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Pogacar and Roglic lead the field of favorites

Tadej Pogacar and Primoz Roglic want to offer the next Slovenian show, but the British top team Ineos-Grenadiers holds against it with several top drivers. At the Tour de France, which starts in Brest on Saturday, everything boils down to a three-way battle. A Frenchman can also have small hopes. A brief portrait of the favorites follows:

Tadej Pogacar: Only 22 years old and almost inviolable. This year, too, victory in the tour will only lead to Tadej Pogacar, especially since the increase in the time trial kilometers helps the young star. Last year’s dramatic final is unforgettable, when Pogacar snatched the overall victory away from his compatriot Roglic in the last time trial. Pogacar’s record in professional stage races is impressive. The UAE driver has completed 14 races so far. In 13 of them he was never worse than sixth, he won seven.

Primoz Roglic: To be fair, it would be Primoz Roglic’s turn. The 31-year-old has been delivering consistently for years, winning the Vuelta, the Tour of the Basque Country and the Tour de Romandie twice. Last year, the former ski jumper was only 59 seconds short of overall victory in the tour. Roglic will have learned his lessons. This year the Slovenian only drove five races in the spring and has since dived. Even the Tour of Slovenia and the national championships skipped the “Phantom” Roglic and prepared for the tour with high-altitude training camps in the Sierra Nevada and in Tignes. He doesn’t see a boring tour: “It won’t just be a fight between Tadej and me. There are 20 other guys. “

Geraint Thomas: The 2018 tour winner is again close to his best form. If Geraint Thomas let it slide a bit after his great triumph and indulged himself in a pub for a few evenings, the Welshman is now fully focused again. With the victory in the Tour de Romandie and third place in the Dauphiné, he set an example, and he is also looking forward to the two individual time trials. “The time trials play a more important role, because you could lose a minute over a total of 58 kilometers. And in the mountains the time gaps aren’t that big anymore, ”said Thomas.


Hope for the French: Julian Alaphilippe
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Image: EPA

Richie Porte: The Australian Richie Porte was actually bought by the Ineos-Grenadiers team as a noble helper for Thomas. With his victory at the Dauphiné, the 36-year-old also made it clear that he can be expected on the tour. In 2020 Porte was already third behind Pogacar and Roglic, time trial is one of his strengths. However, Porte was often hit by bad luck on the tour in the past.

Julian Alaphilippe: He is the great hope of the French. World champion Alaphilippe accommodates the fact that there are less difficult mountain stages. In addition, the 29-year-old should be inspired by his personal happiness: Shortly before the tour, his partner Marion Rousse gave birth to son Nino. In 2019 Alaphilippe rode in the yellow jersey for 14 days before losing it to eventual winner Egan Bernal in the high mountains. This year there are only three mountain arrivals, the other mountain stages end with descents. You’d think the tour would be predestined for Alaphilippe’s driving skills.

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