They didn’t go too the market with just any rider, they knew that. But agents Eelco Berkhout and Bart van Haaren did not expect that a multi-deal would be concluded at the French Decathlon around the Dutchman Olav Kooij (24).”This is unique.”
“Everyone knew we where talking about the top of the market,” Berkhout explains. “A top sprinter, who can potentially win Tour de france stages. Olav is still young, still has many years ahead of him. That comes at a price.”
That price tag would ultimately, according to well-informed sources (his agents do not make any statements about amounts), amount to an annual salary of more than three million euros, with which kooij instantly enters the top ten of best-paid riders.
And in Kooij’s slipstream,Sports Entertainment Group (SEG),the real estate agency from Amsterdam that represents more than a hundred riders,was also allowed to sign contracts with the French team for Daan hoole,Cees Bol and the Belgian Robbe Ghys.
Reconstruction
How did it come to this? Initially, SEG did not have to look for another team for Kooij, because he was having a great time at Visma-lease a Bike. Only: he wants to go to the tour in 2026.
Berkhout: “They didn’t want to lose him either and they once again offered Olav a very nice programme in discussions, but they could not guarantee Olav’s Tour wishes.”
The first visit of Kooij and co to Decathlon (from left to right: Dominique Serieys (manager Decathlon CMA CGM), Daan Hoole, Olav Kooij, Robbe Ghys, Cees Bol and Bart van Haaren (SEG))
SEG began holding exploratory discussions with other teams in late 2024. “To arrive at a contract like this, with so many facets, you have to start early. Sometimes it takes months.”
UAE also reported
Berkhout compares the process that emerged, with as many as eighteen potential teams in the beginning, to a funnel. “And you will only find out when a decision is made.” Teams such as UAE, Tadej Pogacar’s team, inquired with SEG, but were told a clear ‘no’.
Van Haaren: “Olav was very honest about that: at the moment when I have to share the leadership with a classification man,I might as well stay with Visma. He really whent for that sprint ambition, with certainty on the Tour. It was not about the money for him either. He wanted the right support and the material had to be in order. Those were his wishes.”
Aiko Tanaka is a combat sports journalist and general sports reporter at Archysport. A former competitive judoka who represented Japan at the Asian Games, Aiko brings firsthand athletic experience to her coverage of judo, martial arts, and Olympic sports. Beyond combat sports, Aiko covers breaking sports news, major international events, and the stories that cut across disciplines — from doping scandals to governance issues to the business side of global sport. She is passionate about elevating the profile of underrepresented sports and athletes.
