Van Hummel announces retirement

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Kenny van Hummel has announced that he will retire from cycling after failing to secure a contract for the 2015 season. The Dutch sprinter was saved from retirement by Gianni Savio’s Androni Giocattoli-Venuzuela after the collapse of the Fernando Alonso team left him scrabbling for a contract late in the year. He took three victories with the team but a lack of funds meant that he found himself hunting for a new job once again.

“I have decided to end my career as a professional cyclist and I am looking forward to a different side on life,” van Hummel said in a statement on his personal website. “It wasn’t possible to continue in cycling in a team of the level that I wanted. I had some options, I spoke to some Continental teams but it didn’t feel right.

“Due to a disappointing sponsor budget my current employer, Team Androni- Giocattoli, had to decide to put together another team, where more space for Italian riders. It is too bad, because both I and they like to work together.”

Now 32, Van Hummel turned professional with the Dutch Skil-Shimano team in 2006. His first professional victory came a year later at the Ronde van Noord-Holland where he out-sprinted fellow Dutchman Bobby Traksel. Van Hummel stepped up the WorldTour with Vacansoleil in 2012 after an impressive season that saw him take eight victories, including overall success at the Ronde van Drenthe and a stage of the Tour of Turkey.