It has been confirmed that Tom Dumoulin will miss this year’s Tour de France, with Jumbo-Visma handing the Dutchman’s place to the emerging talent Jonas Vingegaard.
Dumoulin was named alongside Primoz Roglic and Steven Kruijswijk as one of a trio of leaders for the Dutch team when they announced their eight-man team in January.
However, a day later, Dumoulin announced his decision to put his career on hold and take a break from cycling.
Although recent reports that Dumoulin was on the Dutch federation’s vaccination list for the Olympics, suggesting a comeback was close, he will not be racing the Tour, which starts in Brittany on June 26.
“The team and I decided that I take a leave with an unknown time frame from our beautiful sport,” Dumoulin said in January. “For too long I feel a big pressure to perform and I feel that I always want to do the best for the team, for all the sponsors, the fans etc. But in that process I forgot my myself a bit. I forgot what I actually want within this sport and with my future.”
On Monday morning, Jumbo-Visma announced that Dumoulin’s spot would go to Vingegaard, who is enjoying a breakthrough season in his third year as a pro.
The 24-year-old won a mountain-top finish at the UAE Tour before winning two stages and the overall title at the Settimana Coppi e Bartali. He took another big step forward with second overall at Itzulia Basque Country, where Roglic was on the top step in a team one-two. Vingegaard has spent the past week working for Roglic in the Ardennes Classics, as he had already done successfully on his Grand Tour debut at last year’s Vuelta a España.
“I am of course very happy with this,” Vingegaard said. “It’s a dream coming true for me. I always watched the Tour on television, so it’s very nice to be awarded a place in the Tour selection.
“I am very happy with my development, because I have made quite a big improvement indeed. Hopefully I can get even better. By helping Primoz and Steven I can take another step and learn a lot. The Tour is something different from the Vuelta, but it will certainly be a great experience again.”
Vingegaard was one of a number of contenders identified by Jumbo-Visma when Dumoulin stepped aside. His results have been hard to ignore, as has his growing relationship with Roglic, and his graduation to the Tour team can be seen as a step in his own development as a future Grand Tour contender.
“We took Jonas into the team in 2019 because we saw that he is really talented. He showed that straight away,” said team director Grischa Niermann. “Last year he rode a really strong Vuelta in support of Primoz. He also showed for the first time that he can play a crucial role in the high mountains, in the Alps and the Pyrenees.
“We believe he will play a really important role in the Tour. His selection is a reward for his good results. In theory, Jonas can be a Grand Tour contender himself. He also has a good time trial. But he needs time for his development. In that regard nothing is better than riding a Grand Tour with Steven and with Primoz and support them and also learn from them.”
