176 cyclists start at Tour de France 2023, but only the chosen ones can register their name in the palmares of the mother of all cycling races. A priori, the Slovenianor Tadej Pogacar and the danish Jonas Vingegaard start as clear favorites for the final victory, but other riders may snatch the glory Paris.
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Let’s look at the cyclists with the most options to discuss victory over Vingegaard and Pogacar:
1
JONAS VINGEGAARD (26 years old, Jumbo-Visma)
He defends the title achieved last year and his great rival, Tadej Pogacar, gives him as a clear favorite over him. The Danish rider has only three good laps in his legs: a Vuelta (2020, he finished 46th) and two Tours where he has been very good: 2nd in 2021 and last year, with many who said he couldn’t dethrone Pogacar, he beat him. In his favor, he knows the rhythms of the race, a strong team that surrounds him, and a season in which he won almost everything: O Gran Camiño, Itzulia and Critérium del Dauphiné. He was 3rd in Paris-Nice, and now has nine stage victories.
2
TADEJ POGACAR (24 years old, UAE Team Emirates)
The double champion of the Tour de France (2020, 2021) was dethroned last year by the Danish Jonas Vingegaard and this year he wants to return to the throne of the ‘Grande Boucle’. Everything was going well with his set-up until he fell in the Liège-Bastogne-Liège race and injured his wrist, which changed his racing program. He favored Vingegaard because of the Dane’s performance this year and his status as champion, but from his team they assured MD that he would do his best.
3
ENRIC MAS (28 years old, Movistar Team)
The Balearic rider from the Movistar team said at the start of the race that he sees himself on the podium and realizes that the route is in his favor, because there are more mountains and only one test, which in turn is assured. that Pogacar and Vingegaard you can defeat them. After the painful withdrawal of the last edition, Enric Mas faces the Tour with 5th place in 2019 as the ceiling of his four presences in the gala round and the podium goal on the horizon every year, can he achieve it this year?
4
MATTIAS SKJELMOSE (22 years old, Lidl-Trek)
This could be one of the great surprises of this year’s Tour de France and he also goes into the Tour de France with high morale after winning the Danish Road Championship and being the Danish runner-up in the race against the clock. He is coming off a Tour of Switzerland win against important rivals and the Tour’s mountainous profile favors him. The fact of being a rookie in the race (he has only run one Grand Tour, last year’s Giro and he finished 40th) can be a double-edged sword, which can work in his favor and against him.
5
ADAM YATES (30 years old, UAE Team Emirates)
A priori, it may seem that there are few options for the Bury cyclist to seek glory in the Tour de France, with the Slovenian Tadej Pogacar in his ranks, but the team from the United Arab Emirates may bet on him depending on the development of the career. He does not lack experience, this is his seventh Tour de France, with the 4th of 2016 as the best result, and he has only performed at a high level this season, with second place in the Critérium del Dauphiné, victory in the Tour de Romandie or third place in the UAE Tour.
6
THIBAUT PINOT (33 years old, Groupama-FDJ)
Exactly in the year in which he was theoretically going to retire, the Frenchman Thibaut Pinot returned to his strength, showing so far great physical strength and, most importantly in his case, great mental consistency. This is his tenth Tour de France, a race in which he has accumulated four dropouts, last year he was 14th and he has third place in 2014 as his best result. Before the Tour, Pinot had been a regular, with good performances in Romandie and a fifth place in the Giro d’Italia, where he also won in the mountains. Is this going to be a good year for French cycling?
7
RICHARD CARAPAZ (30 years old, EF Education-EasyPost)
The Ecuadorian rider assures that he sees himself with options to attack the Tour de France and achieve what will be his second victory in a great cycling tour after the one achieved in the Giro d’Italia in 2019. To this end, the rider from El Si Carmelo He has measured his efforts this season and concentrated a lot to show his best version in a ‘Grande Boucle’ in which he has three participations this year and in which he has a third place in 2021 as the best result.
8
JAI HINDLEY (27 years old, Bora-hansgrohe)
He won the 2022 Giro d’Italia without anyone making him a favorite after coming 2nd in 2020 and having to withdraw last year. He was 10th in La Vuelta 2022 and this year he is making his Tour de France debut. The Australian cyclist has not shone particularly so far this season, but he has a strong squad around him and the profile of this year’s Tour de France is in his favour. Share a step below the big favorites, but his chances of success should not be dismissed.
9
ROMAIN BARDET (32 years old, DSM)
No one can beat Romain Bardet’s performance when the road looks, a favor that could favor the Frenchman this year in a very mountainous Tour with little time trial. 2nd in 2016, 3rd in 2017, Bardet just needs to make a step up in quality to achieve what will be his first great cycling tour, although it’s true that we’d place Brioude a step below of great favorites. This season he has not achieved any success so far, but he has been very regular, especially in the Tour of Switzerland and the Tour de Romandie, the two races before the Tour.
10
MIKEL LANDA (33 years old, Bahrain-Victorius)
Fifth Tour for Mikel Landa where the main goal should be in the last photo in Paris, synonymous with a podium finish. He held it twice, 2017 and 2020, when he was 4th, and this year the player from Alava may have an extra motivation to leave the ‘Grande Boucle’ from the Basque Country. The man from Murgia has added great performances throughout the season, but his performance was not as expected in the recent Dauphiné Critérium. He has the experience and quality required to fly and be the main character in a race that owes him a podium finish.
Source: La Verdad
I’m Robert Maynard, and I am a passionate journalist with experience in sports writing. For the last few years, I have been writing for Today Times Live. My main focus has been on sports-related stories and features. With my strong background in journalism and extensive knowledge of the industry, I am able to provide readers with well-crafted pieces that are both informative and engaging.
