Tadej Pogacar and Jonas Vingegaard are clearly in the eye of the storm in Cycling. The two superstars of the peloton are suspected by many fans of doping, even though their results are quite exceptional. Notably those of Pogacar, who had a simply monstrous 2024 season with 25 successes and triumphs in the Giro, the Tour de France and even the World Championships. The Slovenian left only crumbs to his opponents throughout the season, notably managing to get the better of Vingegaard during the Tour de France.
But the Dane, even if he did not win the Grande Boucle for the third year in a row, impressed given that he managed to be second after having a serious fall in the Tour of the Basque Country at the beginning of April. And inevitably, fans are skeptical about the results of the two stars of the peloton. But Greg LeMond, three-time winner of the Tour de France (1986, 1989, 1990), spoke on the subject and made a major request of the two riders. Very attentive to the developments of the runners and the watts, LeMond had important words. For a 40-minute interview with Rouleur, the American gave his opinion on the current runners, in particular their weight and their performances.
LeMond summons Pogacar and Vingegaard to publish their results
“The fundamental thing is that today's riders, forced by the teams, emphasize weight. The power-to-weight ratio has always been there, but you see some of the riders, they don't look like not the same species of humans as when I was riding. I think the average weight of a peloton is three or four kilos lighter. I read that runners took sleeping pills just to overcome hunger… There is enormous pressure on weight. For me, that explains the overall average speed increasing. If you look at Vingegaard and Pogacar, I think it's not unthinkable to do what they're doing. Look at Merckx and Bernard Hinault. I think once in a generation there are one or two riders who have more talent. Pogacar is a monster, he won his first Tour. best cyclist of all times. Publish your data I would love for the UCI to say: OK, it is mandatory twice a year to release your VO2 max and measure your hematocrit. [avec] a blood test', and if you have a VO2 max of 83 and your hematocrit is quite low, you cannot do [ces exploits]. It's easy to have transparency”, confided the former three-time winner of the Grande Boucle. Will he be listened to by the two stars of the peloton? Nothing is less certain…
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To summarize
Tadej Pogacar and Jonas Vingegaard are clearly in the eye of the storm in cycling. The two superstars of the peloton are suspected by many fans of doping, even though their results are quite exceptional.
France
Cycling
