Valentin Madouas is competing this year in his third Tour de France with Groupama-FDJ, in the service of its leader David Gaudu, currently fifth in the general classification, and alongside the experienced Thibault Pinot. He tells us about the race seen from inside the peloton, its good and its bad moments, in weekly road diaries. This fourth episode could have been “collector’s”: Valentin came very close to a superb victory, only beaten by the Canadian Hugo Houle, solo winner in Foix of the first stage of the Pyrenees. He also evokes one of the topics of the moment: the heat on the Tour, and on France.
So near, so far
I am both proud and disappointed with my 2nd place in Foix. It’s my best result in the Tour de France and yet I wasn’t having a great day. I suffered a lot on the penultimate pass, the Port de Lers, I felt better afterwards. The plan for the day was to slip into the breakaway to serve as a support for David Gaudu later, give him a hand if necessary. Finally, the gap was so big with the yellow jersey group that I found myself in the game for the win.
It was exciting to play my personal card and I’m happy to finish ahead of a bunch of good riders, ahead of all my breakaway companions, except one: Hugo Houle. We can redo the film, but it was a little stronger today. It’s a bit of a weird feeling: I have no regrets and at the same time I have the feeling of having come very close to something big. We also feel the French public pushing behind us, we know that people have been frustrated by this shortage since the start (editor’s note: no French victory).
With the team too, we collect places of honor but we don’t give up, we tell ourselves that we are getting closer to victory. It’s still possible to finish the Tour de France, with a stage and a Top 5 for David Gaudu in the general classification. And I sign immediately for a review like that!
David Gaudu, tough among the tough
David plays in the big leagues in the mountains. It’s true that he often lags behind when the best accelerate: he needs to breathe for a little while, then he comes back to his rhythm by overtaking all the riders who are exploding. For me, his strategy is good. At the finish, hot, he can say that he has regrets, that he could have done differently, tried to stay in contact longer, but on the Tour de France, it’s better to lose 15 or 20 seconds from time to time, than going beyond your limits, clinging on at all costs: there, you risk collapsing and losing everything all at once.
I don’t think it’s a confidence problem, in any case we believe in him and he feels it. His climbs to the Granon (editor’s note: 5th, ahead of Tadej Pogaçar) and in Mende (editor’s note: 3rd in the group of favorites behind Pogaçar and the yellow jersey Jonas Vingegaard) will serve as a trigger. He is still in the nails for the podium objective – Top 5, and we will find less scorching temperatures, conditions he prefers.
heat stroke
The Tour de France is always hard: the speeds are very high, the tension is high. This year, the heat factor raises the “difficulty” slider by a notch. Well, okay, we’re doing fine without the rain. I still remember the stage towards Tignes, last year, under downpours. I don’t know which is preferable, in any case everyone is very tired. In the peloton, it’s a topic of discussion. For many, in these conditions, the race takes second place, we try above all to “survive” the stage, to drink well, to remain lucid.
There have been a lot of falls in recent days, even the yellow jersey fell on the road to Carcassonne, and for me, it’s linked to that. It was very very hot before the rest day, too hot to ride? The question arises: we should discuss it calmly, off-season and find solutions. Adapt race times, for example, it’s a track. It is not obvious compared to the television broadcast, We can also think of shortening the steps. There too, that can pose certain problems, if you pass through fewer cities, in any case, there are undoubtedly solutions for the safety of the runners.
We are also talking among ourselves about the more global consequences of this heat wave. We see the images of the fires. It even burns at home, in Brittany, that is to say… Even if we try to stay focused on the race, it’s difficult to remain insensitive. Our generation is fully aware of the problem. Since the start of this Tour de France, the race has been disrupted twice by climate protesters. I am divided on their action. Of course, the subject is important, they are right to draw light to this cause. On the other hand, the Tour de France is a race, a sporting event, and if we start to accept this type of demonstration, it can quickly become anything.
Foix, Valentin Madouas