Cycling: the death of Gino Mäder, “I think about it almost on every descent”, assures Thibaut Pinot

Before participating in the French Championships in Cassel (North) on Sunday, Thibaut Pinot confided in the death of Gino Mäder. The Swiss rider had not survived after a fall in the middle of the descent during the Tour de Suisse on June 16. In an interview with AFP, the climber from Groupama-FDJ admits that he thinks about it “almost every time he goes down”.

The Frenchman, who will compete in his last Tour de France in July, talks about how he learned of the news: “I learned it during training at La Cluzaz. It was very complicated to finish, I was stunned. Gino was a rider who, like me, liked to hang out at the back of the peloton and we often found ourselves talking. I loved him so much. I had escaped with him on the last stage of the Vuelta. We were both together. It’s dramatic. »

The French rider, whose career is due to end at the end of the season, was very marked by this accident: “I think about it almost every time I go down in training. Yet I was not even on the Tour de Suisse. For those who were there it must be even more difficult. I’m a runner who takes a little less risk than the others because I’m really aware of the danger. It is often said that you have to unplug the brain in the bike. I really struggle with this idea. We practice a dangerous sport. »

Thibaut Pinot knew the place where the tragedy happened well: “I did this descent almost 10 years ago, it was the same stage. And I remember it very well: I gave up because I was afraid of speed. It was in the period when I was criticized a lot for my caution on the descents. But people don’t realize what you’re doing on a bike at 100 km/h. We quickly forget the risks we take. »

For him, we must draw conclusions from this accident: “Finishes at the bottom of the descent, we also saw this on the Tour of the Basque Country, often pose a problem. But the descents are part of the race. Afterwards, why not put more protective nets as we do in skiing? We really have nothing to protect ourselves with. I think that’s what we can work on. »

Fatalistic, the 33-year-old runner deplores the voyeurism of the falls: “We know that it’s part of the show. It’s always selling more. When you see the summary of a stage on TV, almost a third of the images are devoted to falls. For us runners, it’s unfortunate to see that because there is something else to show in our sport. »