Slovenian Tadej Pogaçar won for the third consecutive time this Saturday, October 7, in Bergamo, Italy, the Tour of Lombardy, the last great cycling classic of the season. It was also the last career race of one of the former winners of this “monument”, the most beloved French cyclist of recent years: Thibaut Pinot. At 33, this singular, endearing champion, with a rich and battered career, is already putting his bike away. A heartbreak for his supporters, who came in large numbers to gather 3 km from the finish to reform the “Pinot turn”, already put in place during the last Tour de France.
We had never seen the Via della Boccola in such a state. For a day, this little street on the heights of Bergamo becomes the Curva Pinot.
A turn like an open-air football stadium, smoke bombs, megaphones and PSG chants diverted to the glory of Thibault Pinot. The initiative goes to the CUP, the Ultras Pinot collective.
Rémi is one of its co-founders: “ We organized this mainly on the networks, we also encouraged exchanges, for carpooling, the train etc., we have two people who come from Copenhagen. There is one who comes by plane and one who comes by car. Sixteen hours by car to come. Thirty-two hours round trip. »
► French runner Thibaut Pinot
From all over France and elsewhere. There are 600,700 of them, perhaps more present, to see the last pedal strokes of their Thibault. So close, and yet so lonely. Romantic antihero, runner of instinct, panache, brilliant and unlucky… More than a cyclist ultimately, a machine of strong emotions for Bastien and his friends.
“ Nine hours on the road was hell. I did it for Thibaut, he’s someone who gives us emotions. He leaves something great, the memories are incredible »
The hour passes, the voices are exhausted, several runners have already passed when suddenly a noise and chaos.
The turn literally closes on Thibaut Pinot, engulfed, overwhelmed with love. A crowd bath in the middle of the race, never seen before. Madness still after the finish, in front of the Groupama FDJ team bus. A farewell ceremony is improvised.
With the very emotional megaphone of the very young retiree:“I am not the world champion, but in any case, I am the world champion of the supporters. I don’t know if I deserve this. Thank you and I’ll see you next year “.
Pinot, a simple spectator, he will have to get used to it, and he will have to manage the aftermath. A future with probably fewer bikes, more farms and lots of projects. Marie-Jeanne, the mother: “ He has planned greenhouses, he is going to do market gardening. He is going to learn how to make honey, certainly his jams, because he has taken lots of fruit trees. He wants to do guest rooms, he will be very busy. »
Thibaut Pinot will also be busy in the coming days with the latest media requests, before taking the train back to his Vosges on Friday. The freedom train, as he says.