The leading newspaper Politiken already put Vingegaard’s triumph on a par with Denmark’s victory at the 1992 European Football Championship and the successes of tennis queen Caroline Wozniacki. “Jyllands-Posten” wrote: “The Tour de France was exactly what we needed in a time of war and crisis. A dream in yellow and red and white, and a fantastic Jonas Vingegaard as Tourminator.”
The (young) competition is big
Vingegaard cannot yet assess what is to come. Four years ago he was still working in a fish factory in Hanstholm, last year he gave his impressive tour premiere with second place and before the start in Copenhagen he was still in the shadow of captain Primoz Roglic. He hasn’t created a big career plan yet. “It’s not that my goal is to win the Tour five times. I want to come back and try to win it again,” said the 25-year-old.
Then he will meet a “very motivated” Tadej Pogacar (23) and other well-known competitors. Because a new, young generation has long since taken command in cycling. Ex-tour champion Egan Bernal (25), who fell so badly in winter, is likely to make claims again. And then there is the Belgian talent of the century Remco Evenepoel (22), who is still waiting for his tour debut. “It will be interesting in the next few years,” said Pogacar and manager Ralph Denk from the Bora-hansgrohe team added: “It looks like it’s a new development. The top teams have learned a lot about how to deal with young people. “
Kämna wants to develop further
And what role can the Germans play in this youth spectacle? First and foremost, Lennard Kämna should be mentioned, who according to Denk is “a huge enrichment for us and also for the cycling fans”. The 25-year-old has made a name for himself as a stage hunter. In 2020 he won the Tour in Villard-de-Lans, this year at the Giro on Mount Etna. Is there more? “We will discuss with him whether we dare to go for an overall ranking in a Grand Tour. But there is no pressure from the team,” Denk told dpa.
Kämna himself can also imagine it, but believes that he still has “one or two steps to go”. In any case, Bora is well positioned for the future alongside the former junior world champion with young tour drivers, such as Giro winner Jay Hindley and the Russian Tour fifth-placed Alexander Vlasov (both 26).