What three years can change…
Posted at 8:32 p.m.
When the host of the press conference declared open the interview session with six headliners of the Grand Prix Cycliste de Québec, the vast majority of journalists and cameras went to the table occupied by Tadej Pogačar.
In his first appearance in Canada, the double winner of the Tour de France – and second in his most recent test in July – was, rightly, the object of all attention, Wednesday afternoon, in a room of one hotel on boulevard René-Lévesque.
So much so that it was deemed more appropriate to move the 23-year-old Slovenian to the adjacent restaurant for a little more peace of mind.
While Greg Van Avermaet, six podiums on the Grande Allée and winner of the last Grand Prix of Montreal in 2019, Michael Matthews, double title holder in Quebec, Geraint Thomas, champion of the 2018 Tour and third this year, and Wout van Aert, Triple stage winner and green jersey, shared the other representatives of the media, Peter Sagan was able to remain relatively quiet.
Yes, Sagan, triple world champion, crowned twice in Quebec (2016 and 2017) and once in Montreal (2013), rock star of the peloton whose star has faded in recent years.
The Slovak from the French team TotalEnergies spoke mainly about his recent participation in the Electric Mountain Bike World Championships, where he placed 16e despite two falls.
“It was a great experience and I definitely had a lot of fun, the kind of fun you’ll never find on the road,” said Sagan, more talkative than he ever was.
PHOTO YAN DOUBLET, THE SUN
Geraint Thomas, Wout van Aert, Peter Sagan, Greg Van Avermaet, Michael Matthews and Tadej Pogačar are in Quebec for the Grand Prix Cycliste.
Which isn’t to say he takes GPs lightly. “I had good altitude training in Utah before Hamburg (31e), Plouay (107e) and the e-bike World Championships, he pointed out. I returned to altitude and did my normal prep for the road bike. The training I did on an electric bike is not going to destroy everything I have done in my preparation. »
Assuring that he was here to “do his best as always”, the seven-time green jersey at the Tour warned that high-level cycling has evolved since 2019. The usual scenario of a reduced peloton sprint could therefore vary in his opinion. .
You will see, the racing style changes every year. I may have won here, but I don’t know how the race will go at the start, during and at the end.
Peter Sagan
However, Matthews does not foresee any big surprises on the Grande Allée on Friday.
“It’s a great circuit with an uphill sprint that suits me very well,” explained the Australian from BikeExchange. There are a few other small climbs around the circuit that cut everyone’s legs. It ends in a very hard sprint where no one has legs. It comes down to whoever wants it the most, I think. »
“I can’t wait to test myself”
Van Aert is certainly confident after his victory at the Bretagne Classic in Plouay on August 28. The Belgian from Jumbo-Visma was sick for 10 days after his extraordinary Tour and it was “difficult to refocus and return to training”.
The prospect of racing on the Quebec circuits in anticipation of the Worlds in Australia, where he will be the favorite as in Quebec, has revived him.
“It’s my first time here, so I don’t have any experience on these courses,” said the green monster. But I watched those races two or three times at home. They suit me really well, especially here in Quebec where I can do well in a sprint like that. »
His recipe for Old Quebec? “The most likely is that it will end in a reduced sprint. More often than not, a guy who dares to wait as long as possible and has the best kick in the final wins the race. »
Even if he got off to a good start (hello, Ronald King), Pogačar certainly won’t be able to wait until the final wrap to win in Quebec.
Describing his motivation as “fairly high”, the representative of UAE expects to find a circuit similar to that of the Wollongong Worlds on September 25.
“It’s my first time in Canada,” he said. They are very interesting circuits, which I like because we hardly ever do that. I can’t wait to test myself here. It suits the classic type riders more, but if I have a good day I can have a solid run here too. »
A little aside, Serge Arsenault, founder of the GPCQM who passed the baton to his son Sébastien, rubbed his hands.