Mattéo Vercher was crying uncontrollably. Hordes of individuals, everybody with a digicam, circled round him. His again was pressed towards the fencing, his toes dangled on the street, and his fingers lined his face. The tears continued to fall.
The 23-year-old TotalEnergies rider had simply completed second to Victor Campenaerts on stage 18 of the Tour de France, his first ever look within the race. In 2022 he was a membership bicycle owner, however right here he was now, only a few hundred centimetres from successful a stage on the earth’s greatest bike race. Two bike lengths away from a win he would have dined out on for the remainder of his life.
“I’m sorry,” he sobbed to his teammates, his fingers wiping but extra tears away. “No! Don’t be sorry!” responded one among his colleagues. “Did you see what you probably did! Come on! It’ll be fantastic!” Vercher wasn’t listening; the tears persevered. “You could be proud,” declared one other teammate. “What you probably did is large. It’s monumental! Don’t fear, there might be others.”
However what if there aren’t different alternatives? What if that was it? Vercher rides for a second-tier ProTeam solely within the Tour on invitation. He, not like Tadej Pogačar, Jonas Vingegaard and the opposite large gamers, can’t relaxation simple figuring out that they’ll positively be again at future Excursions. Vercher, although clearly gifted and with age on his aspect, won’t be. So many bike riders race one Tour de France and by no means return. What if this was his one and solely likelihood to change into a stage winner within the Tour de France?
“A competitor needs to win so coming second is bound to suck,” Vercher mentioned as soon as the tears had been underneath management. “Afterwards, in case you have a look at the entire day, it’s an incredible consequence. In two to 3 hours, tomorrow, I’ll be comfortable, however now coming second sucks.”
That Vercher, unbeknown to a lot of the public earlier than the day, was even in rivalry for the win in Barcelonnette was a shock provided that he crashed within the day’s impartial zone. “I stupidly hit a barrier,” he mentioned, “however hey, nothing too critical, only a rip in my bib shorts.”
He was one among 4 TotalEnergies within the massive breakaway, probably the most represented crew on the lookout for their second win of the race after Anthony Turgis’s victory on the stage 9 gravel. In direction of the top of the day, Vercher discovered himself off the entrance with Campenaerts and Ineos Grenadiers’s Michał Kwiatkowski, and inside the ultimate kilometre, with it sure that one of many trio could be victorious, Vercher tried an audacious assault.
“After the flamme rouge we performed the sport and what occurred, occurred,” he mirrored. “I attacked as a result of they left me a spot however I didn’t essentially wish to. I took the chance and that’s it.” Campeanaerts prevailed, seven months of particular preparation only for this stage rewarded how he had hoped, however for Vercher it was second finest, first loser. “That’s how it’s, that’s the sport,” he sighed.
