RIMINI – So unexpected stories can still happen in this cycle of super calculations and phenomena. So it's still possible to go outside the lines. Shortly after, here it is. Romain Bardet's words: "Unexpected moments still happen in cycling." Thoughts that embrace each other therefore.
A parade arrival in Rimini, with two riders of the Dsm-Firmenich, Romain Bardet and Frank Van de Broek, not even the most imaginative writer in the world could have imagined it.
Il Tour de France It opens with a fantastic twist to the unusual story. The suspense was different. It really ignited at the very end.
Push, push
It only caught fire at the end because everyone thought they were done for. "They're taking them." "They'll never arrive.". It was heard on the Rimini seafront. In this flat light, everyone had their eyes narrowed, scanning the screens on the buses, their smartphones, or the finish line.
"At 400 meters I turned around again. And I saw that there was still some margin." Bardet says, wearing yellow for the first time in his career. "I thought it could actually be done. Then the finish line, next to Van der Broek, in his first Tour. He was nervous and that's why he hadn't been feeling well in the past few days. It was an incredible feeling."
French madness…
But that's just the finale. When Bardet breaks away from the peloton with about forty kilometers to go, heading towards San Marino, it seems like another French move: beautiful, yes, but not very sensible. Or at least more suited to the French Cup races than the Tour.
And it seemed pointless, especially since his teammate, Van den Broek, had slipped away from the other two escapees to wait for him. At that moment, it was a crazy own goal. Abrahamsen e Madouas They were going strong. And instead…
"Frank was in front," Bardet continued. "He was very strong today. I said to myself, 'I'll try to catch him, even if it takes me 20 minutes.' Then, once I got ahead, it was hell. A real battle at the front."
A fight that the two DSM-Firmenichs accept with all their heart. They run away towards Montemaggio. Behind them, the assault of the UAE Emirates he comes back and so the group falls to two minutes.
And here begins another race. The usual race, that of the escapees against the group. Because if it doesn't pull... pogacar, pull the EF Education-Easy Post di Bettiol.
Push again
"They can't do it. A minute and a half at 16 kilometers is too little," the crowd says, still narrowing their eyes.
"I thought they'd catch us on the flat," Bardet continued. "They were telling us from the car to push. That the group was going strong. But that we could keep pushing." A long gear for Bardet, as is tradition. The boy's legs were whirring. The two companions were compact, close together. They seemed to be one, cutting through the wind.
The gap is still decreasing. Lidl-Trek is now pushing hard behind. It's been Tour of Italy that we see them in this situation. It feels vaguely like coming back at the Naples stageOnly this time the Alaphilippe and Narvaez of the situation are together. And the 40 metres that Narvaez lacked are now left to Bardet and Van den Broek.
Here is the group
Last kilometer. 9 more to go. «Allez, allez les gars"Come on guys," the DSM-Firmenich car shouts into the radios. and that's when Bardet turns around and realizes that maybe they can do it.
Van der Broek follows the captain's instructions to the letter. Instructions based on instinct. The two barely spoke, as an exhausted yet happy Van den Broek later confirmed after the arrival. The young Dutchman pushes forward and stays close even during substitutions. Their elbows brush.
The two remain united. The speedometer never drops below 45-50 km/h, and the wind is also against them. So they go fast. In the final meters, they even allow themselves the luxury of raising their arms in the air.
Now Rimini, which was expecting Pogacar, as it had been at the Giro, is cheering them on. They are greeted with a roar of surprise, followed by a huge round of applause. A heartfelt round of applause. Instinctively. It's true: sometimes history turns out the way you don't expect.
Yellow dream
"This is a team victory," Bardet reiterated, "not just for how we rode with Van den Broek, but also for how we all managed this race. I was in front to ride safely. Will I keep this jersey until France? I started this Tour to give 100 percent every day. Of course it would be nice. But today I rode like it was a classic (remember that Bardet finished second in Liège in April, ed.) and it can't always be like that."
In his heart, Romain is thinking of taking her at least beyond Montgenèvre, when the Grande Boucle enters his country.
"Not having to fight for the overall title takes a huge amount of pressure off me. I'm finally myself. I didn't know the course, but I played instinctively. Wearing the yellow jersey has always been a career goal of mine. I've even cried about it. I've come so close to it too many times not to think about it. But today this dream has come true, and it's wonderful."
Just before the Tour, Romain said he'll retire next year. He'll hang up his bike after the Giro d'Italia, wanting a stage in the Giro d'Italia. He won in Italy... "too bad" for him it was the Tour! But that's okay.
