<\/p>\n
Vasseur acknowledged that the team fell short of
\nexpectations despite strong performances earlier in the season. “We saw
\nhim perform very well in the Dauphin\u00e9, but he probably peaked at the wrong
\ntime,” he said of Emanuel Buchmann, their top finisher in 30th overall.
\n“We saw him start the Tour de France looking very thin. We’re going to do
\nmedical tests to see if he’s injured anything. His level in the Dauphin\u00e9 was
\nwell above that of the Tour.”<\/p>\n
Vasseur stood by his roster, even in the face of
\nunderperformance. “We have riders of a very high level, who have won the
\nTour in the past, and guys who should have performed better. Perhaps they
\narrived at the Tour tired… We weren’t at our best, we’re disappointed, but on
\npaper, we had the best team.”<\/p>\n
He pointed to modest successes outside the Tour as a sign
\nthe team isn\u2019t broken, just outclassed at the sport\u2019s highest level.
\n“Oliver Knight won the second stage of the Tour de Wallonie, Jes\u00fas Herrada
\nfinished second in Spain, so you could say… But there’s such a huge
\ndifference in level between the Tour de France and other races… We deployed
\nthe most experienced team here, and it didn’t work.”<\/p>\n
Whilst these results outside of the Tour are positive,
\nnothing compares in terms of priority with the Tour. It has now been two years
\nsince Ion Izagirre won stage 12 of the 2023 Tour, the teams last victory at the
\nTour de France.<\/p>\n
Looking for answers, Vasseur hinted at deeper changes ahead.
\n“We’ll have to look at how other teams are preparing for the Tour de
\nFrance. Is there work to be done in terms of nutrition? Are technological
\ndevelopments possible, particularly in aerodynamics?” He reflected on how
\nracing has evolved beyond what Cofidis brought to the line. “We see that
\nriders hardly need to take a break during a stage… A new kind of cycling is
\nemerging, and that only leaves room for those who truly perform at the highest
\nlevel.”<\/p>\n
The presence of Pogacar, who claimed another Tour title, set
\nthe bar impossibly high. “When Pogacar and his team are at the start of a
\nrace, it’s almost impossible for us to compete. He’s extremely fast; he’s never
\nbeen that fast in a Tour de France. When I was a rider, we needed a break every
\nnow and then. Now there was never a moment of rest,” Vasseur said.<\/p>\n
Despite all of it, he\u2019s not throwing in the towel.
\n“There will be a strong desire for revenge. The team is ready to fight all
\nthe way to Guangxi.”<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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