Team Visma | Lease a Bike has been introducing youth to cycling for five years
This year marks exactly five years since Team Jumbo-Visma, as it was known then, presented its youth plan. The goal of the youth plan was to get more young people into cycling and to develop talent into successful professional cyclists. Over the years, this sporty-social branch of the team has evolved significantly: from the youth plan and the Academy to the current sports promotion program, Ready2Race.
Before the youth plan was announced in 2019, the team already had the idea of launching an initiative to get more youth on bikes. "We have always emphasized that we want to inspire people to be more active and thus contribute to a healthier and more active society," says manager Richard Plugge. "Of course, this starts with the youngest children. Over the past five years, we have been able to introduce many children to the joy of cycling."
The youth plan, also known as the Academy, included school projects, club support, and a new training team for cycling talent under 23. With the support of sponsors like Jumbo, Visma, BrabantSport, Limburg Cycling, and SportZeeland, the project took off.
Important role of clubs
From the beginning, collaboration with cycling clubs was sought. One of the clubs involved since the start is HRTC Hoorn. They have organized multiple clinics for schools in Hoorn. Successfully, as Martin Kras, board member of HRTC Hoorn, concludes: "I see how enthusiastic the children are during those school clinics. It's a way for us to showcase our club and inform children about cycling. Many children don’t even know what cycling is. Immediately after the school clinics, we organize trial training sessions, and quite a few new youth members have emerged from them. That’s ultimately what we do it for."
Start of Ready2Race
In 2021, Ready2Race was introduced, adding an initiative under the Academy's umbrella. Ready2Race allowed anyone aged 16 and older to participate in cycling races at their level. This not only lowered the entry barrier to the sport but also increased the pool of competitive cyclists.
To introduce youth to the sport in an accessible way, the concept of the Fat Tire Races was taken over from Ready to Start in 2022. These are bike races for children aged two to twelve. Ready2Race facilitates organizers throughout the Netherlands in setting up these Fat Tire Races.
Looking to the future
Ready2Race now focuses entirely on youth, discontinuing the 16+ races. This decision allows Ready2Race to introduce even more children to cycling through three activities: Fat Tire Races, school clinics, and out-of-school clinics.
"We are looking into whether we can also roll out the Ready2Race concept abroad"
Currently, activities are only organized in the Netherlands, but international possibilities are being explored. Maud de Vries, chair of the Ready2Race Foundation, states: "Things are going very well in the Netherlands, and we can build on that success. Our ultimate goal is to reach as many children as possible and introduce them to cycling. Therefore, we are looking into whether we can also roll out the concept abroad." This would not be possible without the involved partners of Ready2Race. "Together we are creating a generation that is aware of the importance of physical activity. In our case, we do this through cycling. To pass this on to future generations, we hope to involve as many people and organizations as possible in Ready2Race," says de Vries.
