Wout van Aert regrets the critical statements made by Jonas Vingegaard’s wife about Visma-Lease a Bike’s tactics. The Belgian does not recognize himself in them.
Trine Marie Hansen questioned in a remarkable interview with the Danish newspaper Politiken on Saturday whether her husband Vingegaard enjoys the full confidence of the Dutch Visma-Lease a Bike team.
“I think the team should focus on winning the Tour de France and nothing else,” said Hansen, who is also Vingegaard’s manager. “If you also focus on stage wins for other riders, that cannot be used for Jonas.”
Hansen did not mention Van Aert’s name, but most likely meant him. Visma-Lease a Bike allows the Belgian to pursue his own success in this Tour. On Tuesday, before the third stage, Van Aert said that there had been talks about the statements.
“We were surprised to read that yesterday,” he told Sporza. “I don’t want to say too much about it. My performances for this team speak for themselves. I consider this team my team and I always go 100 percent for the goals we set. In the Tour, one of those goals is a stage win for myself.”
Vingegaard: ‘Statements taken out of context’
Van Aert says that the goals are also clear for Vingegaard. “Are we still friends? Of course. But I think it was good to talk about it. It’s not Jonas who said anything. I regret what it says, but people who know me know they can count on me.”
Vingegaard was still mild about his wife’s texts after the stage on Sunday. A day later, he snapped sharply at journalists. “It’s taken out of context,” he told the NOS.
“She said something and the media in Denmark made a story out of nothing. They put a spin on it, that’s what most media do. That’s apparently what you get during the Tour de France. You are wasting your time on something unimportant instead of on the race.”
Team boss Richard Plugge told De Telegraaf that he laughed at the commotion. “It is not an issue for us. We are only concerned with winning the Tour de France with Jonas. That is also his goal.” According to Plugge, Vingegaard’s wife will visit the team during this Tour.