As the 2026 Tour de France route was unveiled, one voice in Danish cycling was quick to share his verdict – and his warning.

Brian Holm believes Team Visma | Lease a Bike must throw their full support behind Jonas Vingegaard next summer, instead of splitting leadership duties with Wout van Aert. The former Quick-Step sports director was left puzzled by what he heard during the official route presentation, broadcast on Belgian television. “It struck me that Richard Plugge [Visma’s team boss] talked more about Wout van Aert than about Vingegaard. In my eyes, Vingegaard is their star,” Holm told Feltet.dk.

Holm believes the 2026 parcours plays perfectly to the Dane’s strengths, featuring two summits of the legendary Alpe d’Huez – the first from its traditional 21 hairpins, the second from the lesser-known, vertiginous approach via the Col de Sarenne. “Alpe d’Huez twice – that’s certainly exciting. But from the back, via the Col de Sarenne – I’ve never liked that road. I don’t know if I’ve developed vertigo in my old age, but when you drive there and look down, it’s wild,” he recalled.

Holm knows that route better than most. As Quick-Step’s sports director in 2013, he drove the treacherous descent of the Col de Sarenne when it was last included in the Tour. “Last time they used it, it was as a descent, and it was absolutely brutal. There are no barriers, the road is narrow, and there’s a hell of a long way down if you go off,” he said. “I remember doing the recon and thinking: this feels wrong.”

“It’s as if they forget Vingegaard is even on the team”

For Holm, however, the biggest talking point wasn’t the mountains — it was the way Visma continue to shape their leadership hierarchy around Van Aert.

“I just hope it doesn’t continue like this year, where they rode with two leaders,” he said. “The focus was on Van Aert — it’s as if they forget that Vingegaard is even on the team.”

At this year’s Tour, Van Aert claimed a stage win while Vingegaard fought for overall victory, ultimately finishing second. Yet Holm still finds it odd that so much of the media and internal focus remains on the Belgian. “There’s a lot of talk about Wout. He’s the superstar. But personally, I’d find it more exciting if there was a bit more talk about Vingegaard,” he said.

“If the sun, moon and stars align”

Holm hasn’t lost faith in his countryman’s ability to reclaim yellow. “Even though some people claim otherwise, I still believe Vingegaard can win the Tour de France — if the sun, moon and stars align,” he said with conviction.

Not everyone shares Holm’s optimism. Still, for Holm, the message is simple: the route suits his compatriot, and so should the team’s strategy.