In a Tour where the peloton tumbled over summer ice (in Nice), sprinted to the top (in Orcières-Merlette) far from the lonely, wild and romantic shadow of Luis Ocana, where the riders took an RTT the time of a day without advertising escapism (towards Privas), where the past was revisited when, arm in arm, Michal Kwiatkowski and Richard Carapaz (Ineos), in La Roche-sur-Foron, let the image scroll of the duo Hinault-LeMond at the top of Alpe d'Huez (1986), the epilogue could not be satisfied with being banal.
He was stunning.
This Tour, which will remain the “September Tour”, will find a place of choice in the annals. At the start of Nice, Tadej Pogacar, only appeared in the shadow of the favorites as an outsider.
The questions essentially revolved around the health situation and the percentage of chances of seeing the convoy reach Paris.
The sporting challenge quickly took center stage and never left it.
The multiple twists and turns gave the event, on a thread, to keep the balance and the suspense to slip through until the day before the parade on the Champs-Élysées, when, in La Planche des Belles Filles, the podium has exploded.
To crown and celebrate the Slovenian Tadej Pogacar, who undressed his compatriot Primoz Roglic, brutally putting an end to his parade in yellow (eleven days).
Roglic saw his leader's jersey and his ambition melt away in the 36.2 km of the only time trial of the edition.
Helmet askew, white as a candle, after having experienced problems with gears, rhythm, power, cut the line disunited, disjointed.
Stunned.
Having started with 57 seconds in advance, he was scooped up to pieces after losing 1 min 56 s.
A scenario worthy of the magnificent and cruel Tour 1989, when Laurent Fignon had attacked the final time trial (24.5 km) Versailles-Paris (Champs-Élysées) with 50 seconds ahead of Greg LeMond, who, equipped with one of the first triathlete's handlebars and wearing an aerodynamic helmet, ended up knocking down the French duvet in the wind and thundered plume for 8 seconds ...
A turnaround comparable to the victory of Manchester United of Alex Ferguson with two goals in stoppage time to defeat Bayern Munich in the final of the Champions League in 1999. The tornado Tadej Pogacar devastated everything to crush the counter- watch and dance at the top.
Mischievous and irresistible.
At the end of a mad chase.
The climber, who had lost 1 min 21 s on the edge of the 7th stage at Lavaur, then nibbled his delay, distinguishing himself with two stage victories (at Laruns, 9th stage, then at Grand Colombier, 15th stage) .
To end up showing itself stronger than the all-powerful Jumbo-Visma team, to register as the first neophyte since Laurent Fignon in 1983 to finish in yellow at the end of a final which makes this Tour one of the tightest history behind in particular the 8 seconds of the 1989 Tour, the 23 seconds separating Contador and Evans in 2007, the 32 seconds between Pereiro and Klöden in 2006 or the 38 seconds between Janssen and Van Springel in 1968 ... Tadej Pogacar (22 years old this Monday), “the Little Prince” as La Gazzetta dello Sport nicknamed him, who, on the Champs-Élysées podium, posed with the yellow jersey, the best climber's polka-dot jersey and the best youngster's white jersey.
A collection not unlike that of Eddy Merckx (the Belgian had added the green jersey and the team classification with Faema) during his first Tour in 1969… Pogacar, a phenomenon which dusted off history by becoming the youngest post-war winner (only Frenchman Henri Cornet, winner at 20 in 1904, was earlier).
"For the moment, there are no limits in sight for what concerns him ..."
Richie Porte
Privileged observer of the duel, its outcome and the advent of the Slovenian climber, the Australian Richie Porte, who at the age of 35 offers his first podium on a grand tour, underlines: “The two Slovenes are on another planet.
The fight was savage, they didn't give up.
Hats off to Roglic.
It's brutal, what happened to him.
Jumbo certainly deserved to win, they had a great race.
Pogacar is a huge talent.
It's the race!
I like the way the Slovenians run, they go for it, they give it their all.
A few years ago, Chris Froome won it all.
And now it's the young generation, who are very talented.
It's good to see.
Pogacar was also lucky that Jumbo set such a pace in the passes.
He managed to follow, he tried to attack, he has guts.
I say bravo, for his race, his aggressiveness.
Next year, it will be different, he will be marked closely, we will know him better.
I think that, for the moment, there are no limits in sight for him… ”
Should we be surprised by the performances of this climber with rapid progression (Tour de l'Avenir 2018, Tour de Californie 2019, before the Tour 2020; crossing points comparable to those of Egan Bernal, with one year difference) , when his team is led by the Italian Mauro Gianetti, the manager of the UAE Team Emirates training, former manager of the Saunier-Duval team, involved in several doping cases?
Christian Prudhomme, director of the Tour, assures us: “We have been carrying our cross for many years.
That certain voices are raised while wondering, in a certain way, today, that is part of the game. I will not be offended.
Flamboyant, daring, striker-born, Pogacar, who grew up with the Tour ("I started watching in 2009, 2010. At the time, I wasn't quite sure what it was. I was following Contador , Schleck, I spent my day in front of the television. I trained, I watched television. And I am here in yellow, I can not believe it "), did not forget to greet Primoz Roglic:" He was the best rider on the Tour, with an incredible team.
I have so much respect for him, he's a good friend.
I'm a little sad for him.
It's hard to lose the yellow jersey on the last day.
I know how he must be feeling.
It's racing, we all want to win.
»Winning, a word that doesn't scare him.
He is the symbol of a generation (including the Colombian Egan Bernal, the Swiss Marc Hirschi, the Belgian Remco Evenepoel…) talented, carefree, determined not to give time to time… “I'm just a kid from Slovenia.
I have two sisters and a brother.
I like to have fun, live the little things in life.
I want to stay the same ”, likes to present himself this timid who changes skin when he hits the road and who will have a front row seat during the presentation of the next Tour de France, on October 29.
Before that, he will have walked his notoriety and his ambition of the world championships (in Imola, September 27) to the Tour of Flanders (October 18) ...
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The final general classification of the Tour de France