Teunissen stays in yellow as Jumbo make flying start to Tour de France

Mike Teunissen celebrates after Jumbo's win in the team time trial. Photo: Yorick Jansens/ Belga via HH
Mike Teunissen celebrates after Jumbo’s win in the team time trial. Photo: Yorick Jansens/ Belga via HH

Mike Teunissen will start stage three of the Tour de France in the yellow jersey after his Jumbo-Visma team were the surprise package for the second day running.

The 26-year-old became the first Dutchman to lead the cycle race in 30 years after snatching the opening stage win in Brussels on Saturday, and his Jumbo team-mates followed up by winning the 27.6 kilometre team time trial on Sunday.

Teunissen is 10 seconds ahead of his team leader, Steven Kruiswijk, in the general classification, with most of the other leading contenders 30 seconds or more behind.

Saturday’s result took everyone by surprise, including Teunissen himself, who was expecting to lead out the sprint for his team’s specialist Dylan Groenewegen. The last Dutchman to wear yellow was Erik Breukink in 1989.

Teunissen will hope to hold on to his jersey on Monday in a 215km stage through Champagne country that features a number of short, steep climbs.

‘Anything is possible in this bubble that we’re in,’ he said after the second stage win. ‘The competition is strong, but we’ve been working for years with a good plan, loyal sponsors and the right people in the right place.

‘It’s all come together. This is what we were hoping for. It’s the magic of being in yellow and a very good team.’

Thank you for donating to DutchNews.nl.

We could not provide the Dutch News service, and keep it free of charge, without the generous support of our readers. Your donations allow us to report on issues you tell us matter, and provide you with a summary of the most important Dutch news each day.

Make a donation