Mont Ventoux is one of the monuments of cycling by its decoration and its dramaturgy (the Englishman Tom Simpson died there during the Tour de France 1967) but curiously, it only opens to professional riders when the Tour decides to spend there. Nicolas Garcera, the organizer of an amateur race (the GF Mont Ventoux) made this observation three years ago. "I am from the region and the Ventoux deserves to have its own race every year," he explains. In addition, it is reserved for pure climbers who have fewer and fewer races within their reach. Even the Tour polka dot jersey is no longer won by the best specialists. "
Faced with this deficiency, Nicolas Garcera embarked, at a time when so many events are disappearing, in the crazy bet of creating a professional race, the "Ventoux Dénivelé Challenge", the second edition of which starts this Thursday in Vaison -la-Romaine and will climb the Ventoux twice.
With Quintana, Aru and Martin but without Bardet
"The first year, we had a budget of 320,000 euros and this year, after the Covid-19 crisis, we were satisfied with 250,000 euros", continues Nicolas Garcera. But paradoxically, this season, the overhaul of the calendar after confinement is serving him. Where last year, Romain Bardet (AG2R) was his only headliner when the race started after the Critérium du Dauphiné, the 2020 line-up is more generous. Nairo Quintana (Arkea-Samsic) will make his comeback, Richie Porte (Trek-Segafredo), Fabio Aru (UAE Emirates) or Guillaume Martin (Cofidis) will be at the start. Romain Bardet, hit in an elbow, withdrew on Wednesday. "With this line-up, we have gained three years of visibility and credibility," says Nicolas Garcera. It will still be complicated, a normal year, to attract so many prestigious riders. But, at some point, the world of cycling will, I hope, realize that winning at the top of Ventoux is not trivial. "
