Featured image courtesy of Stephane Mahe via AP
The 108th Tour de France is well underway and after four days in the far northwest of France, Brittany has certainly delivered the headlines. Stages 1 to 4 have been a roller coaster of emotions – joy and happiness but mixed with despair and disappointment. From starting in Brest, moving along to the Mûr-de-Bretagne and followed by two flat stages for the sprinters in Pontivy and Fougères, it’s fair to say that there hasn’t been a lack of drama in the Tour’s early stages.
Let’s get the controversy out the way first. When you decide to arrive on the side of the road to watch the Tour, there’s nothing wrong with taking a piece of cardboard with words saying hello to your grandparents back in Germany. But on every level it is wrong to stick it out in front of riders and cause a mass crash. Whatever was going through the mind of that spectator is not something to dwell on, but what is the attraction to look away from the race just for a few seconds of fame on the TV? They certainly got their fame with Tony Martin the first man to collide, his fall bringing the entire peloton barring a few lucky ones out front.
After so much hard work to start just his second Tour, Team DSM’s Jasha Sütterlin was the only rider who had to abandon as a result, but it’s still unacceptable. The opening stage is always a nervous affair for every rider with roads narrow enough as it is. The last thing they all need is someone making the road even narrower. To make things even worse, another nasty crash further towards the finish took out numerous riders that the nearby hospital in Brest were admitted with numerous riders receiving treatment and scans, including Chris Froome. It’s quite typical that after making a huge recovery to come back to the race he’s won four times, Froome ended up on the deck after day one.
So many teams were left hampered, battered and bruised, it was hardly the thing you really want on day one of the Tour. Jumbo-Visma and UAE-Team Emirates in terms of the GC were probably the hardest hit, stage winner from last year and Tadej Pogačar’s team mate Marc Hirschi providing a striking image.
If you thought Stage 1 was the end of the madness think again. Stage 3 from Lorient to Pontivy was always going to be the first bunch sprint of this year’s race but it turned out to be far from straightforward, it never is! Falls for Geraint Thomas suffering from a dislocated shoulder put back in, Primož Roglič seeming to clip Sonny Colbrelli’s back wheel, his team mate Robert Gesink crashing too and Bahrain-Victorious rider Jack Haig hitting the deck were horrifying to watch, Haig and Gesink the worst off having to abandon the race with a rotten bit of luck for Bahrain-Victorious after they lost their GC main man Mikel Landa at the Giro.
The sprint in Pontivy was then marred by Caleb Ewan clipping eventual stage winner Tim Merlier’s wheel, the Australian falling, bringing down Peter Sagan and sadly breaking his collarbone. The aim to win all three stages at the grand tours this season gone in a instant, Lotto Soudal left without their sprinter but all the same they will have freedom to attack the race in the breakaway until Paris.
There are questions being asked about how dangerous Stage 3’s finish was. Narrow roads, tight bends and a downhill stretch into town, the riders did ask the race organisers to extend the time taken for every rider at 8 km out instead of 3 km from the finish. ASO approved it, the UCI declined the request. Riders take risks, and it must be pointed it out that three of the four main incidents had nothing to do with the roads, Jack Haig’s crash and abandon was on a dangerous corner where eveything is hectic in the final of the stage. Sprinters teams getting into position, the GC teams protecting their yellow jersey contenders, it’s nothing more than a crazy fight to keep your leaders safe.
A subsequent protest on Stage 4 is and always will be the decision of the rider’s. Rider safety is key, it feels as if the UCI is focusing more on issues that are not risking the riders instead of the real problems facing road cycling. This is nothing new after recent seasons we’ve seen rider safety come into the spotlight, but there is a debate here where there are lots of opinions. The teams wanted to change the times taken further out, but why wasn’t it discussed way before the Tour began? The same situation happened at the Giro d’Italia last year, riders unhappy with stage length (a 248 km stage to come so who knows what will happen on Stage 7 this week!), but left it until the last minute to change the parcours of the stage. Organisationally it’s apparent that the UCI and the Riders Union are currently pretty weak, but the governing body looks more of a farce month by month.
It’s never nice to see any rider fall and leave the race. Most importantly for every rider that has been affected still in the race, it’s good for the Tour that they heal up and try their best. For those who’ve had to leave, you can only wish them a speedy recovery.
While the crashes have been the sad sight over the first four stages, that shouldn’t take away from the incredible things we’ve seen in Brittany. Stage 1 and the first yellow jersey taken by Julian Alaphilippe was nothing more than legendary. To attack with 2.2 km remaining on the Côte de la Fosse aux Loups outside Landerneau, the world champion left everyone for dead. For the consecutive year the Frenchman pulled on yellow and who knows what more he can achieve at this Tour. We still don’t know if a GC tilt is in sight but for now it is remarkable to see this world class phenomenon excel on the bike.
Stage 2 to Mûr-de-Bretagne was always going to be built-up as a stunning stage. It’s literally a wall of a climb, that have made names at the Tour de France, Cadel Evans, Alexis Vuillermoz and Dan Martin know all too well what it is like to win atop the Alpe D’Huez of Brittany. Cresting the climb twice, the bonus seconds after the first passage were undoubtedly going to be attack by someone who could threaten Julian Alaphillipe in yellow.
Step forward another world class phenomenon in cycling right now, Mathieu van der Poel. The Dutchman attack on the first passage with 16 km remaining and at first you thought surely not! This man has form when it comes to winning from a long distance, there was no way that van der Poel could do it on the biggest bike race of them all! Pulled back, bonus seconds gained, it was Nairo Quintana’s move and then Sonny Colbrelli who sparked the Dutch sensation into live. It was a mirror image of Alaphilippe’s victory on Stage 1, leaving everyone else in his wake and the celebration dedicated to his grandfather Raymond Poulidor.
Grandpa Poulidor would’ve been ever so proud of what his grandson has achieved, nicknamed “Pou-Pou” and always the “Eternal Second” coming runner-up at the Tour three times in his career. The Frenchman never wore the yellow jersey but his grandson in 2021 will now be full of joy that he managed to wear the maillot jaune. It was sadly two years too late for Raymond Poulidor after passing away in November 2019, but the emotions of Mathieu van der Poel, grandpa would’ve been looking down on him with a glorious smile. The class and character from Julian Alaphilippe to congratulate the grandson of another great Frenchman, the yellow jersey swapping shoulders was an image we’ll never forget.
A debut Tour de France for Alpecin-Fenix, a first year invitation at all three Grand Tours, it has been the best start possible. Mathieu van der Poel winning atop Mûr-de-Bretagne, pulling on yellow and then in Pontivy he led out Tim Merlier to claim the first bunch sprint. Back-to-back stage wins for the Belgian pro-continental team, Merlier has backed-up his stage victory from the Giro last May. Two points must be made here. Tim Merlier is slowly becoming a new sprinter for Grand Tours to come, no wonder there’s a rumour that Quick Step might be signing him for 2022, and no disrespect to the other World Tour teams but Alpecin-Fenix should definately get a promotion up to the top tier of world cycling sooner rather than later.
Wout Van Aert, Mathieu van der Poel, Julian Alaphilippe, Tim Merlier, Tadej Pogačar and so many others, we really are in an era of new tremendous racers that are leaving up jumping off our seats and making us cheer loudly. It really is a brilliant time to be a cycling fan, it never disappoints.
To cap off the four days along Breton coastline, inland countryside and the early celebrations that get the Tour de France underway, Stage 4 from Redon to Fougères provided the perfect cherry on top for a rider who everybody had written off. Everyone was shocked to see Mark Cavendish announced in the Deceuninck-Quick Step line up, last year’s green jersey and two stage winner Sam Bennett sadly unable to ride. Nobody not least Cavendish himself was expected to be riding the Tour, Cav back after a two year absence.
30 stage wins under his belt, we all said that was it. No way back for the Manx Missile. The impression we all got was Mark Cavendish just happy to be back, soaking it up and looking relaxed. In 2016 he made a huge comeback to take four stage wins, now in 2021 at the age of 36, a 31st stage win has happened. He’d already won in Fougères six years ago so it was written in the stars. Plaudits must go to Lotto Soudal’s Brent van Moer, who almost pulled off a terrific breakaway win, it was just like Cavendish’s debut Tour stage at Châteauroux back in 2008, a breakaway man pulled back very close to the finish.
The long battle with the Epstein-Barr virus, so many injuries and then a depression diagnosis in 2018, it is incredible that Mark Cavendish was without a team heading into 2021. A chance was given by Quick Step and it’s paid off a treat. Collapsed in tears in the same town where he’d won his 25th Tour de France stage, how many more can Cav win? Cavendish always dismisses the question, he has every right to as it’s a distraction, but Eddy Merck’s record of 34 stage wins may yet be looking vulnerable. There are plenty of flat stages to come at this Tour, the confidence Stage 4’s win will give Cavendish is going to be important. Younger sprinters such as Merlier, Jasper Philipsen, Nacer Bouhanni, Cees Bol and even Groupama-FDJ’s Arnaud Démare can all be beaten.
A green jersey will also be worn, the points competition was won by Cavendish ten years ago. Even if this is just one stage victory until Paris, one is better than nothing for the missile. He’s back!
How does the GC shape up afte the Grand Départ? So many bumps and bruises with crashes that should have been avoidable and others that are just bad luck.
Both Geraint Thomas and Primož Roglič have suffered from falls, both riders the worst when it comes to being lucky. The decisions INEOS will have to make deeper in this race will be fascinating, Ecuadorian Richard Carapaz one of the best GC contenders who’ve come out of the first four days unscathed. After the Stage 5 time trial we’ll get a better indication as to how INEOS will approach the upcoming mountains tests in the Alps, mainly because you don’t know how Thomas will feel after dislocating his shoulder. Thankfully he’s still in the race but is already around a minute down on GC, he even lost time behind others on the Mûr-de-Bretagne which wasn’t a good sign.
Roglič is already down one man with Robert Gesink crashing out after Stage 3, the Slovenian looked great on stages 1 and 2 by taking bonus seconds, only for it to come crashing down. The crashed caused by a ‘fan’ didn’t help as the Jumbo-Visma train was brought down, then the fall for Roglič was unexpected. A nightmare start for Jumbo-Visma but not so much for the man who destroyed all their hard work last year, Tadej Pogačar has quietly down well even with some knocks to his team.
Pogačar did lose a handful of seconds to Carapaz in Pontivy but apart from that the Slovenian will be confident going into the Laval time trial. He’s a decent time trialist as shown by the magnificent display at La Planche des Belles Filles last year, with Roglič probably slightly uncomfortable with his injuries, the TT might be more open than we expected. The same goes for Geraint Thomas as well, how will he feel on the bike? Regardless, it’s a chance for both the Welshman and Jumbo-Visma’s yellow jersey contender to try and pull back some time.
Last year’s Giro third placed rider Wilco Kelderman has gone under the radar, the Dutchman could extend some time gaps against the clock, Movistar’s Enric Mas is undoubtedly their main man after Miguel Ángel López has lost a huge chunk of time and Frenchman David Gaudu will be confident with tenth place so far. The tough terrain is yet to come, some have suffered others have come through with some definate blows. You cannot win the Tour de France in week one but you can definately lose it.
Four days in Brittany have concluded, Stages 1-4 over. Onwards and upwards as the 108th Tour de France continues…
