Le Tour de France: My Overall Conclusions

Well, the Tour is over for another year and once again the cream rose to the top.  Chris Froome won the GC battle with room to spare, a winning margin of over 4mins between himself and his nearest rival who came in the somewhat unexpected shape of French rider, Roman Bardet (AG2R Mondiale).  If Froome had been widely tipped to win his 3rd Tour prior to it's onset, then Bardet would have been equally unfancied to have been standing next to him on the podium in Paris!  Bardet had been rumoured to have been on the verge of hitting the 'big-time' for a few years now, but few would have predicted (before the Tour started) that he would finish ahead of all the other big names in the field, men like Quintana, Valverde, Porte and Aru, who many (me included) thought would be pushing Froome to ever greater heights in his pursuit of his 3rd Tour victory.  In the end all of the expected challengers fell by the wayside, either unwilling or unable to take the battle to Froome and his relentless Team Sky teammates, leaving the way clear for newcomers like Bardet and Adam Yates (Orica BikeExchange) to leave their stamp on the race.

Chris Froome & the unstoppable Team Sky train reach Paris

If Adam Yates was the new sensation of the Tour, then Bardet was surely the. man who came of age.  His amazing stage win in last years Tour had singled him out as (potentially) the next French Grand Tour challenger, but after so many years of waiting and so many disappointments and nearly men, perhaps we all expected that Bardet, like Rolland, Pinot, Jalabert and Virenque before him (the list goes on), would not fulfil his promise.  But we were wrong.  Unlike the many French nearly men of recent times, Bardet seems to have mastered the ability to ride consistently well.  His improvement has been gradual and regular (e.g. in the Criterium du Dauphine - the big pre-Tour event, won in each of his 3 Tour winning years by Froome - Bardet has finished 12th in 2013; 5th in 2014; 6th in 2015 and 2nd this year) exhibiting much more consistency than that of other French riders who can be brilliant on their day, but then lack the resilience to back it up with a consolidating ride the day after, and the day after that, as is needed if one is to make ones mark on a Grand Tour these days.  Even bad days have to be mastered and losses minimised (as Froome has shown so brilliantly in each of his wins) if one is to come out on top.  A bad day might mean digging deep and limiting ones losses to a couple of minutes, and no more, and Bardet seems to have got this straight in his head and does not leave so much of himself out on the course on one day so that on the next he cannot keep up his challenge.

So whilst not many would have expected Bardet to have finished the 2016 in 2nd place, it wasn't entirely a shock result either.  As to whether he can mount a more serious challenge to Froome next year we will have to wait and see.  With all due respect, I have to say that if it his his aim to win the Tour (and why wouldn't it be?) then remaining at AG2R is perhaps a no-no!

Froome and Team Sky have moved the sport on in the last few years, revolutionising the way things are done in terms of preparation, tactics, planning and professionalism, facts that are beginning to be acknowledged and taken note of within the peleton and team management of their rivals.  Sure Sky have the largest budget, but it's more than that; it's about getting things done in the correct way.  It's about eating right, warming down properly after a long day in the saddle, surveying routes (all of them) and riding them beforehand so there are no surprises en route, and it's about being single-minded in the pursuit of the team's goals (whatever they may be) and making sure everyone in the team (from dietitians, therapist, domestiques and team leaders) is on the same page, working towards the same ends with same dedication and drive as the man who will eventually gain most of the plaudits, and these things are not about money, they are about how much you want it and how much everyone about you wants it.  And perhaps AG2R are still stuck in the glory days of Hinault and all that heady French success to be able to push Bardet to surmount that final step.

I think to mount a serious challenge to Froome, Bardet will have to move to a bigger team, one that is also on an upward trend like himself, and who is looking to emulate Team Sky, but in their own way, by making their own mark.  The more established teams I think will struggle to make the necessary changes in a quick and efficient manner, just because they have been in the mire for longer, and so I believe Bardet should look to one of the newer teams (like Orica or even a Team DiData) who are perhaps a bit more open to shaking things up in order that he can take that next step and give the French what they have waited so long for, a French grand tour winner.

As for Adam Yates, he rode a truly remarkable Tour and, as a fellow Brit, I have to hope that it is not a flash in the pan and we have another British grand tour contender in the making.  I love his attitude; the way he took it all his stride with dignity, a smile and that steely determination that only a few possess.  I do believe that Adam, and perhaps his brother Simon too, will go onto win grand tours because, like Bardet, his rise has been steady, consistent and constantly on an up, and at the age of 23 one has to think there is much, much more to come since most tour winners don't start to reach their physical peaks until their mid- to late 20's.  If he can stay (relatively) injury free, keep progressing and maintain the positive outlook then I have every hope that he will go on to make his mark like Wiggins and Froome before him, as British tour winners.

Other 2016 Tour successes are undoubtedly Peter Sagan, Mark Cavendish, Tom Dumoulin, Greg van Avermaet, Jarlinson Pantano and Thomas de Gendt, whilst my big Tour disappointments are Nairo Quintana, Fabio Aru and Thibaut Pinot.

Sagan was unstoppable in so many ways; 3 stage wins, his 5th green jersey, his 1st yellow jersey, countless breakaways and relentless domestique on occasions, he is arguably the most complete cyclist of his (and perhaps any) generation and deserves all the plaudits he receives.  Cav came storming back to take a truly amazing 4 stage wins taking him to 2nd on the all time list of Tour stage winners, confirming himself as the top sprinter in this years race and letting everyone, me included, know that he is far from finished.

Tom Dumoulin, with 2 stage wins including the first long TT, once again singled himself out as the man to beat in any TT (now that Tony Martin and Fabian have had their days) as well as in any one off races, be they a classic or otherwise.  As to whether he can convert himself into a grand tour contender we still don't know, but nevertheless he is an exciting and unpredictable rider who adds a great deal to any race.

van Avermaet (BMC) I have included not only because of his stage victory (S5) but because of the fight and panache he showed to keep the yellow jersey once he'd got hold of it!  Jarlinson Pantano and Thomas de Gendt were both unbelievably aggressive riders throughout, both winning stages and, like Sagan, appearing in countless breakaways demonstrating breathtaking resilience and fight whenever challenged.  In this regard Julien Alaphilippe also deserves an honourable mention but didn't quite manage to get himself that all important stage win.

And finally there was Quintana, Aru and Pinot, all of whom had specifically targeted this years Tour as the race for them, and all of whom, for whatever reason, were found wanting.  In the end there are no excuses and none of them performed to their best on any single occasion and as such, left the door open for others to lead the challenge to Froome's dominance.  Maybe next year guys.....!

Overall, it was a great Tour de France, if not in terms of the yellow jersey race, which to be honest Froome never looked losing once he got hold of it, but in the quality and excitement of each of the days racing which seems to become of a higher quality each passing year!  In 2017 can Froome come back to do it again?  Well, you wouldn't bet your house on him not doing it!  He now heads off to Rio and then to the Vuelta (where incidentally he'll be racing quite close by to me for a couple of days....can't wait!) at the end of August and one wouldn't get long odds on him winning both of those either!  But it's already been a long season for Froomey and the Vuelta, like before, might prove to be a step too far!

But here's hoping.....!  Come on Froomey!!