“I left my cell phone in the kitchen, and then our doorbell didn’t work. » This is how Jonas Vingegaard explains having unintentionally missed a doping test during his cycling career. A failure, which the winner of the last two editions of the Tour de France, places in 2019 and which he confesses in an interview granted on November 15 to the Danish daily Extra Magazine.
“They then tried to call me, but it’s impossible to accept,” says the Danish cyclist, also second in the Vuelta this season behind his teammate Sepp Kuss. They returned two days later. It’s not cool to have a failed test that then hangs over you. This is something I’m thinking about to prevent this from happening again. »
Three whereabouts failures, also known as no-shows, can result in a two-year suspension for the athletes concerned. “You must always remember this,” emphasizes Vingegaard, who chooses a home presence slot between 7 a.m. and 8 a.m. It’s difficult, but when I’m at home, it’s not so much. »
“It’s a good thing to be tested all the time”
“It’s a good thing to be tested all the time,” continues the person concerned, who estimates having been taken between 60 and 70 times in 2023 when he competed in two grand tours. It helps in a way. All the tests are negative, but that rings hollow, because 20 years ago they were also tested. […] I don’t just mean, like I used to, that I’m the most tested runner. »
The Jumbo-Visma rider, whose incredible performances on French roads in July rekindled suspicions, has already ticked off the 2024 Grande Boucle as his main objective for the coming year. He should meet his rival there, the Slovenian Tadej Pogacar (UAE-Emirates).
