The 3rd stage of the Tour de France, Monday, between Lorient and Pontivy, in Brittany, was marked by three falls in the last 10 kilometers.
Falls which aroused the anger of the runners, to the point of deciding a strike for the 4th stage between Redon and Fougères.
Many have pointed out the dangerousness of the course, but the pressure on the shoulders of the runners is not unrelated to these facts of the race.
A runner lying on the ground a few tens of meters from a finish of which he was one of the favorites. On Monday, Caleb Ewan, one of the most prominent sprinters, finished his Tour de France on land: a broken collarbone after a terrible fall in the final of this 3rd stage, between Lorient and Pontivy. And even if it means ending up like this, we might as well take Peter Sagan, seven-time winner of the green jersey. A few minutes earlier it was Arnaud Démare, the French sprinter of the FDJ, who carried with him the winner of the Tour de France 2020, Tadej Pogacar, in his fall. Primo Roglic, another favorite of this Tour, fell 10 km from the finish, forcing his whole team to whip in order to lose only one minute in the general classification.
🚴❌ The peloton at a standstill!
The start of the 4th stage of # TDF2021 is marked by a protest movement from the riders who set foot in Redon!
▶ Follow the 4th step live: https://t.co/GTXa4yHJzi pic.twitter.com/mjAvf94qpw
- France tv sport (@francetvsport) June 29, 2021
A stage worthy of the famous Koh-Lanta pole test as it seemed that in the end there would only be one rider left at the finish line.
Repeated falls which above all angered most of the peloton.
To the point of setting up a picket line at the start of this 4th stage between Redon and Fougères: The riders slowed down the pace of the race to request the opening of a dialogue between the UCI, the organizers, the teams and the riders.
The fault of the course?
Winding road in the last 10 kilometers, dangerous turn just before the finish ... A lot of criticism has been made about the layout of this 3rd stage, and especially its last kilometers. “We had proposed to postpone the time-taking 5 kilometers from the finish, why? Because we had analyzed the course, we saw that the final was extremely dangerous. On a winding road and not in perfect condition, ”explained on Twitter the former rider Philippe Gilbert, now in the management of the Lotto team. Marc Madiot, the manager of the Groupama FDJ formation, who is one of those to have reacted most strongly to these falls, preferred to broaden the debate, if not widening the road. “We can't continue like this, it's no longer cycling. We have to change. It is not dignified. It's not just the route,it's a whole, ”he fulminated at the microphone of France TV.
Or that of the runners?
For Jimmy Casper, former sprinter with several French teams, it is better to look at the behavior of the runners, than the course. “From what I can see, these falls were created between runners, by careless mistakes. It happens every year, for me there are no real problems of the course. It's not one of the nicest arrivals, but it wasn't catastrophic either. On the Giro, they are much more chaotic, on the Tour they are magnificent. We can clearly see on Arnaud Démare's fall, in a curve, that he hits another runner. We can't have all the arrivals on the boulevards either, that's also part of the charm, even if I understand that at the time it can be annoying, ”he considers.
And above all, the difficulties keep adding to the people in charge of the routes. A speed bump here, a roundabout there. “It's good to say it's dangerous, but you have to realize that it is more and more difficult to find finish sites. We no longer have a medium-sized city without an island, roundabout or narrowing. Ten years ago, there were 1,100 dangerous points on the Tour de France. This year, we are at 2,300. If the level of requirement becomes too high, we will no longer have an finish. We are there ”, recalled in
the Team
, Thierry Gouvenou, in charge of the layout of the Tour.
But what are the authorities doing?
Several teams had, it seems, alerted the organizers to the potential danger of this arrival in Pontivy, but not all. “For the course, there are specifications to be respected. The organizers submit the routes, then a UCI committee dedicated to safety accepts the route. There is an error. Especially when you know the stakes at the start of the Tour, ”asked Philippe Gilbert. Remember that the organizer, ASO, had accepted the neutralization of the time at 5 km, it was the UCI commissaires who rejected the request. Differences between authorities, but already within the peloton.
A bad day for cycling ... Today we saw a very tumultuous final of the 3rd Tour stage with my team mate @CalebEwan as one of the main victims.
Was it too dangerous?
My view on the matter.https: //t.co/UNu85UjoYr
- Philippe Gilbert (@PhilippeGilbert) June 28, 2021
“The rules are the rules and they have to be enforced.
3 kilometers is 3 kilometers. The riders who play the general stand at the back of the peloton in the sprints.
On the other hand, we sprinters have to take risks by going downhill like sick people in order to arrive on time.
It sucks to lose the Tour in a fall, but we also put our lives on the line in all mountain descents, ”insists Jimmy Casper.
If climbers and sprinters already disagree ...
Equipment too efficient, or management too stressful?
Marc Madiot also mentioned the problem of bicycles "too sophisticated, which go too fast and which are no longer adapted to the road network". Something to make Jimmy Casper smile. “No I don't think so, Marc was taken by emotion, because he loves his runners. For me, bikes are completely suitable, they are even more efficient in terms of braking. I don't see what more we can do, apart from putting on an ABS, which may happen one day, ”he says.
He prefers to look at the pressure side.
Not that of the tires, but that which rests on the shoulders of the riders.
“In my opinion there are fewer falls, but they are more massive.
As soon as there is one, it falls like a house of cards.
The runners are more and more stressed, and Marc Madiot should perhaps also think about putting less on the shoulders of his runners.
There is media pressure, the Tour de France is an extraordinary showcase and everyone wants to be in front to show themselves.
So as soon as it hits, you have 30 guys on the floor, ”recalls Jimmy Casper.
The runners have earphones in which they all receive the same instructions: Everyone in front at the same time.
And we're not even talking about the Breton signs or flags which also love to show off.
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