"I wanted to be taken for fools": Thomas Voeckler unveils Alaphilippe's plan for victory

Last Thursday Thomas Voeckler, the coach of the France team, welcomed Julian Alaphilippe in swimming trunks, to the delight of journalists.

“The photo in swimming trunks, it was calculated!

I wanted to make people believe that I was coming as a tourist, he says delighted with his small effect.

We put the jersey back into play, that doesn't mean that we didn't want to win… Well, it's true that we defended it a little anyway… ”He deciphers the triumph of his leader.

What was the tactics of the France team in Leuven?

Thomas Voeckler.

“We wanted to launch the attacks before the others and be taken for crazy.

We knew it would be a movement race and we wanted to do them before everyone else.

It should have started even earlier but Rémi Cavagna had a puncture.

We always wanted to be one step ahead.

We saw it for example with Benoît Cosnefroy and Arnaud Démare who left together.

So everything went like a dream?

It went as planned.

I was a little scared when Valentin Madouas was in the group of 5 in front, but we managed on the side of the road with the staff.

After what was not planned, it is that Julian makes 17 milestones in solo.

However, was his first offensive 50 km from the finish planned?

Yes Yes.

On the other hand, what did not work is that it prolongs its effort too much the first time.

Either it works and we go, or it doesn't work and we stop.

I allowed myself to tell him to stop.

Then, he came to see me at the car, asking me if he was taking the role of pitcher for Florian Sénéchal in the sprint.

I told him:

No, Sénéch will manage.

You counter the attacks, and above all you act on instinct

.

Finally he attacked on his own.

Does he still manage to amaze you?

There, today (Editor's note: Sunday) yes.

I hope he will always wow us.

Was there an anti-Belgium plan?

No, the Belgians were adversaries like the others.

The biggest mistake would have been to make an anti Van Aert or Evenepoel plan.

Some did and it didn't work.

In football, if you face PSG and put four players on Mbappé, it is the others who will benefit.

Were you worried about Sonny Colbrelli following him in his first attacks?

Yes… Van Aert, we saw soon enough that he was not 100% and Stuyven was probably as strong as him.

I want to pay tribute to Belgium and its team which has managed to remain homogeneous with talents like theirs.

There were doubts about it.

What is your part in this success?

I have a small share but I do not derive any glory from it.

Truly.

What's your relationship with Julian?

She's too personal to talk about it publicly.

I try, like at the European Championships, or at Imola last year or even at Yorkshire when we messed up to convey a state of mind of the France team.

What I offer runners, I don't do in five minutes.

At home, in Vendée, I go out on my bike several times a week, and I think about what we will do in ten months.

Besides, I had known our tactics for a long time.

In August, I texted Julian.

I told him: "these

are the guys I am thinking of to accompany you, tell me what tactic you are considering

".

In his written response, if there was a word different from what I thought, it was the end of the world.