So far from the Tour: New generation no longer deceives

The 2019 Tour de France in Cycling resulted in a less spectacular and competitive race than would be expected at some point due to a series of conditions, but everything indicates that in 2020 the range of potential winners will be absolutely extraordinary.

So far from the Tour: New generation no longer deceives

With the victory of Egan Bernal in the Tour de France in 2019 it became very evident that there are no limits on cycling and any gifted young man can quickly get into the discussion of the most demanding events in world cycling.

The Colombian cyclist was an example of consistency throughout the season – except for a fall that prevented him from being in the Tour of Italy – and there is no way to discredit him among the strongest, something that originates his current favoritism to defend the title in 2020 with odds of 3.00.

But will there be new cyclists in the international squad in a position to meddle in the discussion of the three-week races and, especially, the Tour?

Yes, the young Tadej Pogacar from Team Emirates shone in the Tour of Spain when he finished in 3rd place in the General Classification just behind the winner Primoz Roglic and the veteran Alejandro Valverde.

The Slovenian cyclist, only 21 years old, will tend to be his team’s bet on the Tour 2020, but comes up with odds of 27.00 in bookmakers to climb to the top of the table in his debut year.

So what about Richard Carapaz? Well, Team Ineos currently has four world-class cyclists ready to discuss three-week tests, which of course should result in some of them not participating in the Tour.

The Ecuadorian winner of the Giro de Itália should try to defend his trophy in Italy in early 2020, but will he be called for the Tour?

Everything will depend on the contingencies at the time of the selections, but for now it is odds at 25.00 to shine also on Gallic soil.

Team Ineos veterans don’t want to fail

When it comes to favorites to win this type of event there is a name that stands out above all others: Chris Froome is a multiple winner of the Tour de France who has nothing to prove to the competition.

Unfortunately, a serious crash before the Tour prevented him from pursuing another victory in 2019, after failing in 2018 with his teammate Geraint Thomas being stronger.

In fact, we have seen a curious fact in the last two editions of the race: two years ago, Thomas overcame his colleague Froome and last year Bernal overcame his colleague Thomas, that is, even though he continued to win the race, Team Ineos there has been a new cyclist asserting himself and hitting his own colleague every year.

Thus, we have a curious phenomenon that Team Ineos will be able to line up on the next Tour with three Tour de France winners – all of them with ambitions to win the race – but it will be reconcilable, or too risky as it may withdraw the workforce and confuse the strategies of team? We will see how Nicolas Portal – team director – will deal with this.

For now, and in addition to Bernal, Chris Froome (3.80) and Geraint Thomas (7.00) also top the list of favorites for the final victory of the Tour in 2020.

The power of Jumbo Vysma

The Dutch formation of Jumbo Vysma is clearly an emerging force in the international squad, having registered podiums in the Tour of Italy and Tour of France this year, in addition to the final victory in the Tour of Spain.

Primoz Roglic (9.00) is the big star of the team and after a dream season it is strange to see him negotiate as the 6th favorite for the final victory.

But his team also has Steven Kruijswijk (25.00) – 3rd in Tour 2019 – and Tom Dumoulin (7.00) – who left Sunweb for Jumbo Vysma – in an attempt to take a step forward in his evolution as a three-week rider.

Pinot time scaring away ghosts

Halfway through this year’s Tour de France, Thibaut Pinot was one of the big favorites to win the competition, as he was in great shape and didn’t seem to have a rival on the high mountain.

Unfortunately, bad luck knocked on the door of the great hope of French cycling, and a simple movement to avoid a fall ended up causing a blow to a knee that generated an insanable inflammation.

The abandonment of Pinot in the middle of the mountain was a real heartbreak for lovers of the sport and certainly that the French cyclist will have immense supporters in the next edition of the competition.

If you regain the 2019 form moment, then Pinot may have a say in 2020. Right now, odds 6.00 as the third favorite for the final win.