“There is no respect” – Egan Bernal criticises riders who attack while Tadej Pogacar takes a nature break during the 2024 Tour de France

“The truth is that in 2021, after COVID, things changed. Let’s say that from 2021 until now it hasn’t changed much, and from 2019 it has changed quite a bit,” continues the 27-year-old Colombian, who is not entirely convinced that the change has been a change for the better for the riders within the peloton.

Tadej Pogacar has been the leading figure in the first week of the 2024 Tour de France, although unlike the Giro d’Italia earlier this year, the UAE Team Emirates leader has not yet been able to completely suppress the spirit of his main rivals. “Apart from the legs, you have to wait for the right moment. I think no one is invincible and that has already been proven. Jonas Vingegaard has beaten him and beaten him very well,” Bernal estimates. “I think Vingegaard is a rider who can do very well, he waits for his moment, he doesn’t get carried away. And sometimes it’s better to have a bit of patience than just put on a show. It’s good for cycling, but to win you also have to ride with a cool head,” concludes the INEOS Grenadiers rider.