After the first year of collaboration between Team Visma | Lease a Bike and the JEGG SKIL DJR junior team, Patryk Goszczurny and Ian Kings progressed to the U23 branch of the WorldTeam. The goal for 2025 remains the same: to perform at the highest international junior level but, most importantly, to prepare as many riders as possible for Team Visma | Lease a Bike.

The Dutch WorldTeam looks back positively on the first season of close cooperation with JEGG SKIL DJR. “Of course, we encountered some issues. That’s normal when starting a project like this,” explains performance coach Vincent Laporte. Laporte, who is closely involved with the junior team on behalf of Team Visma | Lease a Bike, also trains six of the riders. “But we have evaluated those thoroughly and learned valuable lessons for 2025.”

In the new season, talent development remains the junior team’s top priority. “You can see that talent development in cycling has taken off enormously in recent years,” Laporte explains about the collaboration’s goal. “Top talents today are capable of taking the step to the WorldTour directly from the junior category or after just one year at the U23 level.”

“When we started our development team five years ago, the idea was to prepare riders for three to four years before they moved to the WorldTour,” he continues. “But when a rider spends only one year at the U23 level, that preparation period becomes much shorter. That’s one of the reasons why we believe it’s important to work intensively with riders from the junior category onwards. Additionally, this partnership allows us to keep a close eye on this category and get to know the riders better.”

Team Visma | Lease a Bike provides support in the form of equipment, expertise, and training facilities, while JEGG SKIL DJR manages the race calendar and rider support. “Just like at Team Visma | Lease a Bike, talent development is also in our club’s DNA,” says team manager Ceciel van Dongen of JEGG SKIL DJR. Together with former pro cyclist Brian van Goethem, Daan Meijers, and Jo Bouwens, she is the driving force behind the project. “Developing young talents is what we have always done, and with this setup, we have taken the step to the international level. We find it very motivating to be the foundation of Team Visma | Lease a Bike’s development pyramid. It’s great to work with such an enthusiastic and ambitious group of international riders and prepare them for a possible professional career.”

Beyond training, nutrition, and tactics, the team-building aspect is given significant attention, just as it is within the WorldTeam. “To do this effectively with such an international group, our training camps are crucial,” Van Dongen explains. “These are the only times before the season when we can bring the entire team together. Thanks to our collaboration with Team Visma | Lease a Bike, we can use the facilities at Watersley TalentPark and Dormio Resorts & Hotels for these training camps. We just wrapped up our February training camp at Dormio Resort Costa Blanca, and our stay there was excellent. The facilities were top-notch: great weather conditions, a fantastic training environment, a kitchen that caters to our needs, a gym, and meeting rooms for evening team-building activities.”

The international squad that gathered in February at Dormio Resort Costa Blanca includes Flavio Astolfi, ⁠Ashlin Barry, ⁠Benedikt Benz, Gustave Blanc, Senne Brys, Vos Coleman, Kristian Haugetun, Mauro Keppens, Owen Kings, Håkon Øksnes, Antoine Salamin, Stijn Vlieland, and Thijs Wiersma. Barry was the latest addition to the team and is already guaranteed a spot at Team Visma | Lease a Bike from 2026. “We are hopeful that, alongside him, we can transition several other riders as well,” says Laporte. “Barry, along with Goszczurny and Kings, is proof of what is possible and serves as motivation for the rest of the team. Hopefully, we will achieve some great results in the international junior circuit with this group. But the main goal will always be progression to Team Visma | Lease a Bike.”