The first week of Tour de France It went. For better or for worse, if not terribly, for others. It's time for the first assessments that we at bici.PRO are making with those who are in France and who, in addition to commenting on TV, are watching the riders live. You'll have understood: Stefano Garzelli.
VdP-Van Aert Chaos
The king of the Giro 2000 starts off at full speed and immediately launches into the discussion of the chaos they created Van der Poel e Van Aert, with the addition, we say, of AlaphilippeJulien seemed destined to make the rankings, but he's also a finisher, so if he makes a move, everyone else will.
«Every year – explains Garzelli – we see more or less a linear Tour with the race waiting for the mountains, with the breakaways and the sprints at the beginning, instead this time these two guys have changed things. And that 249-kilometer stage, run at a crazy average pace, had a huge impact. Their behavior disrupted the plans, both physically and mentally, even for the general classification riders who followed them. On other occasions, they would have been good at least until the first Alpine stage, but the other day, after 40 kilometers, riders were already everywhere.
"In my opinion, following them was a mistake on the part of the general classification men, because two riders like that, even if they don't retire, and gain a 20-minute lead in the final week, pay the price. They haven't prepared specifically for the Tour. The minutes are running out at the end for riders like that."
Normal nervousness
According to Garzelli, however, the falls that occurred were not due to increased nervousness.
«The Tour has always been a nervous one. Then it's clear that that lady with the sign and the sprint finish downhill the next day were exceptional episodes, but the falls of even big names like Roglic e Thomas they are part of the game. They're not a consequence of the racing style imposed by Van Aert and Van der Poel. I've heard people say: Roglic crashed because he's not capable. But what does that mean? It's happened to many. Maybe for Thomas it's a little more his fault, but these are racing situations that can happen to anyone.
«Rather, I'm struck by the running system that has emerged and the gaps that have resulted from it. When I see people like Birdsong o Nibali that take 20'-25' I'm thinking. And in fact if we look at the front there are almost all young people who have not fallen and who pay less than others for this way of racing".
Has Pocagar already won?
The question of the yellow jersey awarded to the Slovenian is the topic that's been making headlines everywhere. But can we really say that Pogacar has already won this Tour de France?
"What can I say? I was impressed by the climb he did on the Col de Romme," says Garzelli. I would really like to know his numbers and know the Vam (average climbing speed, ed.) what he did. I don't remember any such separations. Not even pantani He did a lot. He gave Carapaz a 1:50 lead in less than 5 kilometers and 3 minutes to everyone else. Then he managed on the Colombiere and completed the descent without risking anything. Furthermore, he didn't participate in the sprint for second place because he's smart: he doesn't want to make enemies, he lets people win and knows that some favors might come back to him.
«Saying that the Tour is over seems like a gamble to me, But of course, when I see them arrive, they're all swollen, exhausted, and they throw themselves on the ground, while Tadej is the coolest. The heat is yet to arrive, and it could take its toll. So far, however, the only difficult moment he's had was at the start of the long stage, when he seemed a bit lost and had to play catch-up. But in the end, that day, precisely because of how fast they'd been going, he was the one who felt best. And then he benefited from the work, inexplicable to me, of Movistar who chased carapaz».
Well done Carapaz
For Garzelli, Carapaz was the best since Pogacar. For the Varese native, he was excellent and the only one who tried.
«I'll take a risk: towards Tignes the forcing Ineos Grenadisers He did it not so much to attack Pogacar, who is untouchable and they know it well, but to keep him from losing the jersey. We know that this involves greater stress between press conferences, awards ceremonies... and It makes you arrive at the hotel two hours later than the others.
«I said it's difficult to attack him because the Pyrenees are tough, but not very tough, even if the Luz Ardiden stage is very demanding, and because Pogacar is doing well, but be careful about Wednesday's stage, which for me is the most important. Climbing the Mont Ventoux it's no small thing and on a climb like that, if the light goes out, you lose many, many minutes. And if it's hot then... This morning in Valence it was already 28°C." And Carapaz is fine in those conditions: heat and little oxygen.
Garzelli on the Italians
"Not much overall," says Garzelli, "but we knew it. We knew Nibali was at the Tour because he had to be there. I honestly didn't think he'd come in the end; I thought he was going somewhere else to train. He rides well, but he's taken two serious beatings. Maybe after the stage where he broke away he thought he was in the top ten and when someone like him, who is not used to it, gets so many minutes it's a blow, morally. I say this because I've been there firsthand.
Colbrelli, on the other hand, was amazing! It's a shame about the first two stages. He was a bit unlucky in the first one because he crashed with 10 minutes to go. In the second, won by VdP, he made a mistake. Too much confidence, too much condition and in the end he gave him the sprint. He wouldn't have won, but he could have finished second. Can he really take the green jersey? I think so. And he won't always have to attack like he did yesterday, because the sprints in the second and third weeks are different from those in the first. He himself told me those weren't his sprints. And then many sprinters went home. Sonny is playing with Cavendish e Matthews, which, by the way, should have been downgraded yesterday due to that flying finish."
Finally Garzelli applauds Cattaneo and Formolo.
«I have the opportunity to see the stage from kilometre zero and I can assure you that Mattia had been trying to escape for days.He's fine, he went fast in the time trial... And Formolo really good! It was a fundamental pawn for Pogacar so far. You can see he's giving it his all. Now he's understood that that's his role: a luxury domestique. He'll be able to make the most of it. He's at Olympics? Yes, it could have been there, indeed."
