Denmark joins this year the prestigious list of countries to have hosted the Grand Départ. This extraordinary first comes at the same time as a “golden generation” makes it to the forefront of international cycling. How did they rise to the highest summits? Letour.fr meets with the riders and directors who have shaped Danish cycling in recent history.
From the flat and windy roads of Denmark, Jonas Vingegaard (Jumbo-Visma) rose to be one of the greatest climbers in today’s peloton. From Thy’s west coast to the highest summits, passing by Hanstholm’s fish market, with his parents, directors and girlfriend, Primoz Roglic’s lieutenant looks back at the journey that made him one of the most exciting prospects for the Tour de France 2022.
I - The Ring
In the North Jutland, the most boreal region of Denmark, Jonas Vingegaard’s first sports activity was football. Jon Dahl Tomasson and co were shining in the early 2000s “but it was not going so well for me and I didn’t have a lot of motivation for it”, Vingegaard recalls. “So my parents took me to the start of the Tour of Denmark 2007 in Thisted, next to my hometown. The local cycling club had brought bikes for the kids. I tried it and they said I was really good. I guess they told everyone because they wanted to get new members. At least it worked on me, and I’ve been riding my bike ever since.” The Thy Cykle Ring had indeed discovered a special talent who made the most of the local environment. “On the west coast, the landscape can be a bit different”, says Vingegaard, who still lives and trains in the area. “It’s a bit more wild, untouched. Of course, there is no mountain but it’s a little bit hilly and then it’s just sand and grass. I really like it there.”
II - The director and the girlfriend
The young Jonas gradually developed his climbing skills and “started to believe” he could make a career out of cycling. “I took the next step when I joined ColoQuick”, Vingegaard explains. “The owner of the team was attending a local race with Danish pros participating. I won the race and he was impressed. He immediately wanted me on the team and I started with them one or two weeks later.” “I was working a lot with sports director Christian Andersen, who is now with Uno-X”, the young Danish rider recalls. “For me, ColoQuick was the best place to grow as a cyclist. They taught me a lot about training and about everything, to basically grow as a person. And after I turned pro, I would say my girlfriend Trine [his manager] has had a big impact. She helped me get stronger mentally, to put some hair on my chest. I don’t think I would have been able to do all the things I’ve done without her.”
III - The fish
Vingegaard joined ColoQuick in 2016, at 19 years old, and finished school the same year. “Then, you gotta work”, he states. Luckily for him, the cycling community had some openings for him: “Michael [Valgren] and I come pretty much from the same area and we both knew a cyclist who’s been working in the fish industry. He initiated the contact for us to see what we could do there.” “First, I worked at the fish auction for almost a year”, Vingegaard says. “Then, I broke my leg at the Tour des Fjords 2017 and I couldn’t work for a while. When I came back, I started working at a fish factory.” His early shifts managing fish and ice were even captured on camera before the world turned its eyes to him as a climbing star. “I worked in the fish factory until the summer of 2018, and then I joined Jumbo-Visma in 2019.”
IV - The Tour
After two discrete seasons to learn the ropes of the World Tour, Jonas Vingegaard rose to the forefront in 2021, especially in the Tour de France, coming 2nd behind Tadej Pogacar after his leader Primoz Roglic had to abandon due to a crash. It was a special breakthrough for the Dane, who gets ready for more excitement with the Grand Départ in Copenhagen: “I remember the 2011 Worlds in Denmark. It was a big experience to watch all the pro riders. And I was also there for the Giro d’Italia [starting from Herning in 2012]. I remember how many people there were at these events. With the biggest race of the world coming to Denmark, I hope it will be even bigger.” Vingegaard returns to the race with the collective ambition to “do our best every day and go for the win. I didn’t have the best spring but I got back to a high level for the Critérium du Dauphiné.” In his last rehearsal before the Tour, Vingegaard won the last stage and finished 2nd of the overall standings, not so far from Roglic. Can he be the leader to overthrow Pogacar? “We aim to have one of us win the Tour”, Vingegaard states.
