Milan Vader: I lost a little bit of fire last year
The Dutchman explains his move to Q36.5 as he hopes to rediscover his peak form this season
Milan Vader was one of the most exciting signings Jumbo-Visma made ahead of the 2022 season. A promising mountain biker, he was a two-time Dutch national champion in the discipline, a European Championships bronze medallist, and placed 10th in the cross-country race at the Tokyo Olympics and the World Championships in 2021.
He had enormous potential, on the road as well as the mountain bike, as Jumbo-Visma recognised. But the past few seasons have not worked out the way he wanted.
On just his 10th day as a professional road racer, Vader suffered a life-threatening crash on stage five of Itzulia Basque Country in 2022. Among multiple other severe injuries the Dutchman fractured his spine in 11 places, perforated a lung, and required stents in his ruptured carotid artery to keep him alive. A trapped air bubble in his brain paralysed the right side of his body. He was placed in an induced coma for 12 days, and had to relearn how to walk.
Against all the odds, Vader made an astonishing recovery. He returned to action just five months later at the CRO Race. A year and half after the crash, he picked up his first professional road victories, winning the queen stage and the overall title at the Tour of Guangxi.
Now, after three seasons with Visma-Lease a Bike, Vader has made the decision – like new team-mate Tom Pidcock – to drop down a division to ProTeam level, joining Swiss outfit Q36.5.
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