UDINE. Who will be the successor of Tadej Pogacar, the 22-year-old Slovenian of the UAE who last September, with the incredible time trial of the penultimate day at the Planche des Belles Filles overturned his compatriot Primoz Roglic, now sure of having won the Tour de France?
The two Slavic Pogacar and Roglic
I DUE SLOVENI. Well, given what happened in the first months of a cycling season with a normalized calendar, despite the fact that Covid is a far from escaped danger, many, indeed very many, are the probabilities that Pogacar will happen to itself. He won the Tirreno Adriatico, the Slovenian, he also mocked the world champion Julian Alaphilippe at the Liège Bastogne Liège, he saw from a distance what will be perhaps his greatest opponent in the coming years, Egan Bernal triumph in the Giro d’Italia and then finished his preparation at home by winning the Tour of Slovenia. No conventional preparation, therefore, like the Giro del Dauphiné or that of Switzerland, tried and tested races to approach the Grande Boucle, but training after training. “The preparation went very well – the words of Pogacar – After the Tour of Slovenia and the national championship, I feel prepared and confident”.
Worse, if possible, did Roglic: the captain of the Jumbo Visma, after having dominated Paris-Nice in March and having lost it due to a fall at the last stage, has practically isolated himself since those days in an interminable and monastic retreat on the heights. First in Sierra Nevada, then in Tignes in the French Alps. Fakir workouts, every now and then on social media some photos with his wife and small child, a very tight body and eyes of ice. The thirty-year-old Slovenian has a revenge on his youngest compatriot in nine months.
Richard Carapaz, winner of the Tour of Switzerland
THE INEOS VARIABLE. But be careful, he is very wrong that he thinks it will only be a two-man race. There is the Ineos Grenadiers variant: usual millionaire squadron, one captain, or rather two: Richard Carapaz, the Ecuadorian king of the Giro 2019 and who made the break-in by winning the Tour of Switzerland, and the king of the Grande Boucle 2018 Geraint Thomas, maybe a little seasoned (35 years), but in great shape. With them, among others, the king of the October 2020 Giro Tao Geoghegan Hart. A squadron that will try to remove certainties from the Slovenians, exactly as the Movistar trio with Migel Angel Lopez, Marc Soler and Enric Mas will do. And then watch out for 34-year-old Rigoberto Uran. The Colombian from EF may not be in his best years anymore, but he has already reached the podium at the Tour and will have a coach who is not to laugh at: the time trial. The Tour will propose 60 km against the clock, a boon for Roglic as well, but also Pogacar, 27 (very flat) of which already on Wednesday 30th in Laval.
Julian Alaphilppe, the world champion
THE ALAPHILIPPE WORLD. And then, while Peter Sagan, will aim for the umpteenth green jersey, keep an eye on world champion Julian Alaphilippe, two years ago in the Bernal Tour in yellow up to 48 hours from the end of the mountains. He gave up on an Olympic course designed for him to run the Tour from top to bottom. Already Saturday in Brest in Brittany, in the first, unusual, 197 km stage there are tears in the final, including the arrival, to make him immediately wear the yellow jersey.
THREE UPHILL ARRIVALS. Then? Sunday 27 it will be the turn of the Brittany Wall to tickle the finisseurs, while for the mountains, not very many, we will have to wait a week, Saturday 3 July with the arrival at Le Grande Bornand, the first of only three uphill milestones of the 2021 edition. at the stage of Tignes, you swoop down on the tourist resort downhill, but first there is bread for the teeth of climbers.
Double climb to the mythical Mont Ventoux
After the first rest, which will be characterized by another barrage of tampons (there will be four in all with two positive Covid positive results, the whole team goes home, exactly as in 2020) in Sorgues – Malaucène, in the heart of Provence la double climb to Mont Ventoux first from the Sault side and then from the classic (and terrible) side of Bedoin. Attention, the arrival after 25 km of fast descent. Not a small detail.
FINAL WITH THE PYRENEES. Third week with the Pyrenees. Four climbs in a few kilometers towards Andorra La Vella and then, after the last day of rest, the Pyrenean double of Col du Portet (with Peyresourde) and Luz Ardiden, in the hamlet of his majesty Tourmalet. The 30km time trial from Libourne to Saint-Emilion before the final catwalk in Paris on Sunday 18 July will close the games. Seven days later in Tokyo not too many veterans from the Tour, too little time to absorb travel and time zone and also be competitive, Olympic gold will be played in an online test that promises to be very tough.
THE RETURN OF THE FANS. And the virus? Told the riders about the buffers, who will live in a very rigid bubble like last September, the air has also changed in France. It is true, 15 climbs of the Grande Boucle to avoid crowds will not be accessible by fans by car but only on foot and by bike, the departure and arrival villages can only be accessed with the green pass, supporters on the roads are advised to wear the mask, even if the obligation for the outside in France has been dropped a few days ago, but, as happened in May at the Giro, the French will regain their Tour, which is not only a cycling race, but also a ritual , a symbol, a piece of the country’s history.
Vincenzo Nibali, 36 years old Trek Segafredo
ITALIANS AT HISTORICAL MINIMUM. And the representatives of our country, the Italians? In France there will be nine, one of the historical lows, stuff from the early 80s when racing in Italy went crazy with the Moser-Saronni duel and the great Boucle went there in a few. There will be the last blue winner of the Tour, Vincenzo Nibali (Trek Segafredo) who, at almost 37 years old, will go hunting for a stage, two years after his last success in the penultimate stage of the Grande Boucle 2019, that of Bernal. He tries to remove the last doubts on the Olympic call-up from the coach Davide Cassani. Then there will be the fresh Italian champion Sonny Colbrelli (Bahrain); with him the couple of Deceuninck Mattia Cattaneo and Davide Ballerini, Kristian Sbaragli will be the sprinter of Mathieu Van der Poel’s Alpecin Fenix, Lorenzo Rota of Intermarchè Wanty-Gobert will experience, Daniel Oss della Bora will escort Peter Sagan, while Davide Formolo, more Olympic papabile, is among the praetorians of Pogacar to the UAE. Jacopo Guarnieri will be skilled driver Arnaud Demare in the sprints. Nine Italians, no ambitions of classification. Not even the shadow of Friulians, the only candidate two months ago was Alessandro De Marchi from Buje, the most combative in the 2014 edition, the one won by Nibali, but recovering at home after the fall in the Giro.
Happy Tour de France everyone, our Slovenian neighbors will have fun this year too. And not a little.