Less than two weeks after Picnic-PostNL announced that Fabio Jakobsen would be leaving the team with immediate effect, Visma-Lease a Bike have confirmed the Dutch sprinter’s signing on a deal through 2027.

Jakobsen, 29, has 46 pro wins to his name, including a Tour de France stage, five stages of the Vuelta a España, two editions of Scheldeprijs, and the 2022 European road title. However, he’s struggled with health issues in recent seasons, including double iliac artery surgery in early 2025.

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Senior News Writer

Fabio Jakobsen was one of the better-known names at Picnic, who have gained a reputation for losing their top talent to richer squads over the years, but this isn’t one of those moves.

He has struggled mightily for form since joining the team, with iliac artery problems causing him to lose sprint power.

He hasn’t shown any signs of regaining his ability since then, however, with DNFs littering a palmarès that used to feature wins and podiums. Moving on is best for both parties.

It remains to be seen whether he can rediscover himself at Visma, the third team of his career after Picnic and his early, far more successful stint at Soudal-QuickStep. The terms of his contract are obviously private, but it’s hard not to imagine that this will be a ‘prove it’ deal, possibly with results-based bonuses.

Visma committing a chunk of their budget to Jakobsen wouldn’t make much sense right now, given their search for new money to bolster Jonas Vingegaard’s support team. And, with the contract only running for just over a year, there’s likely to be little risk on their side.

Instead, it appears to be a low-risk rehabilitation play. Visma have several fast finishers – including Matthew Brennan, Wout van Aert, and Christophe Laporte – but none are in the mould of a prime Jakobsen, who was fully at home on traditional flat sprint stages.

The team say they’ll focus on ‘rebuilding his condition, introducing him to the team’s training philosophy, nutrition programme and way of working, and helping him settle in.’ If they can do that, and reach their ‘ultimate goal of seeing him compete for sprint victories again’, then it’s all upside.