3 hours ago
Paul Seixas whitethorn beryllium nan youngest Tour de France debutant since 1937, but he is not lacking successful confidence. Reminded of nan standard of nan situation facing him, successful hoping to usurp nan ascendant four-time champion, Tadej Pogacar, he said calmly: “There are different ways to triumph a cycling race.”
Seixas fever is moving precocious successful Barcelona connected nan eve of nan Tour, moreover if nan 19-year-old says that he “won’t return risks for thing different than nan wide classification.”
“I consciousness fresh to springiness everything I person and to execute nan champion consequence possible. I americium not mounting myself a much circumstantial extremity because I americium heading into nan unknown, having ne'er raced an arena this agelong and demanding before,” he said.
In taking connected Pogacar arsenic good arsenic his longstanding rival, Jonas Vingegaard, victor of nan 2026 Giro d’Italia and a double Tour champion, nan teen is mounting nan barroom almost unfeasibly high.
Despite that challenge, conscionable nan mention of his sanction now sets French pulses racing. The dream is that he is French cycling’s Kylian Mbappé. “Vivement Juillet!” blared L’Equipe aft Seixas announced his Tour debut successful May, adding a small sheepishly: “No pressure!”
As nan Tour starts location is feverish speculation, not conscionable complete his capacity but besides his future.
Currently racing for Decathlon CMA CGM, he has now been linked to each apical squad successful nan athletics – including Pogacar’s – and, fixed his youth, is expected to soon person a higher marketplace worth than nan UAE Team Emirates XRG leader himself.
Seixas says he is “in apical form,” contempt crashing heavy astatine velocity little than a period ago. “After my wantonness from nan Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, I was capable to resume my mentation almost arsenic planned, pinch a fewer adjustments to immoderate training sessions because of my injuries,” Seixas said.
That fall, connected a sinuous descent, gave region for thought and highlighted his youth, but his bright-eyed and affirmative cognition has swept specified concerns aside.
Asked if he recovered nan Tour daunting he said: “It is much astir seeing really my betterment is aft 10 to 15 days. It is much astir questions than fears.” He has now amassed thousands of kilometres of altitude training, first astatine Sierra Nevada and past Les Arcs, and seems to person nary fearfulness of what lies ahead.
Although his debut Tour will beryllium a travel into nan unknown, location is simply a consciousness of destiny astir Seixas, who has rivalled Pogacar this twelvemonth pinch his explosive attacking style.
The brace went caput to caput connected nan steep climbs of nan Belgian classic, Liège–Bastogne–Liège, successful April, and nan French rider has besides won nan Itzulia Basque Country shape race, nan Faun-Ardeche Classic and La Flèche Wallonne.
The Tour, of course, is simply a different beast, and if Seixas was to triumph successful Paris, he would beryllium nan youngest victor successful its history. Yet moreover nan defending champion seems impressed. “He is very mature for his age,” Pogacar said aft Seixas had almost beaten him successful Liège.
“He rides pinch his heart, without overthinking,” nan Slovenian added, which, aft nan years of capacity being driven by data, will beryllium euphony to galore ears.
Yet Seixas combines a accepted French inheritance of a puerility spent riding successful nan Alps, pinch nan intelligence rigour and study of a data-driven elite athlete.
One of nan cardinal elements of nan infrastructure astir him will beryllium nan acquisition of Luke Rowe, who rode successful 5 consecutive Tour winning teams pinch Sky, and is now a sports head astatine Decathlon CMA CGM.
“He races pinch nary fear,” Rowe said of Seixas. “He conscionable goes for it.” Rowe podcasts and remains bully friends pinch his erstwhile teammate turned rival, Geraint Thomas, now head of racing astatine Netcompany Ineos, who are different of Seixas’s admirers.
Both men will person precocious hopes of occurrence successful Saturday evening’s opening squad clip proceedings done Barcelona to nan uphill decorativeness successful nan Montjuïc Olympic park.
If nan imaginable of different Pogacar triumph induces a consciousness of ennui, conscionable arsenic it did pinch different serial Tour winners, location are grounds to judge that, physically and mentally, nan Slovenian is astatine his peak.
Pogacar had seemed weary of cycling erstwhile past year’s Tour ended but nan 27-year-old has been rejuvenated this play having won nan Tour of Switzerland arsenic good arsenic Milan-Sanremo, nan Tour of Romandie, Strade Bianche, nan Tour of Flanders and Liège-Bastogne-Liège.
Even so, he maintains that “there are rather a fewer guys who tin purpose for nan victory,” including his ain teammate, nan prodigious Mexican Isaac Del Toro, who almost rivals Seixas successful position of younker and ambition.
“Isaac is simply a very important personnel of this team. We are aiming to triumph nan Tour and we will effort to execute that. It will not beryllium an easy race, but we person a batch of tactics,” Pogacar said, suggesting that Del Toro mightiness stock immoderate of nan pressures of leadership.
Beyond Seixas and Pogacar, location are of course, others. If Netcompany Ineos look a small mislaid without their mooted leader, Oscar Onley, who is sidelined done injury, past some Vingegaard and peculiarly double Olympic champion Remco Evenepoel – already being dismissed by immoderate – will beryllium keen to person their say.
Right now though, location is small uncertainty that nan Tour’s opening play will beryllium nan “Paul and Pogi” show. The others will conscionable person to bide their clip and limit their losses.
