It was announced among the favorites, and he perfectly assumed his status! Mathieu van der Poel (Alpecin-deceuninck) seemed impressive control in the final of the 2nd stage of the Tour de France To dominate the sprint Tadej Pogacar (UAE Team Emirates XRG) et Jonas Vingegaard (Team Visma | Lease A Bike). In an arrival perfectly responding to its characteristics, the Dutchman is a double blow by recovering the yellow jersey to his teammate Jasper Philipsen. The former world champion will therefore take the leader's tunic again, 4 years after having worn it for the first time.
Video – The reaction of Mathieu Van der Poel on video
“When we see who arrives 2nd and 3rd … It says a lot about the difficulty of the race”
Winner of the 2nd stage, Mathieu van der Poel was once again very strong, in a final that he nevertheless imagined less hard: “It was super difficult, the finale was harder than I thought. But I was really motivated. Finally, four years after my first victory, it was time that I won a second! It is also the second time that I am rewarded with the yellow jersey, so I thought it was worth waiting! Of course, people gave me favorite, but when we see what runners were in mind, I really like the team. Last 500 meters.
“It has become a little delicate in the last 10 kilometers with a few attacks, but I showed patience, hoping that everything would go back to normal, and at the last kilometer, I knew perfectly what to do. I had already in mind what I wanted to do in the event of a sprint, but when we see who arrives second (Tadej Pogacar) and third (Jonas Vingegaard), that said a lot about the difficulty of the race. arrival, but it's an incredible moment“He rejoices.
“I have had a little trouble in recent years on the Tour”
“They had planned front wind in the last ascent, so I thought that Jasper Philipsen would have a chance, but the climbs were more difficult than expected and the pace was very high. At the top of the penultimate ascent, we were only eight runners in mind. It's a dream for the team. All that comes now is a bonus. I hope to be able to keep the jersey until the time trial, then it will be very difficult. My goal was simply to win a step and I am very happy to have succeeded.
I have had a little trouble in recent years on the Tour. It is also a question of circumstances. I have a route to which I am used to, on which I am good from the first week, and that makes the differenceOf course. It also shows how difficult it is to win a stage of the Tour in general. We tried to copy the preparation a bit like in a classic season, and I think it was a good decision. It is an exceptional Tour de France start for our team. We will try to savor the yellow jersey as long as we have it in our team “the conclusion Mathieu van der Poel.
