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Technological advances and artificial intelligence, all the abundance that moves science in our days, are never enough to subdue the only force of nature that resists ungovernable: time, climate, ambient temperature… The wise men program of the Tour, directors, trainers and technicians, a long change in the premiere of the race depending on the forecasts. It rains in Copenhagen and more water is expected around six or seven in the evening according to predictions, when the 13-kilometre time trial through the streets of the center of the Danish capital closes. The chrono is disputed in reverse: the figures go out at the beginning to avoid the downpour. But time is capricious, uncontrollable.
It doesn’t rain on the final stretch. The stars have eaten the water, and those who start at the end, with the track dry, take advantage of the 22 curves of the track. Wout van Aert, the Belgian prodigy, a high-end 4×4 capable of winning stages of the 2021 Tour in the mountains, the time trial and the sprint, savors the first yellow jersey with an imposing sequence of surnames behind him: Pogacar, Ganna, Van der Poel, Vingegaard, Roglic. All in eleven seconds, nothing. But the victory goes to one of the gregarious who comes out at the end, Yves Lampaert. Total surprise. Enric Mas, the Spaniard for the general, loses a lot, 48 seconds with Pogacar.
Wout van Aert is a happy guy in the electric chair who credits the winner of the time trials. He sits flushed with exertion after removing his Red Bull-sponsored helmet, the only one in the peloton, which looks more than just his Jumbo team sponsor. He is full on the seat, none of the Tour stars have bettered his time.
Although he shines with his own brilliance as the star he is, Van Aert appears in the Jumbo as the third last name on the list of priorities. Roglic and Vingegaard, who are almost equal in the time trial, aspire to win the Tour of Pogacar using tactical intelligence. Van Aert risks like a Cossack on every corneron each zebra crossing white paint that slides like a skating rink.
There is no longer a classic dominator, a unique reference, such as Fabian Cancellara, winner of five time trial prologues in the period from 2004 to 2012. ‘Spartacus’ was the compendium of today’s great specialists: Van der Poel, who does not seem to the way of always; Pogacar, who gives the level in the time trial; Roglic, always reliable…
The time trial is a gallery of models and technology. Specialized presents a revolutionary looking helmet. A black panty-sock holds the helmet by the cyclist’s chin, covering the ears, neck and chin. A novelty that is included in the list of marginal gains essential to win, so celebrated by Ineos (former Sky), governor of the Tour from 2012 to 2019. “You can win 26 seconds in 40 kilometers,” says one of its managers in Eurosport’s microphone.
However, the owner of the fastest time is a cyclist wearing an old helmet from the same North American brand, Ives Lampaert. Belgian runner on the way to veteran status, 31 years old, whose lucidity in the time trial is reflected in a couple of championships in his country and in the Tour de Suisse. He is a specialist on the cobblestone floor, with good classifications in the Paris-Roubaix and the Tour of Flanders, but without the apparent hegemony to prevail over the stellar list that preceded him in the classification table.
Enric Mas proceeds with caution, as is his character and that of his team. For no reason would they have spoiled the Tour in a sodden turn. He does not risk in the center of Copenhagen and loses 48 seconds in 13 kilometers with Pogacar. Too much to start with. «He could not do more than ensure, unlike other riders who played the stage. The bike behind me has gone a couple of times, but I have not fallen. With the pedestrian crossings, the lines, the wear of the asphalt in a city… it was normal for it to be a dangerous time trial.
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