Latest news with #LOUDENVIELLE
CNA
5 days ago
- Sport
- CNA
Dominant Pogacar not in a giving mood as Tour lead swells
LOUDENVIELLE, France :Tadej Pogacar has no intention of handing out freebies at this year's Tour de France - not even with the yellow jersey firmly on his back and rivals gasping for air in the mountains. After storming to his fourth stage victory, the UAE Team Emirates - XRG leader dismissed the idea that he should back off to spare his competitors - a trend that emerged during the Lance Armstrong era - insisting that every opportunity to win is one worth taking. "I'm not here to make enemies, but it's the Tour de France. You cannot just back off. The team pays you to win, not to give away. If there's an opportunity, you go for it," the Slovenian said. The world champion's commanding time trial victory on Friday further solidified his lead in the general classification, coming a day after he dealt a massive blow to his main rivals. The defending champion leads Jonas Vingegaard by a massive 4:07 after quadrupling his advantage over the Danish rider in two days. Yet Pogacar said he's not thinking about the next summit finish or iconic climb just yet. "The big point of the Tour was today," he said. "Now, we go stage by stage. The goal is to defend the jersey and keep the same gap. We can't burn out the team - we have to be smart." Asked whether his dominance risked alienating others in the peloton, Pogacar was unapologetic. "When I finish my career, I probably won't talk to 99 per cent of the peloton anyway. I'll focus on my close friends and family." Despite the bravado, he remains acutely aware of how quickly things can unravel at the Tour. "In 2022 and 2023, I cracked. I had great tours, but I lost. You never know - a bad day can always come," he said, referring to his painful losses to Vingegaard. The three-time Tour champion also offered a rare moment of introspection when asked what keeps him pushing after every win. "What's the point of anything?" he said. 'I built my life around the bike. I met my closest friends and my fiancee through cycling. You just have to enjoy the moment - not just the victories." Still, with the finish in Paris looming, Pogacar shows no sign of slowing or sharing the glory, true to his 'Baby Cannibal' nickname, a reference to all-time great Eddy Merckx, the man he could emulate one day.
Reuters
5 days ago
- Sport
- Reuters
Dominant Pogacar not in a giving mood as Tour lead swells
LOUDENVIELLE, France, July 18 (Reuters) - Tadej Pogacar has no intention of handing out freebies at this year's Tour de France - not even with the yellow jersey firmly on his back and rivals gasping for air in the mountains. After storming to his fourth stage victory, the UAE Team Emirates - XRG leader dismissed the idea that he should back off to spare his competitors - a trend that emerged during the Lance Armstrong era - insisting that every opportunity to win is one worth taking. "I'm not here to make enemies, but it's the Tour de France. You cannot just back off. The team pays you to win, not to give away. If there's an opportunity, you go for it," the Slovenian said. The world champion's commanding time trial victory on Friday further solidified his lead in the general classification, coming a day after he dealt a massive blow to his main rivals. The defending champion leads Jonas Vingegaard by a massive 4:07 after quadrupling his advantage over the Danish rider in two days. Yet Pogacar said he's not thinking about the next summit finish or iconic climb just yet. "The big point of the Tour was today," he said. "Now, we go stage by stage. The goal is to defend the jersey and keep the same gap. We can't burn out the team - we have to be smart." Asked whether his dominance risked alienating others in the peloton, Pogacar was unapologetic. "When I finish my career, I probably won't talk to 99% of the peloton anyway. I'll focus on my close friends and family." Despite the bravado, he remains acutely aware of how quickly things can unravel at the Tour. "In 2022 and 2023, I cracked. I had great tours, but I lost. You never know - a bad day can always come," he said, referring to his painful losses to Vingegaard. The three-time Tour champion also offered a rare moment of introspection when asked what keeps him pushing after every win. "What's the point of anything?" he said. 'I built my life around the bike. I met my closest friends and my fiancee through cycling. You just have to enjoy the moment - not just the victories." Still, with the finish in Paris looming, Pogacar shows no sign of slowing or sharing the glory, true to his 'Baby Cannibal' nickname, a reference to all-time great Eddy Merckx, the man he could emulate one day. Just like the Belgian he can win the Tour the year after claiming the world title, a feat achieved by only three riders, with American Greg LeMond in 1990 being the last to achieve it.
CNA
5 days ago
- Sport
- CNA
Pogacar claims fourth stage win to extend lead as fourth title looms
LOUDENVIELLE, France :Tadej Pogacar continued his charge towards an anticipated fourth Tour de France title when he stretched his overall lead to over four minutes by winning the 13th stage, a lung-busting 10.9-km uphill time trial on Friday. The defending champion dominated the eight-kilometre climb at 7.9 per cent to clock 23 minutes and beat Denmark's Jonas Vingegaard by a massive 36 seconds, a day after dealing a significant blow to his closest rival in the first major mountain stage in the Pyrenees. Fellow Slovenian Primoz Roglic took third place, 1:40 off the pace, while Belgian Remco Evenepoel hung on to third place overall by the skin of his teeth following a disappointing effort that saw him finish 2:39 behind Pogacar. After his fourth stage win in this year's race, UAE Team Emirates - XRG rider Pogacar leads Vingegaard by 4:07 and Evenepoel by 7:24. German Florian Lipowitz showed great form again and trails Evenepoel by six seconds. Pogacar picked a regular road bike for the solo effort against the clock while Evenepoel and Vingegaard opted for a time trial bike - heavier but with better aerodynamics. It was quickly clear that regardless of those calculations, Pogacar was again the strongest rider as he posted the best time on the brief flat portion ahead of the main ascent before further extending his advantage. "I'm super happy. This time trial was a question mark for me back in December. I wanted everything to be perfect, and the team delivered - everything was on point," he told reporters. "I was targeting to go all out from start to finish. I almost blew up at the end, but when I saw I was going to win at the finish, it gave me an extra push." The 26-year-old said it had been a close call between the road and the TT bike, but in the end he chose the most comfortable ride. "The biggest decision was which bike to ride today. Obviously, we ride road bikes all year round, but we did the calculations and the time ended up about the same. So I decided to go with what I felt more confident on." Pogacar went full gas from the start. "My tactic was simple: go all out from the bottom to the top," he said. "At the first time check, I saw I was five seconds ahead - that gave me confidence. The second split was even better," he explained. "Basically, I was trying not to blow up in the first part. I almost did in the end - maybe in the last kilometre. From 3 to 2 km to go, I reset a bit because that last kick is super steep." Pogacar will now go for a hat-trick of stage wins on Saturday, when the 14th stage will take the peloton from Pau to Luchon-Superbagneres with the awe-inspiring climbs of the Col d'Aspin, Col du Tourmalet, Col de Peyresourde before the final ascent, a 12.4-km effort at 7.3 per cent.
CNA
5 days ago
- Sport
- CNA
Pogacar extends Tour lead with time trial victory
LOUDENVIELLE, France :Slovenian Tadej Pogacar won the 13th stage of the Tour de France, a 10.9 km individual time trial up to Peyragudes, to extend his overall lead on Friday. The defending champion beat main rival Jonas Vingegaard by 36 seconds, with another Slovenian, Primoz Roglic, taking third place 1:20 off the pace.
CNA
5 days ago
- Sport
- CNA
'Do we wait for a death?' – Tour team boss urges feeding zone overhaul
LOUDENVIELLE, France :Rising temperatures and increasing speeds in the Tour de France have prompted sports directors to call for changes to feeding zone regulations, citing heightened risks of injury and dehydration for riders. "We're placing feed zones on flat, fast stretches where riders are doing 60 kph," Philippe Mauduit, performance director at Groupama–FDJ, told Reuters on Friday before the start of the 13th stage. "It's so dangerous. A rider trying to grab a musette (feed bag) can break a finger or crash. And if he brakes too much, he's dropped — and in that group speed, he's not coming back." French rider Bryan Coquard broke a finger in Thursday's 12th stage as he attempted to grab his feed bag and said he would abandon the race after Friday's individual time trial. The growing risk, particularly under extreme weather conditions, has prompted a reevaluation of race feeding protocols among teams and organisers. "In 35°C heat, this isn't a luxury. It's vital," Mauduit said. "Do we need to wait for someone to die on Mont Ventoux before we act?" Tour organisers (ASO) and the International Cycling Union (UCI) were not immediately available for comment. One key complaint is the placement of feed zones on long straightaways instead of safer, slower segments like slight uphills or post-town exits. Mauduit cited several recent crashes and injuries directly linked to chaotic feeding zones. "There have been a lot of broken collarbones and scaphoid fractures this season. We're putting riders in no-win scenarios," he said. In response, a coalition of sports directors formed after the Criterium du Dauphine in June presented proposed reforms to the UCI, ASO, and the AIGCP (international organisation of professional groups). Among the changes already accepted is the reinstatement of feeding on categorised climbs. "Thankfully, we can now feed at the foot of climbs," Mauduit said. "The race jury and (Tour racing director) Thierry Gouvenou responded quickly. But it's not enough." Tom Southam, sports director at EF Education–EasyPost, echoed many of these concerns while also acknowledging the complexity of the issue. "The rules changed this year, and it's no longer us who decide where feeds go," Southam said. "Now you've got 23 teams vying for space in the same spot. That massively increases pressure. Even if we placed them ourselves, it wouldn't be massively different on a flat 120-km day." While Southam credited organisers for doing the best they could, he also advocated for more input from experienced team personnel. "They should involve a DS (sports director) who knows the terrain — you need parking for 23 teams, a slight uphill, and slower sections. Other races just call a local DS and say, 'Can you help us?' It works." The increasing heat across stages is another urgent concern. "The Tour is just getting hotter," Southam noted. "We had 9 or 10 planned hand-up spots yesterday plus the cars, so we were fine. But it's becoming a huge factor. "If we keep racing in July, we need to start stages earlier — not 1 p.m. If the race finishes at 5:30 instead of 4:30 on TV, so be it. Something has to change." "We're not asking for chaos," Mauduit concluded. "Just smarter placement. If we want riders to give a show, let's at least give them the means to do it — safely."
