“An essential character in French sport”, estimates his former manager Vincent Lavenu

Romain Bardet will hang his bike on Sunday, June 15, after fourteen professional years and 11 victories, including four on the Tour de France. For the occasion, Vincent Lavenu, his manager in his training in Coeur AG2R, returned to the career of French.

Franceinfo: Sport: Romain will retire on Sunday, what does that give you as a feeling after all these years by his side?

Vincent washing: He is an organized, thoughtful boy who has planned everything since he is very young. For his end of career, it's the same: he thought about it, anticipated and he found it The right time to stop a great career. Romain is part of a golden generation, with Thibaut Pinot, Julian Alaphilippe and Jean-Christophe Péraud, the first runner to finish 2nd in the Tour de France (in 2014) from Bernard Hinault. In his period when he was very strong, in 2016-2017, when he finished 2nd and 3rd in the Tour, Romain was exceptional, he was at the top. He was an essential character in French sport, it is sure that he will have marked his time.

How was it from your point of view of manager?

He was a sports leader. Due to his results, he naturally took the teammates to help him. He was someone who was able to express himself, but he was not someone who spoke all the time or who was very extroverted. He was first focused on performance, what to do himself and what the team and the team members had to do to be performing.

Romain is known for his extreme professionalism. Has it always been the case?

He has always been looking for training, nutrition methods, he was ahead of it. That's why he had the career he had to do. It was a boy who has exploited all his strength. It was he who was the initiator with us of the first mountain courses. At Departure, he did so individually and then little by little, we accompanied him. FSintestly, he grew up and the team grew up at the same time.

How was the man who was hiding behind the runner?

He is a boy who has a slightly different look at life, a certain intellectual way of apprehending politics, ecology, all the things that happen in life. Apart from the fact that it was a boy who did extraordinary things in his career, he was also a boy who had a certain perspective on society, who knew how to express himself with his ideas. He was recognized for that.

When did you see that there was something different at home?

In 2011, during his second year at the training center, we went to see him around the future, he had won the hardest stage in an incredible way. I said to myself: “This kid, he has something “. Above all, where I noticed that it was going to be good, it was from his first year, on the Amstel Gold Race 2012. He had done the morning escape and had held the shock until the end in a very high level race.

“In the early 2000s, during the Grand Prix de San Sebastian, a partner asked me if I can take a 14-15 year old kid in the car. I tell him yes if there is no commissioner hanging out, because it was forbidden at his age. When Romain signs his contract in 2012, he said to me: 'You don't remember, but I was in your car in San Sebastian'. This episode certainly contributed to the end of his dreams.

Vincent washing

In Franceinfo: Sport

When you think back to his career, what image comes to you first?

When he finished second in the round in 2016. When you are on the Champs-Elysées, that your runner goes up on the podium, second place, it's still strong. Afterwards, there was his stage victories. HAS Saint-Jean-de-Maurienne (in 2015), I was in the car, with Julien Jurdie (its sports director) who tended to doubt until the last moment. He said: 'They are coming back, it's screwed up! “. I tell him: “It will do it, it will do it!“. And finally, it was won. I remember the world there was around the bus, it was phenomenal. These are unique, very rare moments. Romain allowed us to live these moments.

And is there, conversely, a regret for him?

In 2019, he was a little disappointed with his turn, because he arrived with great ambition. We had left on a general classification, it had not worked as he wanted. Finally, he managed to do the polka dot jersey, but he was disappointed. When he climbs on the podium with the polka dot jersey, he smiles, because you have to smile. But deep down, he is disappointed. We were less than him, because he had fought thoroughly as always. Romain, he never gave up, it is a characteristic in his home.

Rightly, could he really have done better than second in the round?

At the time, I think he has exploited many things on combinations, bicycle positions, training methods. At that time, Chris Froome was almost unbeatable. In 2017, just before the departure of Marseille (time on the penultimate stage), it is 23 seconds, everything was possible. Unfortunately, that day, he was completely burnt, he finished the rattal lap. For one reason or another, it was Froome who could not have been well that day and Romain would have won the Tour. Unfortunately, history has decided otherwise.

“I believe that there is no regret to have. He had a magnificent career. It is very reassuring for our sport that a Romain Bardet is able to go second in the turn.”

Vincent Lavenu, former manager of Romain Bardet

In Franceinfo: Sport

Romain has fewer victories and has a less spontaneous character than Pinot or Alaphilippe. Is there a form of injustice in the vision that the public of his career today?

There is no injustice, everyone has their place in relation to their temperament, their history. Alaphilippe is his nature. When there was madness, he played it, he quickly left the bus to take advantage of it. It was not necessarily the temperament of Romain and Thibaut. They had put a small shell. I think that Thibaut has benefited in recent years from all the acquired audiences, with his somewhat secret and wild character, but people loved him. But Romain, He was loved too. When it is 2nd and 3rd in the tour, we had more people around the bus than La Française des Jeux. It was incredible.

Romain made the choice to go to a foreign team because he was going to discover something else and have a little less pressure. Thibaut, it's the same, he did not run after notoriety. Sometimes, even, we saw that it bothered him, almost this report. I think that basically they are very proud to see the public completely acquired in their cause, but both of them are reserved boys.

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How did you experience the first stage of Tour 2024, and this yellow jersey finally obtained?

Again, he dared to attack at a given time when it was hard, it was hot, the whole peloton was a little bulk. And he, a boom, he attacked, he dared, without really knowing if it was going to do it. We was very happy for him, because it may be the moment that will mark his career the most.