The tour of Switzerland is over. With Matthew van der Poel and Tom Dumoulin at the start, the race deserved more attention for the Dutch following. On our talking points, we are closing the race and looking forward to the Tour de France.
At the bottom of this page one or more talking points can be answered. For this you need an account with In de Leiderstrui.
TP #1: Van der Poel’s mission
Matthew van der Pol I learned from Tirreno Adriatico. Ahead of the Switzerland tour, the Dutchman announced that he would not go deep in Italy for a few months. Although it is in Bahrain stream Two beautiful victories on the stage, Van der Poel believes that in this race he lowered his chances in some of the major spring races by asking too much of his body. It was something he didn’t want to happen for the second time with the Tour de France and mountain biking in Tokyo.
A few days and two stage victories after that, Alpecin-Fenix’s message that Van der Poel would be knocked out of the Tour wasn’t a complete surprise. While a mild cold is a legitimate reason to quit racing, some fans were disappointed with this decision. They doubt whether the cold is an excuse in an already laid out plan to get out. It fits with the modern-day picture where we see riders drop off early in the races so as not to (rightly) drive themselves over the head. good case?
vote
TP #2: Dumoulin Race Against the Clock
The Tour de Suisse was of course also the place to come back Tom Dumoulin. We already knew that the Dutchman would not participate in the general classification of the Tour. He would test himself several times in the time trials and so it happened: in the short opening stage he set a sixteenth finish time, while setting several days later with fifth place already approached the podium.
So the improvement seems obvious, although it must be said that the second trial actually fit the qualities of Dumoulin much better than the first. However, he was still beaten up by men like Riberto Uran and Julian Alaphilippe, whom we won’t see on the podium in the Olympics period. This raises the question of whether Dumoulin will be able to rise to that podium in Tokyo with his current presidency. Is a month and a half enough to find the desired upper form here? Matthew Hegbor, performance director at Jumbo-Visma, sees the medal as a realistic goal anyway.
TP #3: The Power of Carapaz
Ineos Grenadiers hit the target again in a week-long race, once again indicative of the team’s strength this season. This time it was Richard Karabaz who took the overall win, following his Tour de France teammates, Geraint Thomas and Richie Porte. If we still thought the last day could be exciting, the Ecuadorean didn’t let us get caught up in fantasies. He easily fended off every attack by Rigoberto Urán, as do the great riders.
However, the rider burdens his team with a difficult question: Who will be the ultimate captain The big episode. As mentioned, the form is not only found in Carapaz. What makes it interesting is that the Tour de Suisse winner was not only strong in the mountains but also better than ever at the time trial. The last time, he took fourth place in the score, ahead of the necessary specialists. So don’t underestimate him…
TP #4: Urán . is back
Time passed, but suddenly it came back again: Rigoberto Uran. Besides an eighth place at Vuelta a España last season, the Colombian’s performance was nothing to write home about. In Besig he found a race that wasn’t really suitable for him, while in Catalonia he only finished 52nd in the final standings. Not great for someone aiming for the podium on a grand tour. So I work in the shop.
And it happened, because Uran seems to be back at his previous level in just the right time. He was fine in the mountains, but he lacked the poison to release Karabaz. However, he was basically convinced in a place where you wouldn’t expect it right away: the time trial. Forty seconds ahead of the second number does not lie. Oran could just be an interesting intruder on the podium later on.
TP #5: Bahrain is still victorious
It seems that everything one touches currently in Bahrain Victorious turns to gold. The team lives up to its name with nine wins in a month. Gino Maid During the Giro d’Italia, after the crash of his teammate Mikel Landa, he gave the start himself by winning a beautiful mountain stage and exactly one month later he ended the month of miracles with a victory: this time at the Tour of Switzerland. In his homeland, he beat Michael Woods in a sprint. On the same day, Phil Bauhaus also won the second stage of this race at the Tour of Slovenia.
The team starts the Tour de France without an outright classification man, so we can see the team on the attack a lot. As a fellow fugitive, you better get lucky, although you should also be warned: the Bahrain Victorious riders are hard to beat at the moment.
vote
Door: Jannick van der Hooft – [email protected]
Zombie specialist. Friendly twitter guru. Internet buff. Organizer. Coffee trailblazer. Lifelong problem solver. Certified travel enthusiast. Alcohol geek.