Grischa Niermann: Judge us on our results 🐝
It's been far from an ideal start to 2026 for Visma, but their Head of Racing is confident the team can turn it around as he discusses Vingegaard, ex-rider criticism, and the broader perspective
Judge us by our results. That was the main message from Visma-Lease a Bike’s Head of Racing, Grischa Niermann, when I rang him this afternoon to discuss the team’s less-than-ideal start to the year, Jonas Vingegaard’s crash and illness, the sudden departure of the Dane’s long-term coach, and criticism from ex-riders.
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So far, the results haven’t been flattering for the Duch team, with only one victory and a series of crashes that have left key riders sidelined. Along with the shock retirement of Simon Yates in the off-season, and Monday’s surprising news that coach Tim Heemskerk was stepping away from the team with immediate effect, the news has caused an air of concern - at least from the outside.
Heemskerk had coached several riders on the team - including Vingegaard - and joined Visma around the same time as the two-time Tour de France winner. His departure, which he said was due to ‘struggling to continue applying my creativity and passion’, was hardly upbeat news, especially following the report last month that Vingegaard crashed in training after attempting to drop a rider who had been attempting to follow him on a descent. The injuries weren’t severe, but the 29-year-old was then forced to withdraw from the UAE Tour due to a slight illness.