Bagneres-de-Bigorre (France) (AFP)

Gemini, character, runner profile ... three things to know about Simon Yates, winner of the 12th stage of the Tour de France:

He escaped the grip of Sky

The Yates brothers started cycling on the track, at the Manchester Velodrome, at the initiative of their father John, a former rider. Despite this closeness to the British national center, they ended up out of the traditional path that would have led right to the team Sky, now Ineos, Dave Brailsford.

If Adam, born a few minutes after his brother, had to go into exile through including the French club CC Etupes, Simon has benefited at the beginning of the British federal framework. In 2013, at the age of 20, he even won the world title of the points race in Minsk. But, the following year, he joined with his twin Australian training Orica (now Mitchelton).

The two brothers are very similar. Tom Dumoulin joked one day on the subject: "They could substitute themselves for each other in the night, without us noticing it."

He is ambitious and says it

Critics overwhelmed him after his presumptuous statements of the last Giro. With him, no language of wood: "In the place of other favorites, I would get on it," he had announced before the departure of Bologna.

But, unlike last year when he had won hands-down three stages and dominated the race until three days of arrival, the scenario has only disappointed him. For an 8th place finish very far from his starting goals since, on the momentum of his victory in the Vuelta, he had come to win.

Last year, Chris Newton, a former coach of the British federation, defused the controversy in advance: "He is not rude, he will apologize later.He tries to be at its limits, he has it in him . "

He is more than a climber

Simon Yates is a style climber, with agile pedal stroke, lightning acceleration, but also a runner in the sense of racing honed. Thibaut Pinot quoted him as an example on his position in the peloton at the Giro: "When I see him back the pack, I know it must follow."

At 26, the British admits being interested also by races with a difficult profile. In the spring, he still spoke with confidence of his objectives: the Giro 2019 (we know what happened to him), the Tokyo Olympics, the Tour the following year.

According to Chris Newton, "his weight-to-power ratio is good, his maximum power is exceptional, that's why he's able to sprint so well, he's a complete runner, not just a climber".

© 2019 AFP