
Three years on from not being able to eat dinner or breakfast such were his nerves and apprehension at leading the Tour of Poland, Jonas Vingegaard last week became the first Danish rider to win the Tour de France since 1996, doing so in commanding fashion with two stage wins as he upstaged the defending champion Tadej Pogačar to take victory by 3.34.
Triumph for the Jumbo-Visma man caps off a remarkable few years for Vingegaard, who counts just one other GC victory on his palmarès, the 2021 Coppi e Bartali. The 25-year-old only emerged into stardom with a second place at last year’s Tour.
Quiet and shy, Vingegaard had slowly been developing into a strong climber and potential GC threat since signing for Jumbo-Visma in 2019, but the tall and skinny rider cracked under pressure when taking the leader’s jersey at the Polish race held in the same year.
“Three and a half years ago he was so nervous before every race,” his team-mate Koen Bouwman, the winner of this year’s mountains classification at the Giro d’Italia, told CW. “He didn’t have a specific role, just a free one to do whatever he wanted to do because he was so nervous.
“When he got yellow in Poland, he was the strongest in the race, but he couldn’t eat dinner or breakfast. The team didn’t give him any pressure, but he put pressure on himself not to lose yellow.” Vingegaard, overcome by worry, ceded the lead spectacularly, tumbling from first to 26th overall on the final stage.
Bouwman continued: “He is a whole different person now. He has talked a lot with coaches and battling for second at the Tour last year helped him.
Diese Geschichte stammt aus der July 28, 2022-Ausgabe von CYCLING WEEKLY.
Starten Sie Ihre 7-tägige kostenlose Testversion von Magzter GOLD, um auf Tausende kuratierte Premium-Storys sowie über 8.000 Zeitschriften und Zeitungen zuzugreifen.
Bereits Abonnent ? Anmelden
Diese Geschichte stammt aus der July 28, 2022-Ausgabe von CYCLING WEEKLY.
Starten Sie Ihre 7-tägige kostenlose Testversion von Magzter GOLD, um auf Tausende kuratierte Premium-Storys sowie über 8.000 Zeitschriften und Zeitungen zuzugreifen.
Bereits Abonnent? Anmelden

UK SCENE WILSON WINS AT CLAYTON SPRING CLASSIC HANDICAP
Junior rider Atkins wins North Road CC 25

"I'm Geraint Thomas," he said politely."And I'm a bike rider"
The Doc salutes the Welshman's staying power and charm

AN EXPERT'S TAKE ON...STRENGTH TRAINING
The need-to-know essentials for cyclists lifting weights - Rob Kemp asks an expert

NOURISH TO FLOURISH
The nutrition you need to age-proof your performance

THE WORLD'S FASTEST DESCENDER
DOWNHILL MAESTRO SAFA BRIAN TELLS MARIA DAVID HOW HE MASTERED THE ART OF DESCENDING TO BECOME FASTER THAN EVERYONE EXCEPT, PERHAPS, TOM PIDCOCK

VISION METRON SL 60
Super-stiff, responsive race wheels that hold their line when the wind whips up

RIDDEN AND REVIEWED GIANT TCR ADVANCED O £3,699
Lively all-rounder that offers pro bike pedigree without the premium price tag

Six days of Paris
This is one of those images that makes you feel almost as though you're there in it, soaking up an atmosphere heavy with embrocation and cigarette smoke, those hanging lamps creating a ghostly glow across the arena.

Alberto Dainese's BMC Teammachine R
We take a close look at the Italian sprinter's Tudor Pro Cycling team bike

Pogačar has fun in the desert
World champion wins UAE Tour overall, with some chaos on the way