The Netherlands will be represented with ten riders on Friday when the Tour de France starts in Copenhagen. It is only the second time since 2011 that ten or fewer compatriots participate in the biggest round of the year.
The Dutch delegation this year consists of Mathieu van der Poel, Dylan Groenewegen, Fabio Jakobsen, Bauke Mollema, Danny van Poppel, Dylan van Baarle, Taco van der Hoorn, Steven Kruijswijk, Nils Eekhoff and Martijn Tusveld.
Fourteen Dutchmen took part in the Tour last year. This year, Wout Poels, among others, is not among them. Last year he rode to Paris in the mountains jersey as number two in the mountains classification behind classification leader Tadej Pogacar.
In 1989 a record number of Dutchmen took part: then no fewer than thirty riders made an appearance for the first stage of the Tour de France. Since then, more than twenty riders have never competed in the biggest round of the year.
Number of Dutch people in Tour de France
- 2010 – 8
- 2011 – 12
- 2012 – 18
- 2013 – 17
- 2014 – 17
- 2015 – 20
- 2016 – 15
- 2017 – 15
- 2018 – 14
- 2019 – 11
- 2020 – 7
- 2021 – 14
- 2022 – 10
Van der Poel and Mollema won a stage in 2021
With Van der Poel there is a former yellow jersey wearer. The leader of Alpecin-Fenix rode in the leader’s jersey for six days last year, partly thanks to his victory in the second stage. Mollema won the fourteenth stage in the Tour last year.
With Jakobsen and Groenewegen there are good chances of success in the sprint stages this year. Kruijswijk, who finished third in the Tour de France in 2019, has to help Jumbo-Visma to the overall victory as a servant of Primoz Roglic and Jonas Vingegaard.
The Tour de France will start on Friday with an individual time trial in the Danish capital Copenhagen. The biggest round of the year lasts until July 24.
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