This year, there will be two winners at the arrival of the 108th edition of the Tour de France: the young Slovenian champion Tadej Pogačar, undoubtedly crowned for the second time despite his very young age, and Richard Mille, the watchmaker of the 'extreme.
Indeed, the rules of the game are the same in cycling and in Formula 1: when you are part of a team or a stable, you have to adopt its partners and sponsors, especially watchmakers.
Crowned with a Breitling Endurance Pro on the wrist
Last September, during a 107th edition delayed by the pandemic, the young Slovenian champion won the event, ahead of his compatriot Primoz Roglic by 57 seconds.
This year, his supremacy is much more obvious, between time trial and mountain stages won with flying colors.
But one thing has really changed: his watch.
In fact, last year, shortly before the finish, Tadej Pogačar joined the ranks of Breitling ambassadors, posting the brand new Breitling Endurance Pro chronograph to win the Tour de France, yellow, of course, from the case to the bracelet.
A nice stroke for Breitling, who had spotted this orphan wrist and reacted without delay, and a point in common with Vincenzo Nibali (winner in 2014) and Geraint Thomas (winner in 2018).
Breitling
This year, we therefore expected to see it sporting the same chronograph designed for sport on the roads of the Grande Boucle. But it has not happened. The cause? The Richard Mille watch brand, sponsor of the Bahrain-McLaren team since 2020, has decided to follow the departure of McLaren, now in Formula 1, at the end of last season. Moreover, the sprinter Mark Cavendish also left this team to join this year the Deceuninck - Quick Step team, a Richard Mille on the wrist (just like his comrade Julian Alaphilippe), equaling the record for the number of stages won on Eddy Merckx's Tour. Both the watchmaker and the runner have undoubtedly done well to leave this team, which has become Bahrain Victorious: its hotel rooms were raided by the police on July 15,the performance of the Wout Poels polka dot jersey team on the Tour seems to raise questions. Bahrain is also one of the nine teams participating in this edition of the Tour not to be part of the Movement for Credible Cycling, launched in 2007, but based on volunteerism.
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An ultra light Richard Mille RM 67-02 at 155,000 euros
This year, the extreme watchmaking manufacture has therefore become the sponsor of the UAE-Team Emirates, and it has taken it well since Tadej Pogačar will achieve the double.
But this time with a Richard Mille watch on their wrists, all the team members were given an ultralight timepiece in Abu Dhabi last February to wear on the handlebars throughout the cycling events of the season, a Richard Thousand RM 67-02 worth around 155,000 euros.
The brand has thus become the official watchmaking partner for the next four seasons of the UAE Team Emirates cycling team, and therefore of the winner of the Tour de France.
Suddenly, for Tadej Pogačar, there is no longer any question of wearing a Breitling on the wrist on this 2021 edition ...
Lorenzo Fizza Verdinelli
In addition, since the brand's early days, all of its ambassadors and friends, from Rafael Nadal to Romain Grosjean, have really worn their Richard Mille watch at the heart of the effort, instead of just putting it on their wrist at the end. of each test. Only a limited edition for PSG and its Qatari shareholder has so far been an exception to the rule. It must be said that this RM 67-02 mounted on a special elastic strap adapted to the wrist of the wearer is made of TPT and grade 5 titanium, and weighs only about thirty grams. In other words, almost nothing, in any case a priori not enough to disturb a high level athlete. Although ... If Julian Alaphilippe does wear it on a daily basis while pedaling, surprisingly, Tadej Pogačar seems to have made a different choice, at the height of his 21 years:if he used it well in the race at the start of the Tour, when the weather was still cool and the sleeves of the jerseys long, he no longer wears it during the stage, now that his sleeves have shortened.
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However, we still see the green strap of his RM 67-02 reappear on his left wrist, when stepping on the podium to put on the yellow jersey of the day.
Will he be the only ambassador of the extreme watchmaker who does not play the game of keeping the lightest and most resistant watch that is at the heart of the effort?
For a winner of the time trial, twice crowned in the most difficult of cycling races, that would be a shame!