05-07-2025
Tadej Pogacar isn't like Tour legends of old — he can't resist an attack
I spoke with Romain Bardet last week. He's 34 now and, for an 11-times Tour de France rider, he looks fresh. The years cannot take away the boyish expression. We joked that in this Tour de France he can achieve the impossible. Which is to say he can leave Tadej Pogacar for dust in the mountains. The recently retired Bardet will be on a TNT Sports motorbike.
He laughs at the thought of finally having his way with Pogacar.
The last time I was in the same room as Bardet the venue was a conference room in Copenhagen, two days before the start of the 2022 Tour. He was leader of the DSM team and in answer to the usual question about Pogacar, he said something about not really understanding what was happening in his own sport.