{"id":7015,"date":"2024-07-22T14:24:20","date_gmt":"2024-07-22T12:24:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/uk\/?p=7015"},"modified":"2024-08-07T14:32:32","modified_gmt":"2024-08-07T12:32:32","slug":"some-takeaways-from-the-2024-tour-de-france","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/uk\/2024\/07\/22\/some-takeaways-from-the-2024-tour-de-france\/","title":{"rendered":"Some Takeaways from the 2024 Tour de France"},"content":{"rendered":"

If this year\u2019s edition of the world\u2019s greatest bike race did not live up to the expectations fans had when it promised to be a showdown of the greatest cyclists on the road, it was still a breathtaking spectacle over the three-week duration. The average speed for this year\u2019s Tour was 41.4km\/h (25.574mph), which is short of the record of 42.106km\/h, set in 2022 by Jonas Vingegaard. But this Tour had about 4,000 meters more climbing than the 2022 race. So, do the numbers. In any case, these past three weeks felt like a constant team time trial.<\/strong><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

It wasn\u2019t the spectacle we had hoped for because three of the four main protagonists came into the race following injuries suffered in the same crash at the beginning of April. It\u2019s impossible to know how much the missed two or three weeks of training had affected Primo\u017e Rogli\u010d (Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe) or Remco Evenepoel (Soudal\u2013Quick Step). They both raced in the Crit\u00e9rium du Dauphin\u00e9\u00a0atthe beginning of June and seemed to be rounding into form.<\/p>\n

But two-time defending champion Jonas Vingegaard (Visma\u2013Lease a Bike), who sustained a broken collarbone, several fractured ribs and a punctured lung in the Tour of the Basque Country, lost more than six weeks of training and did not have a preparatory race. And it showed. Let\u2019s hope everyone stays healthy next year and we will have the showdown the riders and the sport deserve.<\/p>\n

What follows are, first, evaluations of the main players and then honorable mentions for the riders that struck the eye with their courage and class.<\/p>\n

Tadej Poga\u010dar (UAE Team Emirates):<\/strong> The 25-year-old Slovenian won six stages, ran his total of days in the yellow jersey to an astonishing 40 and, most impressively, completed the rare Giro d\u2019Italia-Tour de France double, becoming only the eighth rider, and the first since Marco Pantani in 1998, to accomplish the feat. Except for his hiccup in stage 11, when Vingegaard caught him and then beat him to the finish line, he raced a perfect Tour. And that loss was reportedly due to his failure to properly hydrate. To put his accomplishments in perspective, he has now won 17 Tour stages, nearly half of the record of 35 set this year by Mark Cavendish, at age 39. And he has now spent 40 days in the yellow jersey, sixth on the all-time list.<\/p>\n

Poga\u010dar is, no doubt, the greatest rider of his generation and one of the best road racers of all time. But, for more perspective, he had little competition in the Giro, which he won by nearly 10 minutes, and his main challenger in the Tour, Vingegaard was far from his best. And Poga\u010dar had, by a wide margin, the best team on his side. That does not in any way diminish his accomplishment or lessen the thrill he provides when he bursts away from his rivals on a climb, which is one of the most thrilling sights in modern cycling \u2013 and in all sports.<\/p>\n

Jonas Vingegaard:<\/strong> Let\u2019s face it, the 27-year-old Dane never had a chance, for all the reason enumerated above. But he did himself proud in this Tour \u2013 though going by the tears he shed after stage 19, when he realized that he would not win the yellow jersey \u2013 he may not think so. To finish second in the Tour after so much missed training and whatever residual scars, whether physical or psychological, he still carried from that crash was a remarkable achievement. It seemed clear to me that his legs were more or less done when the Tour reached the Alps. When Visma sent two strong satellite riders into the breakaway on stage 19, the plan apparently was for Vingegaard to make a move and join them, perhaps on the brutal HC climb to the Col de la Bonette (23.1Km @ 6.8%). But he could not overcome the pace set by UAE Team Emirates, and when Poga\u010dar\u2019s burst away, he was content to ride on Evenepoel\u2019s wheel and protect his second place.<\/p>\n

In addition, the team was missing three important riders from the planned squad. Dylan van Baarle and Steven Kruijswijk crashed in the Dauphin\u00e9 and Vingegaard\u2019s main mountain domestique, 2023 Vuelta winner Sepp Kuss,<\/a> came down with Covid before the race. Would Vingegaard have been 6:17 better if he hadn\u2019t crashed at the Pays Basque and his ideal team had been available? That\u2019s impossible to say. Maybe we\u2019ll find out next year.<\/p>\n

Remco Evenepoel:<\/strong> The reigning world time trial champion can climb! He is not the best climber, but he is very good and, at age 24, he has a lot of time for improvement. Once he does improve, and with his ITT ability, he could very well be a future Tour de France champion. He has made a believer out of me. His third-place finish, 9:18 behind Poga\u010dar, accurately reflects his current standing. It also illustrates how much he has matured as a Grand Tour rider in a very short time. Let\u2019s give him a year or three. Soudal\u2013Quick Step took a big gamble by relinquishing their strategy of stage wins by putting all their hopes on Evenepoel\u2019s GC ambitions. The impossible-to-please team boss Patric Lefevere must be dancing a little jig of satisfaction \u2013 where no one can see him.<\/p>\n

Honorable mentions (in no particular order)<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Jonas Abrahamsen (Uno-X Mobility):<\/strong><\/p>\n

In only his second Tour de France, the 28-year-old rider held the King of the Mountains jersey for nearlyhalf the race. In the first week and a half, he was the most visible rider, joining every breakaway, prominent on all the climbs, seemingly indefatigable, and very brave. He didn\u2019t win a stage \u2013 his best finish was second place on stage 2 \u2013 but he left a big impression.<\/p>\n

Ben Healy (EF Education\u2013Easy Post):<\/strong> We love the way Healy rides. Whether riding for himself or for his team leader, Richard Carapaz, he always left everything out on the road. The 23-year-old Irish rider was the Jonas Abrahamsen of the second half of the Tour, when the mountains were higher. Just when we thought he couldn\u2019t be in yet another big-mountain breakaway, there he was in front of the race, dragging fellow breakaway riders up the climb, legs pumping, head tilted. A great rider who may yet get a chance for a big prize.<\/p>\n

Richard Carapaz (EF Education\u2013Easy Post):<\/strong> Not given the chance to defend his Olympics road race title, the Bolivian champion used the Tour to make a point and win some glory anyway, taking home the King of the Mountain jersey. After falling well behind early in the GC race, he was allowed to join breakaways in the third week, when the race reached his preferred terrain, high altitude, and he had ridden himself into form. He won his team\u2019s first-ever Tour stage on stage 17, taking the King of the Mountains jersey off Poga\u010dar\u2019s shoulders. When Poga\u010dar told him, after stage 19, that he would not work to take the jersey back, it was a sign of respect from one great rider to another.<\/p>\n

Star of the Future<\/h4>\n

Matteo Jorgenson (Visma\u2013Lease a Bike):<\/strong> The young American was Vingegaard\u2019s most effective domestique in the mountains, showing impressive climbing abilities, especially on stage 18, where he was overtaken by Poga\u010dar in the last kilometer. He also finished a terrific fourth in the final stage ITT and eighth in the GC. After a lost year at Movistar, Jorgenson now stands at the cusp of an exciting career.<\/p>\n

Most Poetic Victory<\/h4>\n

Romain Bardet (Team dsm-firmenich PostNL): Riding in his last Tour de France,<\/a> the 33-year-old Frenchman won his first-ever Tour stage on the first stage of the race, with a big helping hand from his 23-year-old teammate, Frank van den Broek, who was riding in his first Tour. It was almost Shakesperean.<\/p>\n

Best Victory Celebration<\/h4>\n

Victor Campenaerts (Lotto Dstny): After winning his first-ever Tour stage on stage 18, as well as that of his team, the 32-year-old Campenaerts held a video call with his wife and new-born infant during which he laughed and wept. His interview immediately afterwards was emotional, honest and straight from the heart and made everyone feel better about the state of the world.<\/p>\n

Final GC<\/strong><\/h2>\n
    \n
  1. Tadej Poga\u010dar\u00a0 (UAE Team Emirates)\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a083:38:56<\/li>\n
  2. Jonas Vingegaard (Visma\u2013Lease a Bike)\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 6:17<\/li>\n
  3. Remco Evenepoel (Soudal\u2013Quick Step)\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 9:18<\/li>\n
  4. Jo\u00e3o Almeida (UAE Team Emirates\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 19:03<\/li>\n
  5. Mikel Landa (Soudal\u2013Quick Step)\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 20:06<\/li>\n
  6. Adam Yates (UAE Team Emirates)\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 24:07<\/li>\n
  7. Carlos Rodr\u00edguez (INEOS Grenadiers)\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 25:04<\/li>\n
  8. Matteo Jorgenson (Visma\u2013Lease a Bike)\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 26:34<\/li>\n
  9. Derek Gee (Israel\u2013Premier Tech)\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 27:21<\/li>\n
  10. Santiago Buitrago (Bahrain Victorious)\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 29:03<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    If this year\u2019s edition of the world\u2019s greatest bike race did not live up to the expectations fans had when […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":190,"featured_media":7039,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[20],"tags":[],"global-categories":[],"class_list":["post-7015","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-all-the-latest"],"yoast_head":"\nSome Takeaways from the 2024 Tour de France - \u0160koda We Love Cycling - United Kingdom<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/uk\/2024\/07\/22\/some-takeaways-from-the-2024-tour-de-france\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_GB\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Some Takeaways from the 2024 Tour de France\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"If this year\u2019s edition of the world\u2019s greatest bike race did not live up to the expectations fans had when […]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/uk\/2024\/07\/22\/some-takeaways-from-the-2024-tour-de-france\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"\u0160koda We Love Cycling - 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