Merijn Zeeman thought it was a strange sensation to follow the first week of the Tour de France from home. The team leader, who recovered from corona, had a better overview at home, but is happy that he will join the Jumbo-Visma team on Monday.
On the way to Morzine, where the Tour peloton has settled down for a rest day, Zeeman looked opposite AP back on the first week in the Tour de France. The corona infection offered him the opportunity to follow the Tour and the performance of his team with “an overview”.
From home, Zeeman saw that Wout van Aert made an impression with the lead in the points classification, two stage victories and four days in yellow. His teammate Jonas Vingegaard is the number two in the general classification behind Tadej Pogacar.
“You feel the tension much less when you’re not in the hectic pace of the race, but at home you see the bigger picture better,” said Zeeman. “In this way, it still had added value strategically.”
Zeeman texted a lot with the team leaders, as he also did in classics such as Paris-Roubaix. “There too you have a much better overview in front of the TV, but contact with the riders was minimal. That is a shame, because the team process is an important part of my work.”
Merijn Zeeman watched the first week of the battle between Tadej Pogacar and Jonas Vingegaard from home.
Merijn Zeeman watched the first week of the battle between Tadej Pogacar and Jonas Vingegaard from home. Photo: Getty Images
‘Our ambitions are extremely high’
Zeeman will join the team on Monday on the second rest day. Jumbo-Visma hopes to attack Tadej Pogacar in the coming week, who has a 39 seconds lead over Vingegaard.
“It’s going great, but our ambitions are also extremely high,” Zeeman continued. “Wout is in better shape than expected for the green jersey, but the yellow is still going to be difficult.”
“Pogacar has been great so far, but we are now entering a different field. Then we will see if he can climb this also on one hour cols. We will not attack like a headless chicken, but we will not just drive to Paris and think it’s all right. Jonas really wants more.”
The Tour de France continues on Tuesday with a relatively short ride through the Alps. The stage – with an uphill finish – offers opportunities for a successful flight.