Dutch WorldTour team Jumbo-Visma is looking increasingly as though it may next season be able to challenge Team Ineos' dominance of the Tour de France, having recently added Tom Dumoulin to the mix alongside existing team leaders Primož Roglič and Steven Kruijswijk. The recent announcement that four of its veteran riders – Tom Leezer, Bert-Jan Lindeman, Paul Martens and Maarten Wynants – have re-signed for 2020 only strengthens their case.
The addition of 2017 Giro d'Italia champion Dumoulin for 2020 – who joins from Sunweb – could see all three of the team's stars line up for the Tour de France in Nice next summer, and be a real threat to the Ineos dominance that comes from the likes of Egan Bernal, Geraint Thomas and Chris Froome.
Roglič won this year's Vuelta a España in August, while Kruijswijk finished third overall at the Tour in July. The additional firepower of Dumoulin could make Jumbo-Visma an even more potent power at Grand Tours than they already have been this season.
But a team is nothing without its domestiques, and having recently added Australian climber Chris Harper from Team BridgeLane, the Dutch team has also announced the contract extensions of Leezer, Lindeman, Martens and Wynants.
"I have experienced the development of the team from up close," 37-year-old Wynants said in a press release, with the Belgian having been with the squad since 2011, when it was sponsored by Rabobank.
"I look forward to fulfilling the role of road captain for another year. The ultimate dream is to win a Monument with this team next spring," he said. In respect of one-day racing, the team should also prove strong, with the team backing young Belgian star Wout van Aert for the spring Classics.
"I have been racing for the team for almost 15 years," added Leezer, 33. "I have had a good year and enjoyed building our successes, and I'm very happy that we will continue to do so together."
Thirty-five-year-old Martens and 30-year-old Dutchman Lindeman echoed their teammates' sentiments.
"I'm very happy and proud that I will continue to be part of this successful team. I have helped it grow in recent years. I hope to help many young talents, and I'm happy that my experience is really appreciated in this way," said German rider Martens.
"It’s great that I can ride for such a great team," Lindeman said. "I feel at home here and therefore I am very happy with my new contract."
Jumbo-Visma sports director Merijn Zeeman added: "Tom, Paul, Bert-Jan and Maarten are real team players. They are very important for our team leaders and they also support the development of our young talents.
"I am very satisfied with the fact that they are loyal to our team."
