Radsport -Ace Olav Kooij from Visma – Lease A Bike is one of the best sprinters in the world. The Dutchman will probably come onto the market next year.
This was confirmed by Grischa Niermann, head of racing at Visma – Lease A Bike.
“At the moment I can’t say with 100 % certainty that Olav stays in our team,” he told “Sporza” and added: “It is about opportunities and money, we will discuss that during the season.”
Olav Kooij’s contract with Visma – Lease A Bike expires at the end of 2025.
The background to a possible separation could be non-consideration for the Tour de France 2025. The team from the Netherlands focuses entirely on an overall victory by superstar Jonas Vingegaard and therefore dispenses with possible stage wins by Sprinter Kooij.
At the beginning of the year, Kooij had already emphasized at the “Wielerflits.nl” portal: “Of course I would like to drive the tour, but I also know what the conditions in the team are and what the goals are. The focus is again on Jonas Vingegaard To strive for the overall victory.
Niermann did not rule out that Kooij and Vingegaard will start together on the big tour of France in the future. “It is not impossible to send Kooij and Vingegaard to tour together one day,” said the 49-year-old.
However, Kooij would have to extend his contract.
Kooij fetches the stage in the Giro d’Italia
At just 23 years old, Olav Kooij is already part of the sprint elite. The Youngster was able to cheer for the stage at Giro d’Italia or Paris-Nizza. At the beginning of the season he won two stages of the Tour of Oman in the mass sprint.
Kooij has not yet been allowed to participate in the Tour de France.