Outstpoken Bouwman highlights big differences between Visma and Jayco-AlUla, and new team immediately surprises him with a roommate.

He was part of the furniture of Visma | Lease a Bike for nine years, but sometimes you have to part with even your favorite couch or kitchen table. And so it happens that in 2025, we see a Jayco-AlUla jersey draped around the shoulders of Koen Bouwman. The 31-year-old Dutchman, with only his second employer at the highest level, is hoping for a swift change of pace in a career with a role as a domestique for years. IDLProCycling.com spoke with a candid Bouwman about uncertainties surrounding his departure, attacking, longer training sessions, and being in the same room with his old Giro rival...

Does it feel unbelievable to be riding with a Jayco-AlUla jersey suddenly?

"I can't wear it yet; that's only allowed from January 1. But of course, I'm at training camp for the first time, getting to know the group. That's super fun, a warm welcome. I flew to Italy once with Jelte (Krijnsen, ed.) to do medical checks and try on clothes, but I hadn't met anyone else yet."

Of course, everyone is talking about your departure from Visma | Lease a Bike, and we have all seen that wonderful video of your farewell. Was it difficult? Did that linger in the week after that farewell evening?

"Oh yes, for sure. When I drove back that night, you do think in the car about the long period that is now behind you—a remarkable period, which I wouldn't have missed for the world. You do realize that you are going to start something new. I am looking forward to it, but when you see the Visma bus in Spain alongside the road...."

Would you just enter their bus then?

"Well, not that, but I will always pull towards Visma | Lease a Bike in the course. What I say: I had a super nice time."

Koen Bouwman in yellow and black from Visma | Lease a Bike

Bouwman will cycle longer, with less demanding blocks

We read a bit in the Jayco-AlUla press release about what the team wants from you, but what will change for you this winter to become the Koen Bouwman you so desperately want to be?

"The main goal is to get on the bike again and compete. Technical training will change quite a bit, especially in terms of approach. That is different from Visma, who has a new trainer on the team. I will work well with him for six months or a year and then see how it goes. There will undoubtedly be things to adjust, but that will be a pleasant exploration."

Can you roughly explain what will change in your training sessions without going into details?

"I think I will put in more hours and volume. At Visma, it's very black-and-white training, and here, maybe a little more gray. A little more riding, although I also like to ride by feel, and I do not look at his computer all day. At Jayco-AlUla, we ride a little more vigorously over an entire workout, while at Visma, you ride a little more quietly and do a few demanding blocks."

Will we see you training in Achterhoek, too? Or do those Strava files at Jayco-AlUla no longer come by?

"Well, I've been away quite often in recent years. About 250 days a year, I was abroad. I'm going to keep doing that. The Achterhoek is beautiful. I feel at home there, which helps me feel good about myself and ride good results. But with only training in the Achterhoek, I won't be able to compete at the highest level. I have to find a good balance with the team, just like the past few seasons."

Is there still an initiation scheduled?

"I don't know. If it's an Australian initiation, I have no idea what will happen, haha! I'll just wisely keep my mouth shut about it..."

Bouwman won the Coppi e Bartali in his last season at Visma

Bouwman is ready to rock and roll

Besides another role, what else do you hope to find with this team? Is there room for improvement, for example?

"Yes, I do think so. I don't want to offend anyone, but at Visma, it was much less racing for me than you did with the rookies, juniors, and U23s. I am ready to rock and roll..."

Like in that Giro d'Italia of 2022....

"Yes, exactly. Picking your days. I'm not saying it was bad at Visma, but I enjoyed everything there. I won grand tours with the team, which was super special. I wouldn't have wanted to miss that, but I want to rediscover that other piece. Attacking often that's what I hope to find. And I heard from the Dutch guys that there is a super warm atmosphere here, and I need that; otherwise, I won't perform. I've had a nice welcome, so I think I will find my place here."

How many times have you been on a bike at Visma | Lease a Bike that your inner Koen wanted to try something but couldn't?

"Yes, often enough, of course. But that's also in the knowledge that I rode with so many good leaders, that you also win so many races together. So I never regretted that. I would have regretted it more if I had to stay in the peloton for an eighth-place finish from a leader. At Visma, fifteen or twenty guys are riding around who are better than me. I never made a big deal about that; I did my job for those guys."

But you never had that incentive in your upper legs of: please, may I?

"Of course, sometimes you go to a race where you would have liked to be in it a few times. To go for a mountain jersey or a nice spot high in the classification, but I didn't complain about that. With so many leaders, it's impossible; I should have looked for something else earlier. I never did because I could definitely find myself in that role."

Did they make you another offer?

"Yes, yes, definitely. I still had talks with them and even negotiated. At one point, it came to a final stage with other teams, so I had to start choosing. I called Richard Plugge again (director of Visma | Lease a Bike, ed.), and we countered with another proposal. Regarding opportunities, I just wouldn't get what I would get with other teams, so I chose the sportive now. Richard finally decided to part ways because it just didn't work out that way. I am also happy with that because it was a difficult decision for me because I had such a good time with the team."

Bouwman in the mountain jersey, after two stage wins at the 2022 Giro

Tour de France debut for Bouwman at Jayco-AlUla?

Have you had any contact with Dylan Groenewegen, someone you remember from your Jumbo-Visma days?

"Yes, he often said in the race that Jayco-AlUla could be something for me, just like Elmar Reinders. Those are guys, just like Jan Maas when he left, who you give a call to then. How does it work in a team like that? It's always good to verify that."

Director of High Performance and Racing Matt White told me he brings in many Dutch guys because they fit nicely into Australian culture. Are those the stories you've heard?

"Yes. In the first meeting in Spain, we were immediately told to say if anything came up. That's nice, just like at Visma. That may cause some chit-chat and arguments, but ultimately, we are all grown men with the same goal. The team wants to provide the best possible performance environment, and we must grab the tools that are offered. That's nice working together."

Do you already know what you will ride in 2025?

"No, no idea yet. We'll find out this training camp."

We already know that the Tour de France is your holy grail. Have you had any certainty about that yet?

"No, not really yet. Of course, we discussed that during the contract negotiations in April and the Giro or the Vuelta in a free role. Jayco-AlUla is a strong team, and if you go to the Tour with BenO'Connor and Dylan Groenewegen's sprint train, it will be a close call or not. I hope to make my debut there in the next few years."

Because let's face it: riding the Tour in O'Connor's service would be great for you too, right?

"Yes. I can't demand a free role in the Tour. If there is a stage in between where I get the chance, I will take it. But for me, it's fine if I am a domestique for Dylan and Ben; it's awesome, even."

Ben O'Connor

Schmid and Bouwman roommates

You said jokingly in a podcast that you were curious about your first contact with Mauro Schmid after you bumped into each other a bit in the 2022 Giro d'Italia. Have you spoken to each other in the meantime?  

"Well, he's even my roommate! We don't all have a black eye yet, so that worked out well. That podcast was meant to be funny, a little laugh... I'm always an open book. Mauro and I are two adults, and it happened."

Is it not like he has already started talking about it?

"We only saw each other for the first time on Sunday, and no doubt we'll talk about it again sometime. But it's just cozy in the room that Giro is behind us. Hopefully, we'll make up for it in some race next year."

He does have the same profile; you could make a dangerous duo.

"Exactly. I think we are on the same level in terms of qualities.2

Do you still have to pay attention to your joints while riding new material? Schmid was out for months last year after his switch to Jayco-AlUla due to knee problems.

"Yeah, I've been off the bike for two weeks. New shoes, new cleats, new bike... Fortunately, I'm experienced enough that I can feel when it's wrong after a few days. Then, I got off the bike immediately, and it was gone. This process is always part of such a transition. I'm sure it will all work out."

Bouwman beat Schmid at 2022 Giro in uphill sprint

Bouwman does not consider himself a "top talent"

With this new mindset, what do you hope to get out of this year? When will 2025 be successful?

"I hope it won't be a year of adjustment; I want to reach a good level by the end of March and April. Nice racing, which is what I like to do best. I am not afraid to ride at the front, but I also hope to attack. Depending on my program, I hope to win a stage on a big tour, but I would also like to ride some smaller races and work towards the Tour de France."

A one-day race?

"I've never performed in one-day races before, although I've never worked towards them specifically. My trainer said last year that it should be possible with my profile, so maybe this is something for the future. The field is always strong on a day like this so that I won't be in the top fifteen. On the other hand, ten years ago, I dreamed of winning a big tour stage, which seemed unrealistic. Now, you have to have dreams, so never say never. On a good day, I am capable of a lot."

Not being able to keep up with the best fifteen... Is that the room for improvement we were just talking about? Do you think you will be able to compete with the best ten?

"In the Giro of 2021, I rode the last week with the best ten GC riders. So, that is possible somewhere, but I am not the top talent that can show that every time. Everything has to be in place, and I have to be in shape before I can do something. Then I belong to the best fifteen and hope to show that next year. I am very down-to-earth about that: if I have done everything I can and it doesn't work out, so be it. If it does work out, that's great."

Bram van der Ploeg (Twitter: @BvdPloegg | email: [email protected])      

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