'Fascinated by carpentry' - Jonas Vingegaard opens up about life after cycling

He explains that a very different path was once on the table. “I have always said that I wanted to do something with numbers, probably something in the banking world. I have always been good with numbers,” said Jonas Vingegaard to TV MIDTVEST.

Before his cycling career took off, Vingegaard studied at a business college in Thisted, where his daily routine was also shaped by figures and economics. At that time, a future in the financial sector seemed like the most natural choice.

The rest of his origin story is widely known by now. As a young rider he combined training with early morning shifts at the fish factory in Hanstholm, clocking in before dawn while still trying to make it in the peloton.

Over the past few years, however, another interest has quietly grown alongside his sporting success. “After becoming an adult and renovating my own house, I have realised that I like manual work more than I actually thought,” says Vingegaard.

When asked if that could mean a practical job after his racing days are over, he does not rule it out. “That could very well be. Time will tell. I am very fascinated by carpentry.”

Between a love of numbers, a growing passion for craftsmanship and a strong pull toward family life, he is increasingly thinking about what comes after the peloton. In December he turns 29, and all signs point to several strong years still ahead in the bunch. 

Even so, he has started to look beyond the next season and the next race and to picture a life where the bike is no longer at the centre of everything.

“I actually do not think I will stay in the cycling world when I stop. I think I will just enjoy being at home with my family and being there for them. Beyond that, I do not really know what I want yet, but I will probably figure that out.”

Vingegaard also reflects on the rider who once made the sport feel larger than life for him. As a young cyclist, he had Alberto Contador as his big idol. The Spanish legend, is one of only seven riders ever to win all three grand tours, the Tour de France, Giro d’Italia and Vuelta a España.

For now, Vingegaard can already put a check mark next to the Tour and the Vuelta, and he has openly flirted with the idea of riding the Giro d’Italia in 2026. A possible Giro victory would only cement a career that has already gone far beyond what most young riders dare to dream of.

He closes with a message for the next generation of talents who hope to follow in his footsteps. “I think I would just tell them to keep believing. It is not always the biggest talents who get the furthest. I was not one of them myself, and I have still come a long way. So keep going and have fun with it.”