Leezer ends career after thirteen years of professional cycling
Tom Leezer will no longer be part of the professional cycling peloton next year. The 34-year-old rider of Team Jumbo-Visma quits cycling after having been a professional cyclist for thirteen years.
Leezer has been a professional cyclist with Team Jumbo-Visma and its predecessors since 2008. He achieved one individual victory. In 2013 he won the sixth stage of the Tour of Langkawi.
“For the past sixteen years my life has been dominated by cycling”, Leezer said. “First I spent three years with the Rabobank development team, only to become a professional cyclist with that same team. It has been such a fun period in my life. It feels crazy to stop. This year I have had a number of physical complaints, including back problems. Those problems prevented me from practicing my sport the way I would like to. I still have the love for the race, but it is not nice to participate in top sport with this kind of pain.”
"I look back on my career with a very good and proud feeling."
“I have had beautiful years. In my career I have experienced a number of highlights. Riding my first Tour de France, winning with Dylan Groenewegen on the Champs-Élysées, Primoz Roglic finishing on the podium of the Giro d’Italia. Those are moments that I will carry with me for the rest of my life. I also like to think back to the world championships in Qatar. First we had a good team time trial and then I had a good road race. I am often reminded of that late attack in the final. I received a lot of attention and respect for this, also from colleagues. That is very special for me.”
“In my career I have achieved one individual victory, but the team performance comes to surface sooner when I think about my highlights. As a team, we have put a lot of time and energy into those achievements. It is very nice that I have been part of that. I look back on my career with a very good and proud feeling. I got everything out of it.”
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“This year I hope to be able to ride a number of great races, including the Walloon classics. Then it's all over and I can start a new chapter. I have no idea what I will do after my active career. I don't want to make a hasty decision about my future. It’s just a matter of time. I used to want to study mechanical engineering, but that never happened because of cycling. Maybe I'll go in the technical direction. That has always interested me. But first I want to conclude this well.”
