Former world time trial champion Tom Dumoulin has stated that Jonas Vingegaard‘s stage 16-winning trip on the Tour de France was “the most effective time trial ever.”
The Dutch ex-pro, a time trial specialist and 2017 Giro d’Italia winner, made the feedback on Tuesday night following Vingegaard’s dominant show within the 22.4km time trial to Combloux.
Vingegaard put a large 1:38 into his rival for the yellow jersey, Tadej Pogačar, and a pair of:51 into his Jumbo-Visma teammate, third-placed Wout van Aert, with a trip that might all however safe a second Tour de France title.
He now leads the race by 1:48 for Pogačar, together with his ex-teammate Dumoulin saying “no-one may have imagined” such a dominant trip.
“We witnessed the most effective time trial ever in biking,” Dumoulin stated on Sporza‘s night TV present Vive le Vélo. “Initially, due to the lead that Vingegaard takes over the remainder. However I additionally watched his descent and his flat components and that was actual time trial porn. It was unbelievable to see.
“He took a whole lot of time uphill – his energy should have been extremely excessive. But additionally, his descents and his cornering have been simply elegant.
“The time trial is after all a totally totally different self-discipline than what we’ve got seen prior to now two weeks. Loopy issues usually occur there. However no-one may have imagined that it could be a hammer blow of greater than a minute and a half. Not Vingegaard, and in addition not Pogačar. Everybody was amazed.”
Dumoulin had loads of reward of Vingegaard, who blew the competitors away en route to what’s solely his second profession time trial victory. The Dane later admitted that he was “shocked” by how effectively he rode, noting that “at one level I even doubted my energy meter.”
He rode the whole time trial, together with the 9.4% Côte de Domancy and uphill run to the road, on his time trial bike. Pogačar, in the meantime, opted to change to a street bike for the climb. His UAE Group Emirates crew have defended the choice, although Dumoulin had important phrases for each the swap and Pogačar’s efficiency.
“I did not suppose that he rode nice,” Dumoulin stated. “It wasn’t like La Planche des Belles Filles in 2020. Then he had the next pedalling frequency. Now he rode a bit heavier.
“I additionally discovered the selection to alter bikes very questionable. You interrupt your rhythm. It’s possible you’ll be careworn for kilometres beforehand, and the mechanic too. If it was an actual climb like La Planche des Belles Filles, then after all it might be executed. However right now it turned out to not be the fitting alternative for the riders who switched.
“We do not know his motivation for switching bikes. Possibly he had a bodily drawback that made him uncomfortable on the time trial bike?”
Dumoulin, who rode for Jumbo-Visma from 2020 up till his retirement final season, praised his former squad as “the most effective crew on the planet” whereas saying that Pogačar’s UAE Group Emirates squad is “just a bit much less near that perfection.”
He maintained, nevertheless, that regardless of the potential variations in organisation, the results of the time trial was primarily all the way down to Vingegaard’s power.
“Proper now, Jumbo-Visma is the most effective crew on the planet in all the things,” he stated. “They do all the things so structured and put together all the things so effectively, particularly on such a time trial day – Vingegaard and Van Aert’s bicycles are even made with out paint to be able to save 150 grams.
“I’ve the sensation that at UAE they’re just a bit much less near that perfection. All added up, that makes a distinction. However to be clear, not a minute and a half. These have been primarily Vingegaard’s legs.”
