Aurélie Sacchelli, Media365, published on Thursday June 20, 2024 at 10:49 a.m.
In an interview with L’Equipe, French rider Rémi Cavagna talks about his difficult adaptation to his new team, Movistar, which he joined this winter after spending his entire career with Quick-Step.
It is a somewhat dejected Rémi Cavagna who confided in The team this Thursday, on the sidelines of the French championships in Saint-Martin-de-Landelles (Manche). The 28-year-old runner dreams of wearing a fourth rainbow jersey, but morale is not necessarily high. This winter, the Clermontois chose to leave his long-time team, Quick Step, where he arrived in 2017, to try the adventure at Movistar, where he is committed until 2026. And Rémi Cavagna admits that his adaptation is difficult. Starting with the language barrier. “I have progressed well in Spanish, I have taken lessons, I have invested myself and I understand almost everything but when I want to express myself a little, when I want to impose myself, I am limited, it It’s a bit crappy to fit in. The Spaniards are a bit together (18 riders out of the 30 on the team are Spanish-speaking, editor’s note), everything is in Spanish on the radio and it’s complicated during important moments in the race. I admit, it’s a bit vague.”
Cavagna still in the dark for the Tour
The French rider also regrets that his racing program has been turned upside down. “Obviously, there is a bit of disappointment because I was considering something else. After a month, we cannot change a runner’s program when we had not signed for that,” regrets- he. Rémi Cavagna has, in total, spent 36 days in competition this year, for no Top 10, and for best result in the time trial, his favorite exercise, a fifteenth place in the Tour of the Emirates. And the Tour de France in all this? Nine days before the Grand Départ, the Frenchman is still not sure he will be in Florence. “I recognized the Tour times, they are super nice, there are other great stages… And I know that a victory on the Tour can change a career. If I don’t do the Tour, it could be a real blow to me. But I don’t lose hope. Even though I haven’t been glorious this season, I feel like I’m gaining momentum and, in free-running, it only takes one step to change a season and go from red to green. I had changed teams to modify my program and I feel like I’m still at home (smiles). I hadn’t signed for that.” What if a French time trial champion title this Thursday afternoon came to restart the machine?
