in 2018, debutant Bram Welten and Nils Eekhoff, who returns for his fourth Tour.
Twice a podium finisher at the Tour de France, Bardet will ride his 11th and final home Grand Tour after announcing that he would retire from road racing after next year’s Critérium du Dauphiné last week.
Bardet won’t be going for GC and is instead set to chase stage wins. He’ll be helped on the uphill terrain by two-time Tour stage winner and former KOM jersey Warren Barguil, alongside Tour debutants Frank van den Broek and Oscar Onley.
“This year we come in with the sole focus of going for day results, whether that be in the sprint finishes, in the mountains or on the rolling terrain in between,” said coach Matt Winston.
"We believe everyone in the team can play a role in the finale on the right stage and in the right circumstances. We will need to show good teamwork from the off as we can expect a hard start on the climbs in Italy, before some sprint opportunities after that.”
DSM-Firmenich PostNL 2024 Tour de France squad
- Romain Bardet
- Fabio Jakobsen
- Warren Barguil
- John Degenlolb
- Nils Eekhoff
- Oscar Onley
- Frank van den Broek
- Bram Welten
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