Favorites have to suffer
Jan Ullrich is looking forward to the “toughest tour of all time”
06/28/2023, 09:50 am
When the 110th edition of the Tour de France starts in Bilbao on Saturday, ex-pro Jan Ullrich expects that the sprinters in particular will have to “suffer”. There are also concerns about the German starters – and who are the stars of the biggest bike race in the world anyway?
Ex-cycling star Jan Ullrich feels sorry for the sprinters at the Tour de France because of the numerous difficult mountain stages this year. “I am convinced that this tour will be the toughest tour of all time,” said the 49-year-old Tour de France winner in 1997 in an interview with “Bild”. Alps, Pyrenees, Jura, Vosges, Massif Central – that’s tough. “I really feel sorry for the sprinters on this tour, they will have to fight and suffer to even reach Paris. Some of them will probably fall out of the grace period,” predicted Ullrich.
The 110th Tour de France starts on Saturday and leads over 3399.5 kilometers from Bilbao in Spain to Paris. With eight mountain stages and only one time trial, the tour will be decided in the high mountains. The organizers would have a completely different approach this year, said Ullrich. “As a fan, I think that’s good. For the drivers, however, it will be even more strenuous than usual,” he said.
The 2000 Olympic champion admitted that he used to struggle when he faced a tough mountain stage. “I often said at the finish: That’s it, I won’t start anymore, I’m done. But after a massage and a shower it went again,” reported Ullrich.
Top Stars Vingegaard vs Pogacar
When the tour starts, the roles are clearly divided. At least on paper. Because the fact that the overall victory goes to either defending champion Jonas Vingegaard or his rival Tadej Pogacar is only clear at the end of the unpredictable tour in Paris. The field of favorites therefore goes beyond the high-flyer duo.
Jonas Vingegaard: The only direct duel with Pogacar was lost this year. At Paris-Nice, the Dane was only third. But Vingegaard won all the other races he entered. Unlike Pogacar, his whole season is geared towards the Tour, and he no longer has to share the captaincy with Primoz Roglic. Vingegaard is therefore the top favorite in the race.
Tadej Pogacar: All-winner Pogacar wants revenge and prove last year’s defeat was just a slip-up. On the way to the tour, the Slovenian shone in the classic season, but broke his scaphoid in the Ardennes. After a two-month break, he made his comeback last weekend at the national championships, where he won time trials and road races. How good he really is is currently unclear and an opportunity for the competition.
Jai Hindley & Ben O’Connor: The Australian duo reflects the strong development on the distant continent. Hindley won the Giro d’Italia last year and now wants to show it to the world at the Tour. A podium finish would be great for his Bora team. O’Connor was already fourth and was already in great form at the Dauphiné in mid-June.
German and French hopes
Mikel Landa & Enric Mas: The heyday of the Spaniards is long gone, in 2015 a rider from the cycling nation landed on the podium in Alejandro Valverde. But the start at home and the manageable time trial kilometers speak for the Basque Landa and the Mallorcan Mas. However, more than third place is probably only possible without the two top favorites.
David Gaudu & Romain Bardet: You are the hope of France. The Grande Nation’s last victory to date dates back to 1985, when Bernard Hinault delighted the masses. Since then there have been many second and third places, and Bardet has also been on the podium twice. Gaudu finished fourth last year. Again, if neither Vingegaard nor Pogacar make it to Paris, they have a chance.
And the Germans? Cycling manager Ralph Denk is concerned about German cycling. The fact that only seven German professional cyclists are at the start, which is less than in the last 24 years, documents the current level of performance. For the boss of the German Bora-hansgrohe racing team, the downward trend is “a combination of several things”. “In the children’s and youth sector, we have far too few races to develop talents. In Germany, many talents remain unrecognized,” said Denk, citing the infrastructure as another reason: “Parents tend to send the children to the soccer field or maybe nor for mountain biking than alone for road training. We have a bad network of cycle paths in Germany.”