A week of questions

February 22 ^nd 2021 - 11:44

People often treat the classification of the Dauphiné as if it were some kind of oracle, but as a method for telling the future it is only marginally better than reading palms or tea leaves. Sure, there is something to be gleaned from the Dauphiné, as well as odd coincidences, such as the one that should have alerted Primož Roglič to the dangers of the penultimate stage… where he crashed on the road to Megève in August and was then stripped of the yellow jersey in the Tour de France a few weeks later. Dramatic turnarounds and twists of fate are unpredictable by definition, but the programme of the 73rd edition has all the ingredients for a thrilling war of attrition at the end of which a weekend in the mountains will decide who takes the spoils. The classic format with eight days of racing will give a short window of opportunity to sprinters who can survive deceivingly flat stages. Meanwhile, the stage on Wednesday will again be a time trial, although the gaps between Firminy and Roche-la-Molière should be small. This balance will force the stars of the peloton to take the initiative in an Alpine trilogy featuring summit finishes in Le Sappey-en-Chartreuse, la Plagne and Les Gets, which will wrap up the mountain duels initiated on the ascents to the Col de Porte, Cormet de Roselend and Col de Joux Plane… thinking of the Tour, but with the mind set on the task at hand.