In a sense, much more metaphorical than real, this Saturday began this season’s Tour de France, the most anticipated in years. Remco Evenepoel gave the starting signal 55 kilometers from Figueira da Foz, where the finish line of the Figueira Champions Classic was, a Portuguese test in which he debuted and in which he left one of his usual concerts. A bad habit for viewers. The Belgian, with a devastating attack at the aforementioned distance before the end, He was left alone in a classic in which the United Arab Emirates, with Marc Hirschi and the promising Isaac del Toro, were his main opponents. Nobody got behind the wheel. No one could react to what immediately became a specific time trial, his favorite terrain. Indomitable character. First pedals to Nice, end of this year’s tour.
In the French city, final due to the Paris Olympics celebrations, unless misfortune requires otherwise, there will also be: Tadej Pogacar, Jonas Vingegaard and Primoz Roglic. The order will be slightly different. The Slovenian will only start his season at Strade Bianche on March 2nd. The jumbo rider, winner of the last two editions of the Grande Boucle, will begin his journey in Spain, in O Gran Camiño, on the 22nd of this month; Bora’s will finally launch in Paris-Nice on March 3rd. Evenepoel, who won for the 51st time at the age of 24, more than twice as many wins as years before, could not wait any longer. Nice will say who of the four planned the season best, who was the most intelligent and, in short, who is the strongest, if no one is missing who should be there. For now, the first announcement comes from Remco, who celebrated his victory with the phone gesture. And he hung up.
