During the traditional pre-Tour press conference, Marc Madiot, the boss of the Groupama-FDJ formation, put an end, this Wednesday, to what was no longer really a suspense to know the name of the leader of the team in July.
"I'll keep it simple," he says.
We will have only one leader on this Tour and it will be David Gaudu.
We need a runner capable of going through the first week.
The team was built around him.
Thibaut Pinot will be his guardian angel in the mountains, just like Michael Storer.
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The decision was announced to Gaudu during the Critérium du Dauphiné where he won a stage but suffered a failure on the final day.
For his part, Pinot welcomed this choice with relief because he no longer wishes to carry the weight of the general classification on his back.
"David deserves this chance," says Madiot.
We just reverse the roles between them, to the great pleasure of Thibaut precisely.
There is no rivalry between them.
With David, we will aim for the podium.
There is no reason not to be ambitious.
Except for two or three Slovenes, no one is superior to us.
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David Gaudu also took the choice of his boss with pleasure.
“With Thibaut, we have already worked together.
This is done in a natural way and everything should be fine.
The goal of the podium is high, but that's how we move forward.
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As for Pinot, in addition to the relief of no longer being the leader, he is also happy to have had... the Covid just before the Tour.
“The timing is perfect,” he smiles.
I may not have had a great week after the Tour de Suisse, but that's all behind me and I'm recovering well.
And he too is happy to leave the keys to the team to Gaudu.
“I did not feel capable of being the leader, he assumes.
We didn't fight for that.
David wanted it, not me.
For me, a successful Tour would be if I thrive and come out happy.
But of course, if I can snag a stage, that will be fine.
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