Featured image courtesy of AP Photo/Christophe Ena
If the 2020 Tour de France was a landmark edition then 2021 will probably be remembered as less exciting but another edition that continued to create stories. Like all of us, the Tour de France is still going through a pandemic where light at the end of the tunnel does feel near, slowly but surely normality returning. Last year’s race with a dramatic conclusion on La Planche des Belles Filles, you’d think that nothing could top Tadej Pogačar overcoming Primož Roglič to replicate Le Mond versus Fignon in 1989. Yet year after year this race generates a narrative that never disappoints. Races within the race, cycling isn’t just about the annual three week party around France, but as the sport’s showpiece event, the 108th Tour continued in its usual vigor to deliver another mad spectacle.
How to sum up the 108th edition? Chaotic in the first week, a sprinter unexpectedly returning to make a stunning comeback, individual stage glory and a young Slovenian who’s won a second yellow jersey in a row where nobody has got within an inch. From starting in Brittany the nerves of day one kick in. You get into your stride, the first yellow jersey settled. The rhythm of the Tour builds, the heart of France playing host to an early time trial, the first sprints, hills in the Morvan, before the Alps come into view after just one week. Yellow, green, white and the polka-dots change shoulders.
Mountains in the Tour de France have their story to tell, Mont Ventoux tackled twice certainly played its part. Many a breakaway has stolen a march at this race before a trip down into Andorra set the final week’s scene with a double helping of high altitude summits among the Pyrenees. A course around vineyards close to Bordeaux, a time trial to determine the concluding general classification. Paris finishes it all, the sight of the Champs-Élysées seeing a prestigious moment for the sprinters and relief for everyone who made the three weeks.
One thing is for sure, Tadej Pogačar has won the Tour de France for a second consecutive year with others left in his wake. Winning yellow in a dominant fashion, nothing went wrong, his opposition wiped out and the stragglers tried their best giving their all, but in the end, the title already won after eight stages.
A Tour where dreams came true for youth, talent and the veterans, but for others their hopes and dreams shredded.
Cycling is in an era where new youthful talent has and continues to emerge, yet what has been apparent at this Tour is the old dogs still having their say. Away from the GC fight, you have got to conclude that Mark Cavendish taking four stages to equal Eddy Merck’s all-time record of 34 is the standout story from this Tour. An enormous feat for a man who we all thought was done, out of the picture. No cycling fan, the media and possibly other sprinters ever believed the Manx Missile could ever return to the race he’s loved since 2008. A few glorious wins at the Tour of Turkey and at the Baloise Tour of Belgium, so what? That was surely never enough to see Mark Cavendish get a place in Quick-Step’s Tour team.
While a non-start for Sam Bennett was a sad thing to see, the opportunity for Cav to try something special came in front of him, even to his surprise. Before every Tour starts we ask ourselves one simple question – who can dominate the sprints? For the 2021 Tour we got an answer. Not since Cavendish’s arch nemesis Marcel Kittel in 2017 has a rider won four stages. Kittel that very year achieved five. It wasn’t to be five for Mark Cavendish in 2021 but equalling Merckx’s record, securing just a second green jersey ten years since his first, the comeback is a British sporting triumph. A fifth success in Paris just passed him by, the irony being a Belgian denying him the history making moment on the Champs-Élysées.
Fougères, Châteauroux, Valence and Carcassonne – Stages 4, 6, 10 and 13. After everything Mark Cavendish has been through, Epstein-Barr virus and a mental trauma, he never gave up, we all did. Seeing Mark Cavendish happy and content with what he has achieved is a delight for cycling fans the world over. Fougères on Stage 4 was number 31, we’d have been made up if that was Cav’s only stage. One win was enough but Cav has surpassed all our expectations.
“Don’t let anyone say you can’t do anything. Doesn’t matter how old you are, if you’re male or female, where you’re born, where you’re from, don’t let anybody tell you, you can’t do anything” – Mark Cavendish
That is the quote everyone can take away from this Tour. Giving up is not an option. With belief, anything can happen. Deceuninck Quick-Step with Patrick Lefevere at the helm believed. Getting over the mountains to make Paris, finishing his seventh dareer Tour is an example to us all. Hard sacrifice pays off in the end. Never write yourself off.
One question does still remain though. With Cavendish now level with Merckx on 34 stage wins, what happens next? Does he come back next year and beat it? Talk of retirement may not be an option, it’s a quest that Mark Cavendish surely cannot turn down if Quick-Step offer him another chance. It is quite incredible that all those years ago in 2008, a young Mark Cavendish was beating the likes of Oscar Freire, Erik Zabel and Thor Hushovd, now thirteen years later a 36-year-old sprinter conquering the youngsters of today. Nacer Bouhanni, Jasper Philipsen, Cees Bol and an unfortunate abandon for Caleb Ewan, all of these names beaten. In the end only two Belgians got the better of him.
None of the above names will want Cavendish to win again next season. They will get stronger. Caleb Ewan will be back, Tim Merlier is slowly becoming the next best thing, what more can you say about Wout van Aert and then there’s the rider Cav even said should have been riding this Tour, Fabio Jakobsen. All it takes is one win. It will be a hard job but as Cav has shown, nothing is impossible.
Mixing it alongside the young guns, the tone of Cavendish being in awe of the young kids on the block has been striking. But this year’s Tour has just subtly reminded us that the old boys aren’t finished yet.
If Mark Cavendish is the fairy tale rider where dreams have come true then who gets the best rider prize? A worthy choice for the overall combativity prize goes to B&B Hotels p/b KTM rider Franck Bonnamour, a 26-year-old Breton who has a bright future ahead of him. A shining light for the French, who have actually had a poor Tour. Fourth placed in the overall, Ben O’Connor’s stage win at Tignes will be a highlight for the AG2R Citroën Team, but in terms of pure French success, if it wasn’t for Julian Alaphilippe winning on day one, the home nation would have nothing to shout about.
Groupama-FDJ losing Arnaud Démare after week one, young talented climber David Gaudu trying his hardest in week three and still the wait for a stage win in the Cofidis camp goes on. All the hopes for the Breton teams at the Grand Départ were dashed except for Britain’s Connor Swift getting in the Stage 1 break. Julian Alaphilippe becomes the fifth reigning world champion in history to win on the opening day of the Tour de France, a third consecutive year in yellow even if only for a day, the last Frenchman to take Stage 1 since Bernard Hinault in 1981.
Alaphilippe making France proud, yellow for only one stage because of a rider who didn’t complete this Tour, but certainly delivered a personal family success. Mathieu van der Poel winning atop Mûr-de-Bretagne to take the maillot jaune which his grandfather Raymond Poulidor never quite achieved will go down as one of the best moments in Tour history. Keeping yellow, helping Merlier get his stage the following day, and then riding in a break to try and claim a second stage. The Dutchman left after Stage 8, to prepare for Tokyo, next year he’ll hope to complete a full Tour de France. No matter, this year’s race was a delight for ‘Poupou’ high above the clouds.
Mathieu van der Poel and Julian Alaphilippe winning a stage with yellow on their shoulders, only one man was needed to complete the set of supreme talent. No appearance in yellow but three stages won is a terrific achievement for Wout van Aert. Stage 11 climbing over Mont Ventoux twice, the Stage 20 time trial and the crowning glory of a sprint in Paris – van Aert is the best all-rounder we’ve seen since his compatriot Eddy Merckx. The Belgian is unlikely to win a grand tour, but conquering all terrain at this Tour, you would not put it past van Aert to add more Spring Classics to his tally. Milan-Sanremo is under his belt already, at Flanders he has come close, and there’s every chance a rainbow jersey in his home country will be his come September.
A Frenchman, Dutchman and a Belgian – what a Tour for all three where you cannot compare their achievements and label one as the best of the lot. Best all-rounder at this Tour does belong to Wout van Aert, Alaphilippe the darling that he is sacrificing his chances to help Cavendish and van der Poel leaving after week one for understandable reasons. But with no Olympics next year, seeing van Aert, van der Poel and Alaphilippe all competing over three weeks at the same time will hopefully be an enthralling watch. These are three champions that have already turned on the style in springtime, but for years ahead, we wait with anticipation for what is to come in France.
As ever, taking a stage win at the Tour de France is hard enough. A third career stage success at a grand tour for Bauke Mollema, Stage 14 into Quillan being his second at the Tour. All the Dutchman needs now is a Vuelta stage to complete the set. Ireland’s Dan Martin and Spanish ninth-placed rider overall Pello Bilbao have become the first riders to complete four grand tours in ten months. Yes the pandemic helped that scenario, but that’s still a show of immense fitness and mental strength.
It isn’t a new thing but what has been a talking point is the brilliance of many teams adapting to things going wrong. Only eight teams at this Tour have achieved stage wins, three of them having to switch from Plan A to B. While disappointed that Primož Roglič had to leave the race after Stage 8, Jumbo-Visma’s GC hopes for him to rectify his last-gasp loss to Tadej Pogačar went up in smoke but the Dutch team should still be proud for van Aert’s three stages, Sepp Kuss becoming the first American stage winner in ten years since Tyler Farrar and a young Dane making the final podium.
Doping controversy aside, Bahrain-Victorious put all their troubles of losing Jack Haig behind them by winning three via Matej Mohorič twice and Dylan Teuns into Le-Grand-Bornand, the Belgian another rider like van der Poel dedicating his success to a lost grandfather. Then came the abandon of Peter Sagan, the hopes of Bora-Hansgrohe looked destroyed but then actually revived thanks to Nils Politt and Patrick Konrad, the third Austrian in history, after Max Bulla in 1931 and Georg Totschnig in 2005, to win a Tour de France stage.
A Tour de France full of new statistics and records broken, but which stage was the best away from the GC? Mollema was a contender, but Stage 7, the longest of this entire edition at 249 km from Vierzon to Le Creusot was a favourite. It was only a few months previous at the Giro when a nightmare crash ended Matej Mohorič’s race, the Slovenian saying the helmet saved his life. He now has stage wins at all three grand tours, achieved in the space of four years.
From one Slovenian success to another. Three stages won and a second Tour de France in a row, it’s a dream come true for young Tadej Pogačar to win yellow once again at the age of 22. A third grand tour start, a third consecutive place on the podium, but how did UAE-Team Emirates seal the deal? How did Tadej Pogačar achieve another Tour de France triumph?
It was in different fashion to last year that’s for certain. Three stages were taken just like this year, but he only wore yellow for one day and one day alone. In 2021 a different scenario has taken place, where Pogačar avoided all the week one spills, losing just a few seconds to Carapaz, but then destroying the field in the Alps. That acceleration on the Col de la Colombière to put near enough four minutes into everyone and then attacking on Stage 9 to Tignes was where the Tour was one. Keeping away from the danger of splits on the flat, the only man who could have prevented Pogačar from winning this Tour was Pogačar himself. A time trial victory, plus two storming victories atop the Col du Portet and Luz Ardiden, nobody has come within touching distance of the young man, a huge gap between first and second at the Tour in a long long time.
With nine top-10 finishes, three stages and three classification jerseys to his name, you can argue that three main factors contributed to Pogačar’s overall success. First comes his own superior talent against the clock and up mountains, second comes a calm and collected performance from his UAE team mates, and third is the opposition nowhere near his level.
The opening week marred by crashes, two pre-race contenders in Primož Roglič and Geraint Thomas wiped out of the pecking order, this Tour reminds us so much of Vincenzo Nibali’s 2014 victory, where nobody could stop him. No genuine opposition, the youngster has been strong throughout with UAE-Team Emirates proving that you do not need the strongest team to win the Tour de France.
To be fair, UAE have stepped up to the plate at this Tour and for sure they’ll get stronger knowing that Pogačar has won yellow in different circumstances to 2020. How many maillot jaune’s can this young kid win? Who knows but for now one thing is certain, Tadej Pogačar is unstoppable, the man to beat for not just next year’s Tour but future Tour’s to come.
A history-making second place for Jonas Vingegaard, just 24-years-of-age on his Tour de France debut, Jumbo-Visma should take comfort in the result. The loss of Roglič raw and unfortunate, but a new shining talent has emerged. It presents a brilliant opportunity for the Dutch team next season, the sole aim to win the Tour de France. Vinegaard, van Aert, Kuss and Roglič all in the same team – a huge challenge awaits Pogačar for a third consecutive victory and everyone else, including the Ineos Grenadiers.
Third place overall for Richard Carapaz is a huge success, the 2019 Giro champion becoming the first Ecuadorian to finish on the podium at all three grand tours. Second at the Vuelta last year, Carapaz also becomes just the second Latin American to take a grand tour podium in Italy, France and Spain. A personal moment that will live long in the memory of Richard Carapaz, but in the end it’s a good job he came to this Tour otherwise Ineos would’ve left with nothing.
You have to feel for Geraint Thomas, another crash sadly destroying another grand tour ambition, but apart from that the British team have been poor. A disappointing result, where no stages have been won for the first time since 2014, it’s now a second consecutive Tour de France with no yellow jersey achieved.
Egan Bernal winning the Giro already doesn’t make it a dreadful season by any means, the Vuelta is still to come too. Yet the Tour, the race we’ve become accustomed to seeing the Sky/Ineos train dominate has snapped for two years running. It’s fair to say that since 2019, Dave Brailsford’s team have not been at their best. Yes Bernal won the Tour that year, but collectively there are many questions that will come their way as a result.
The performance hasn’t been the best, Thomas to be fair has ploughed on despite a dislocated shoulder to help Carapaz, and in Jonathan Castroviejo he’s been immense to ride both a Giro and Tour to support Bernal’s pink jersey and Carapaz’s third place. A surprise was seeing Luke Rowe not make the time cut over Mont Ventoux on Stage 11, Richie Porte and Tao Geoghegan Hart did suffer from a crash on Stage 1, but since Brittany there’s been nothing to shout about.
The four man contender plan went up in flames in week one, whether Ineos try that again remains to be seen. Just a month ago at the Dauphiné everyone was saying how strong and formidable the team looked. How things change when you least expect it. They themselves and others simply ran out of ideas to try and stop the new phenomenon gracing the podium’s top step.
What more can you say about this Tour? A few household names are retiring, their final Tour’s ridden. Philippe Gilbert has declared he won’t be riding again and that was the final edition for André Greipel, 11 Tour stages won, the German sprinter will hang up his cleats at the end of this year.
Mentions must go to British riders Connor Swift, Fred Wright and Mark Donovan for completing their respective races. Not the first Tour appearance for Swift, but a debut edition for both Wright and Donovan completed is something to cheer. Hats off to Australian rider Simon Clarke for completing this Tour with a fractured back and despite suffering throughout the three weeks, you’ve got to say a resounding congratulations to Chris Froome. Coming back after a horror crash in 2019, to even see Froome riding a bike let alone finishing the Tour is a miracle in itself. Polite, humble and always a champion, the chances of winning a fifth Tour are remote but maybe some inspiration from Mark Cavendish could do the trick.
Below are some key records that were made at this Tour:
- Julian Alaphilippe became the fifth reigning World Champion in history to win on the opening day of the Tour de France, also the sixth rider in history to have worn the yellow, green, polka dot and white jerseys.
- Adri and Mathieu van der Poel are now he first father and son to wear the yellow jersey, father and grandfather Raymond Poulidor never got to wear it.
- Runner-up on Stage 4, Jasper Philipsen was 10 when Mark Cavendish took his first ever Tour stage victory in 2008.
- Ineos have still never won a stage race which had Tadej Pogačar at the start.
- Nic Dlamini became the first black South African to start the Tour. Sadly he didn’t make the time cut on Stage 9. He’ll be back for sure to complete his first Tour!
- Mark Cavendish is now the oldest rider to win four stages at a single Tour de France edition, with 16,794 being the number of days Eddy Merckx held the all-time record before Stage 13 into Carcassonne.
- Patrick Konrad becomes the third Austrian in history, after Max Bulla in 1931 and Georg Totschnig in 2005, to win a Tour de France stage.
- Tadej Pogačar is the first rider in the last 86 years to win six Tour de France stages before the age of 23 and the first rider since Eddy Merckx in 1972 to win back-to-back mountain stages in yellow. Also the first reigning Liège–Bastogne–Liège champion since Merckx in 1972 to win the Tour.
- Wout van Aert is now the first Belgian rider in 36 years to win a Tour individual time trial but also first rider since Bernard Hinault in 1979 to win a mountain stage, an ITT and a bunch sprint at a single edition.
- 1,094 days since the last Spanish stage win at the Tour de France.
- Richard Carapaz became the first Ecuadorian to finish in the top 3 overall at the Tour de France and first Ecuadorian to make the podium at all three grand tours.
- In the 21st century, Jonas Vingegaard joins Tadej Pogačar, Nairo Quintana and Raimondas Rumsas as one of four riders to finish on the Tour’s overall podium on debut.
Another remarkable Tour where insane attacks and open race has been a joy to watch, but the crashes in week one spoiled the race. That Omi and Opi placard on day one was a terrible moment, not just because the organisers can’t prevent ‘fans’ from doing stupid things, but because it ruined the chances of riders at this Tour. All the hard work and training, only for it to be destroyed by a rogue fan, the crashes have been bad at this Tour, an edition that we won’t forget for reasons we’d rather not see again.
Too many crashes deprived this Tour de France, Primož Roglič, Geraint Thomas, Caleb Ewan, Simon Yates and Jack Haig just five names from so many others. But apart from that, the open racing, a youngster winning his second consecutive Tour de France and Mark Cavendish rolling back the years to equal Merckx’s all-time record – another edition of the Tour where the narrative has been both surprising yet demanding of each and every rider.
Another yellow jersey for Tadej Pogačar, who can stop him next year? Best sprinter goes to Mark Cavendish and best team to Jumbo-Visma for getting through the worst of circumstances after week one.
Tokyo is on its way, the final grand tour of the year at La Vuelta is coming up soon too, and for the first time in a while, 2022 will see a women’s Tour de France. There is a lot to be excited for cycling fans.
Denmark plays host to the Grand Départ next year, when the 109th Tour gets underway. For now, the 108th Tour is over.