Vader was starting to lose that fire at Visma | Lease a Bike: "I agreed with the team quite quickly on leaving"

After three years, the collaboration between Milan Vader and Visma | Lease a Bike came to an end this past winter. The Dutchman, who transitioned from mountain biking to road cycling, began his professional career with the Dutch top team. Seeking more personal opportunities, he has now opted for the Swiss Q36.5 Pro Cycling Team, and his initial impressions have been positive.

"Thank you for being an ultimate fighter in these past years," the Dutch team wrote in their farewell post, referring to the severe crash Vader suffered in 2022 during the Tour of the Basque Country. He ended up in the hospital, and at one point, there were fears for his life. "You had to learn to walk again, but by the end of that same year, you returned on the bike."

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Milan Vader riding for Visma l Lease a Bike

Vader is pleasantly surprised by his new team

At the end of 2023, Vader achieved a major triumph by winning the fourth stage of the Gree-Tour of Guangxi as well as the overall classification. These were his first victories as a professional cyclist. However, he also failed to win more often, and that is exactly what he intends to change. At Visma | Lease a Bike, those opportunities were limited.

"It’s super exciting. I feel really positive. Of course you try to investigate as much as possible before you choose a team, but it’s always a little bit of a surprise, because it’s difficult to know all the ins and outs. But I’m super surprised, in a positive way. The atmosphere in the team is super good, really friendly, open, it’s just one group, no big egos. On the other hand, it’s still super professional. To be honest, more than I expected," Vader told the media outlet of cycling journalist Daniel Benson.

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Vader winning in Guangxi

Vader was starting to lose his fire

After three years in a superteam, Vader was ready for a new environment. "Of course, it’s the complete picture. I think the team is growing, it’s a sign that they’re doing things right, they’re professional. I had a super good talk, and just had a good feeling. It’s all about performance and numbers and everything, but they also look at the human behind it. That’s what they do with everything, in this team, and I feel good about it."

The victory in Guangxi seemed to set the stage for a promising 2024, but things turned out differently. The 28-year-old Dutchman didn’t come close to another victory. "It’s not really that I struggled in 2024, in general I was on a super good level. But I missed the peak, or something, the one good result or super day. There are other reasons. I also said, too often, ‘don’t worry guys, I work for you.’"

Vader missed his own opportunities — the moments when he could be the team leader or a free agent. "Maybe I lost a little bit of fire. I still enjoyed the team, but I felt more, I didn’t really have my personal goal, and there wasn’t so much room for that. With all the big stars in the team it’s difficult, and that’s why I agreed with the team quite quickly on leaving and going to another team."

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Milan Father

Vader aims for a good result in the Flèche Wallonne

That other team turned out to be Q36.5, the team that Tom Pidcock will also be riding for, starting from this season. "One of the things that I really liked about this team, they came to me and asked me, what are your goals, what do you want to achieve? I was like, ‘I have some things in mind, but what do you want?’ They said ‘no, no, it doesn’t matter, what do you want?’ I really liked it."

One of Vader's goals, for example, is to achieve a strong result in the Flèche Wallonne. "Last year was the first time I did it and I felt like it’s a race that suits me well. We’re speaking about Grand Tours. I think it’s good for my development, I’ll be a stronger, better rider." So far, the Dutchman has never started in a Grand Tour.

In 2025, Vader’s career needs to take a winning turn again. "I think I’m close. So far, it works well with the new trainer, it’s going well. We need to focus on the process, doing things right, and then the results will follow," concluded the Dutchman.

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