Steven Kruijswijk (Team LottoNL - Jumbo)(Image credit: Courtesy of Polartec-Kometa)
Steven Kruijswijk (LottoNl-Jumbo)(Image credit: Bert Geerts/dcp-bertgeerts@xs4all.nl)
Steven Kruijswijk in despair after losing the Giro d'Italia's maglia rosa following a crash on the descent of the Colle dell'Agnello (Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Timo Roosen (LottoNl-Jumbo)(Image credit: Mario Stiehl)
Timo Roosen in the breakaway during stage 14(Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Steven Kruijswijk will remain with LottoNL-Jumbo until the end of the 2021 season after signing a contract extension with the team.
The news follows the announcement that Dutch supermarket chain Jumbo will take over as lead sponsor of the team, which has existed in various guises since 1984, and was most notably sponsored by Rabobank between 1996 and 2012.
"The team has hugely improved in terms of professionalism, guidance, innovation and collaboration in recent years. We really are a team together and I'm happy to be part of it", Kruijswijk said in a statement released on Friday. "Jumbo's commitment gives confidence and peace and that stability is reflected in our team."
The 30-year-old Kruijswijk has spent his entire professional career with the team, graduating to WorldTour level in 2010 after three years with the Rabobank Continental team.
Kruijswijk was on the brink of a surprise Giro d'Italia victory in 2016 after leading the race through the final week, but he lost the maglia rosa after crashing while trying to follow Vincenzo Nibali on the descent of the Colle dell’Agnello on stage 19. He reached the finish in Turin two days later in 4th place overall, while Nibali claimed final victory.
Kruijswijk returned to the Giro in 2017 with ambitions of final overall victory but abandoned on stage 11 as his fellow countryman Tom Dumoulin (Sunweb) proceeded to become the first Dutch winner of the Corsa Rosa. Kruijswijk returned to action in time to place third overall at the Tour de Suisse and 9th at the Vuelta a España.
This season, Kruijswijk has opted to build his campaign around a tilt at the Tour de France, where he has not raced since 2015. His best showing at La Grande Boucle is his 14th place finish in 2014. Kruijswijk began his 2018 season in Spain last month, and placed 7th overall at the Ruta del Sol.
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Roosen extends
Timo Roosen has also extended his contract with LottoNL-Jumbo, and will remain with the team through the end of the 2020 season. The 25-year-old turned professional in 2015 and has played a notable part in Dylan Groenewegen’s lead-out train so far this season. Roosen claimed his first two victories as a professional last season.
"Those victories proved that I am getting stronger, which is the most important. My focus is on being successful with Dylan Groenewegen, as his lead-out, but also on the Classics, which are the goals we are working on at Team LottoNL-Jumbo,” Roosen said.
"The team is improving every year, we have just implemented a new nutrition system, the team is innovative and runs smoothly. Those are reasons to renew my contract."
