On Sunday, the colorful TDT-Unibet outfit will appear in the WorldTour peloton for the first time. Bas Tietema’s team makes its debut in the Dutch classic at the highest level. “This is a milestone for everyone who follows our story,” says the driving force behind the project. But Tietema dreams even bigger: “We want to ride the Tour in 2026”.
It started 5 years ago with YouTube videos, but on Sunday the cycling team of Bas Tietema and his companions will be at the start of the Amstel Gold Race. The preliminary highlight in their crazy journey so far.
“It will be a beautiful and special day,” says Bas Tietema. “It will be our very first WorldTour match. Hopefully with many fans on the sidelines.”
And of course, those fans have been taken into account. “We are organizing a big event for all fans of our team and all our followers. At the foot of the Geulhemmerberg we have reserved a café with a parking space. There will be a large screen and there will be various performances. We are also going to have an amazing hang up a big banner.”
The riders will also go to the supporters café. “After the race we will come to the café. I hope they will go on everyone’s shoulders. It should be one big party.”
“We started making videos in 2019, so our WorldTour debut is a big milestone for all the fans who follow our story.”
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“Next year the Omloop and the Ronde, but the ultimate dream is the Tour”
But TDT-Unibet is now much more than a social media project, it is a professional cycling team. So with a strategy for Sunday.
“We want to drive offensively. Not necessarily to be in the leading group, but to make the race attractive.”
“In the Brabantse Pijl we already saw on Wednesday that Jelle Johannink came 4th on the Moskesstraat, after Teuns, Wellens and Marijn van den Berg. Ultimately he finished 17th, but we showed that we were really good deep in the final. are.”
“If we can show that on Sunday, then it will have been a successful day. Whether we finish 10th, 15th or 20th, it doesn’t matter.”
There is no real leader for the Amstel, but the team does have several pawns that can go far, such as Jelle Johannink. “Until 2 years ago, he still rode at club level. Last year he rode the Dutch continental competitions, now you see him competing with the best riders in the 1.pro competitions. He is making enormous strides and still has a lot of potential.”
The Dutchman only really became a professional this year. “He comes from the farm. When he signed his contract, he had to discuss with his family who would take over the work on the farm. He is now a full-time professional cyclist for the first time, but if he ‘ When he wakes up at night, he still helps with the birth of the lambs.”
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With Lander Loockx, a Belgian will also ride in the TDT-Unibet shirt on Sunday. “Last year I got in touch with him and he told me he wanted to drive more on the road.”
“If you look at the motocross riders, you see that they are all super good riders on the road. Just think of Tim Merlier, Gianni Vermeersch and Timo Kielich. We also see a lot of potential with Lander. The Volta NXT Classic was his first 2 weeks ago competition with earphones.”
“Riding the Amstel Gold Race will be a new step and a very wonderful experience.”
And what is the next step for TDT-Unibet? “At WorldTour level, we hope to ride the Renewi Tour this year, which is on our wish list. Next year we aim for a much more extensive WorldTour program, with the Omloop and ultimately the Tour of Flanders.”
“But the ultimate dream is to ride the Tour in 2026. That would bring our story full circle. In 2019 we started with YouTube videos in the Tour de France. To then finish on the Champs-Elysees with our own team, that would be the ultimate.”
How can we get into the Tour? “By being one of the best ProContinentale teams in the team ranking.”
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