Tadej Pogačar is placing the ending touches to his Tour de France preparation at altitude at Isola 2000, the place he has been joined by the majority of the UAE Team Emirates squad that may help him on the race.
The Slovenian spent every week at residence in Monaco after successful the Giro d’Italia earlier than travelling to Isola 2000 on June 4. He will stay there till Monday, as per the plan outlined by his staff at first of the season.
No rider has gained the Giro-Tour double for the reason that late Marco Pantani in 1998, and the few riders to aim the feat since fell brief in July after digging too deep into their reservoirs on the corsa rosa. UAE Team Emirates sports activities supervisor Matxin Joxean Fernandez, nevertheless, insisted that Pogačar emerged comparatively contemporary from a Giro that he dominated from begin to end.
“What I can say is that he didn’t come out of the Giro bored with legs or bored with thoughts,” Matxin instructed BiciPro, although he famous {that a} week with out formal coaching was nonetheless a vital component of his post-Giro plan.
While Pogačar was coaching at Isola 2000, different members of his Tour guard had been racing elsewhere. Juan Ayuso was in motion on the Critérium du Dauphiné earlier than being pressured out by a crash, whereas Adam Yates and João Almeida positioned first and second on the Tour de Suisse.
They travelled onwards to the UAE camp, with Nils Politt – in motion this week on the German championships – the one member of their Tour choice who will miss the rest of their keep at altitude.
“When all of the riders had been there, we had the pre-Tour assembly,” mentioned Matxin, who confirmed that not one of the riders who accompanied Pogačar on the Giro could be in motion in July.
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As per the plan outlined by Matxin to Cyclingnews in the course of the Giro, Pogačar will thus be supported by Yates, Almeida, Ayuso, Politt, Marc Soler, Tim Wellens and Pavel Sivakov on the Tour.
Isola 2000 is a becoming spot for a coaching camp forward of this 12 months’s Tour, on condition that the ski station options because the summit end on stage 19. Indeed, with the end of this 12 months’s Tour shifted from Paris to Nice as a result of Olympic Games, the coaching camp allowed Pogačar to reconnoitre the ultimate 4 phases of the race. Ineos and Soudal-QuickStep have additionally been primarily based at Isola 2000 forward of the Tour.
“We noticed the final 4 phases, and we had been virtually all the time ready simply to go away by bike from the lodge to try this,” Matxin mentioned. “In some instances, we did the entire stage, whereas for others we solely appeared on the finale as a result of we didn’t wish to be going forwards and backwards an excessive amount of within the automobiles.”
As effectively as working within the mountains, Pogačar’s coaching camp has integrated work in opposition to the watch. His outstanding time trial shows on the Giro highlighted his progress within the self-discipline this winter, however the ultimate stage of the 2024 Tour presents one other form of check, with the climbs of La Turbie and the Col d’Èze that includes within the 35km run from Monaco to Nice.
“We’ve examined some new issues on the bikes, primarily with regard to lightening them, and we did time trial testing,” Matxin mentioned. “Small issues, however they make the distinction. The bikes are the identical as on the Giro, however we’ve tried to lighten them a bit.”
After two nights again in Monaco, Pogačar will journey to Florence on Wednesday forward of the Grand Départ.
“I see him motivated, I see him calm, I see him completely satisfied. I am unable to say something adverse, as a result of there’s nothing adverse,” Matxin mentioned. “And though now we have a staff of rockstars, they clearly all imagine in Tadej because the chief of this staff for the Tour.”
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