Jonas Vingegaard, 25 years old, was crowned this Sunday as the new king of a 2022 Tour that was written in the image and likeness of Tadej Pogacar, the monarch who had to abdicate in the Alps dethroned by a lethal offensive as was not remembered, which it forced him to forget to eat and to hand over the French round to his Danish rival. It was the signal for the start of the best personal duel between two riders since 1989 when Laurent Fignon lost the yellow to Greg Lemond in the streets of Paris.
Miguel Indurain always destroyed his rivals in the art of the time trial and never Claudio Chiappucci, Gianni Bugno Y Tony Romenger they put him in the predicament that Vingegaard found himself in between the Alps, the Massif Central and the Pyrenees. Up to 15 demarrajes of Pogacar are remembered from Alpe d’Huez to Hautacam passing through Mende, Foix and Peyragudes. And the Dane’s reaction always came instantly, without the need to practically have to fight back, because a Pogacar Hungry and thirsty, he gave in on the Granon, as he did later on Hautacam, sore from the fall on the Spandelles descent.
From here to Bilbao
In the same way, only one attack of Jan Ulrich a Marco Pantani at La Madelaine after dressing ‘El Pirata’ in yellow at Les 2 Alpes, in the Doping Tour (1998). A Lance Armstrong, in the seven crossed-out Tours of history, no one ever put him in trouble and Alberto counter always had andy schleck under control as Chris Froome all his rivals under the tyranny of a Sky team as powerful as the incredible Jumbo with a Wout van Aert who was good for everything, even winning stages.
For this reason, the remaining days can now be counted until the 2023 Tour goes into labor on July 1 of next year in the streets of Bilbao. “I gave everything but in front of me I found a rival stronger than me and that motivates me for next year. I will come back to win”, word of Pogacar. It is still too early to know where a French round that will be born in the Basque Country will go. But it does not matter if the Alps are faced first than the Pyrenees, as has happened now, because the duel can be as spectacular as the one experienced these weeks. And if it is better then we will speak of pure magic.
The entrance in Paris
The cyclists arrived at the Champs Elysées with the fall of the afternoon. They celebrated a final stage amidst laughter, toasts and posing that was only reactivated when the bell announcing the last lap. the belgian runner Jasper Phillipsen he won the stage and Vingegaard crossed the finish line with his Jumbo teammates to then climb onto the podium as the second Dane to win the Tour after the controversial Bjarne Riis.
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Next year I want to come back to win. It did not mark me to achieve five Tours but to try another victory. Pogacar will want to do it but so will I”. It was the triumph of the calm runner and the one who takes advantage of every moment he has to talk about his partner and his daughter. “The essential thing in my life is being able to be with them both and because of my sport I can’t do often,” said Vingegaard who returns to Denmark to be received by the highest authorities of his country, with the queen margaret to the head.
PogacarInstead, he needs more challenges because he is the most offensive running back in the world and the most nonconformist. The Vuelta is on his horizon. “This year’s Tour has made me hungry to win more races because I love challenges”… the challenges for a Tadej who has given everything and who did not look in the late afternoon at Vingegaard on the podium with rancor but even with good humor. “Losing isn’t bad either because people want diversity and get tired of seeing the same guy win every year.” For the next duel there are only 342 days left, shall we start counting them?