Jumbo-Visma DS says: “They regularly suggest that our results are due to ketones, to mechanical doping, whatever… for me, they’re looking for excuses"

Jumbo-Visma DS Merijn Zeeman could not be part of the Tour de France as he tested positive for Covid-19 ahead of the race, however he has had some strong words against teams that have accused the Dutch squad of forbidden practices.

“The French maybe won’t like this, but I don’t think they work with the same professionalism as us," Team DS Merijn Zeeman told L'Équipe. “They regularly suggest that our results are due to ketones, to mechanical doping, whatever… for me, they’re looking for excuses," he strongly put out.

“Certain teams, not just the French ones, refuse to look squarely at their own lack of rigour and say that others are doing bad things," Zeeman said. The ketones specifically were an argument of much discussion for the last few years, to which the manager responds: “It’s the most ridiculous discussion I’ve ever seen in cycling … it’s just a food supplement.”

“Sometimes it annoys us. Ketones make up not even one percent of our performance work. How to train better, optimising the effects of altitude, improving the bikes, having the ideal nutrition before, during and after races. Those are the most important things," he pointed out.

“We have to stay vigilant, but I think cycling has undergone a real change. When I see our riders, there is not this underlying idea that if they cheat, they can win," Zeeman concluded.