Tom Pidcock has spoken about Ineos Grenadiers’ shocking resolution to have their director of racing, Steve Cummings, assist the crew remotely through the Tour de France, saying that he felt it will have little impression.
“I don’t assume it’ll have an effect. Things change, it’s not likely for me to remark,” Pidcock advised Cycling Weekly on the Tour de France groups presentation held on Thursday on the Piazza Michelangelo in Florence, Italy.
Cummings and Pidcock appeared to endure a tense relationship through the 2023 Tour de France, in response to the lately launched Netflix sequence, Tour de France Unchained. However, in a press convention forward of the Tour de France, Pidcock and teammate Carlos Rodriguez dismissed the Netflix episode as “drama”.
Cummings held the place of lead directeur sportif ultimately 12 months’s Tour de France, however this 12 months, the crew has positioned directeur sportif Zak Dempster in that position. The crew may even have a second directeur sportif, Xavier Zandio Echaide, on the race.
Dempster advised Cycling Weekly that he discovered that he could be main the crew on the Tour de France two weeks in the past. He additionally stated that he felt that it will be difficult for Cummings to assist the crew remotely.
“I believe that’s unattainable. For the second, I’m the lead DS right here, and it’ll be me managing the race on behalf of the efficiency crew. But for certain, he can have an enter, and he’s accomplished a extremely good job constructing this journey to this point, and we go on with it.”
Cummings has labored on a number of races as Ineos Grenadiers’ directeur sportif this season, together with the Critérium du Dauphiné, historically thought-about the build-up race to the Tour de France.
He has performed a key position in deciding the Ineos Grenadiers’ roster and race technique for the Tour de France, the place Rodriguez and Egan Bernal have been designated as Ineos’ GC leaders, with Pidcock and Geraint Thomas to assist them and goal stage wins.
“As lengthy as we’re all pulling in the identical course, which I’m assured we might be profitable,” Thomas stated within the press convention. “Of course, there’ll be bumps within the highway, however I believe it is simply coping with them as finest we are able to at the moment. We’re all clear what we’re coming right here to attempt to obtain.”
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