Merijn Zeeman is not spoon-feeding his Visma successors all the info: "Some things they need to figure out for themselves"

In various ways, the end of 2024 marks the end of an era for Visma | Lease a Bike. Not only is the team’s most experienced rider, Robert Gesink, retiring, but architect Merijn Zeeman will also no longer be with the cycling team from December 1. The Dutchman is moving to the Dutch soccer club AZ. During the Vuelta, IDLProCycling.com spoke with Zeeman about his last ever grand tour.

While all the staff members of Visma | Lease a Bike appeared in special Robert Gesink-themed jerseys at the team presentation for the Vuelta a España, this honor is not extended to Zeeman. Can we expect special Zeeman shirts in Madrid? He laughs and shakes his head. "This is also my last grand tour, but those kinds of things are for the athletes, not for the coaches."

Indeed, this Vuelta is Zeeman's last grand tour with the team that brought him so much. However, the Spanish race doesn’t evoke as much emotion as the French one, the Dutchman acknowledges. "The Tour felt like the real conclusion for me. I'm not here for the whole Vuelta, just mostly at the beginning. To support Marc Reef, Grischa Niermann and Addy Engels and to pass things on."

Still, the first of December is looming ever closer. "For me, these are really the last weeks now, and I realize that these are the last times," says Zeeman, who experienced an incredible amount at Visma | Lease a Bike. "It's bittersweet. On the one hand, I'm looking forward to something new, but on the other, it's a farewell to a sport. And even more so, a farewell to people with whom I’ve shared so much, through thick and thin. That realization is kind of like a mourning phase, so it’s bittersweet. But it is what it is."

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Zeeman: "I'm now closing the Visma | Lease a Bike chapter"

So how should we view that? Did Zeeman come home from the Tour with a heavy heart? "The last Sunday evening of the Tour was special. Richard Plugge gave a beautiful speech when the entire Tour team was present. Those are emotional moments. And once again: I’m not quitting because I don’t enjoy it anymore. I’m not quitting because I don’t like it anymore. There’s another motivation behind it. I’m going to miss the sport and this team enormously," Zeeman wants to emphasize once more.

According to Zeeman, there are hardly any tasks he felt relieved to have completed. "Not really," he says, before giving an example of his approach as a cycling coach. "Take the Tour de France. It starts already in winter, but from early May onwards, we really start preparing for the Tour. It begins in the Sierra Nevada, then the Dauphiné, then Tignes, and then the Tour. That’s a three-month block where I’m focused solely on one race: the tactics, the riders and so on."

"That’s what makes it special, and the satisfaction is even greater when it works out, but at some point, that part for me was like: that’s in the past now," says the sporting director. "I’m now closing that chapter. Building this team and winning the Tour de France and all those other races has changed my life. That realization is there, especially after last year’s three grand tour wins. I’ll carry that with me for the rest of my life, and I’ll always cherish it," he says.

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Zeeman will be succeeded by a five-member sporting management team

Robert Gesink, as a rider, mentioned that it’s hard to truly pass on your experience, but what about a coach like Zeeman? "I’ve been working on passing on many things for a long time. But there are also things where I say: I did it this way, but it’s not necessarily the way you should do it," says the Alkmaar native. "Some things I pass on, but for other things, I leave it up to Grischa Niermann, Jacco Verhaeren, Mathieu Heijboer and Patrick Broe. For some things they will need to figure out their own way of doing it, but they have my phone number." Together with Robbert de Groot, these four men will form the sporting management team.

Finally, the Dutch soccer season ('Eredivisie') has already started, but Zeeman is still fully committed to Visma | Lease a Bike. From December 1, that commitment will transfer to AZ. 'I’m not thinking about it too much yet. I’m in frequent contact with Max Huiberts, but ultimately, I need to discover what makes the difference in that sport and where I need to focus. That’s for later," he concludes.