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Steven Kruijswijk, Christophe Laporte extend with Jumbo-Visma
Steven Kruijswijk, currently racing at the Giro d’Italia, will stay in a Jumbo-Visma through 2025.
“I am still full of motivation and am enjoying cycling a lot,” Kruijswijk said. “The road we have taken with the team in recent years and the high level we reach play a crucial role. Even if I am no longer the absolute leader, I think I can still play a very important role in this team. I want to continue to be part of the team for at least another two years and I am very curious to see what we can all achieve in that period.”
Kruijswijk, 35, joined the continental team back in 2007, and hit the WorldTour in 2010. He’s finished in the top-5 of all three grand tours, including third in the 2019 Tour de France and his famous fourth place in the 2016 Giro when he crashed into a snowbank while in the pink jersey.
The team also confirmed that Christophe Laporte, 30, will stay with the team through 2026.
“I feel great here,” Laporte said. “This team works in an extremely professional way, but at the same time, it feels very familiar. From the first day I arrived, there was a lot of trust in the team. I thank everyone, the staff and the riders, for that. I am still learning every day, and I want to advance with the team. I know that if I stay here, I can reach my potential.”
Spanish rider dies from brain tumor
Eolo-Kometa is mourning the loss of 25-year-old rider Arturo Grávalos, who died from complications of a brain tumor.
The Spanish-Italian team, currently racing in the Giro d’Italia, posted an update on its website to mark his passing.
Grávalos joined the team backed by Alberto Contador and Ivan Basso in 2019, and underwent brain surgery in late 2021 after feeling “strange sensations.”
Here is a team release Friday:
“It is with deep sorrow and immense pain that EOLO-KOMETA Cycling Team announces the passing away of our rider Arturo Grávalos in the early morning. The Riojan cyclist had turned 25 years old last March 2. His death leaves an irreplaceable hole in our hearts, since we will never forget his joy and his everlasting smile. His will to live, always present even before the onset of the disease, leaves us with thousands of magical moments in and out of competition.
“Grávalos underwent surgery in November 2021 for a brain tumour that had been diagnosed a few weeks earlier, after several days with strange sensations during training. The evolution of that operation was very positive, but the cyclist had to undergo surgery several times to try to eradicate a tumour.
“Arturo never gave up, because that was his nature, to wear a race bib again. He did not set a deadline for his return, but it was clear to him that he was going to face each race as an opportunity given to him by life. Arturo wanted to leave his mark on the sport that he loved so much and in which he generated so much affection and affection; that mark that he left so well to the suffering of his rivals in those accelerations that he led during his time in the amateur field or even as a professional, as in his last race: the Giro del Medio Brenta in 2021.
“Life put many obstacles in front of him in recent times and he always, always, reacted with the best of faces, overcoming them with the greatest of positivism. He kept his sorrow and regret to himself, refusing to give it any continuity. Armed with his huge smile, his closeness and his frankness, he was all about building, supporting, praising and thanking. We will never forget you, Arturo. Rest in peace.
“We ask the utmost respect for your family, friends and loved ones at this difficult time.”