On the occasion of the presentation of the special maillot made for the Grand Depart of the Tour de France 2026 from Barcelona, the deputy director of the Grand Boucle, Pierre-Yves Thouault, guest of the ATP tournament in the Catalan capital, granted an exclusive interview to Flashscore in which he outlined the next edition of the world's most important stage race.
His main focus is, of course, the rivalry between Tadej Pogacar and Jonas Vingegaard, destined once again to make the race unique. Space is also given to the difficult moment of Italian cycling, in search of new protagonists after the great tradition of the past, and a conclusion on the key stages of a route designed to be spectacular and hard-fought right from the first days until the end.
What does it mean to start the Tour de France from Barcelona?
'It is something very important. Barcelona is a great city, a European metropolis with a strong sporting culture. Hosting the start and finish of the first two stages of the Tour, with several passages on Montjuïc, is also highly symbolic because of the link with the Olympic Games'.
An increasingly global and transversal Tour...
'In the last 10 years cycling has changed a lot: today the Tour has a younger and younger audience. In France, the second largest TV audience is between 15 and 34 years old. This shows that there is a real generational renewal, and this is fundamental for us, also because the riders themselves are young and explosive.
Looking at the route, the feeling is that of a start with a bang...
"Pogacar, who has already won so much, will have his work cut out for him, also because Vingegaard has started the season very well. Already from the first stage, with the team time trial and the individual times on the finish at Montjuic, gaps will be created and we will immediately understand who the favourites are.
How important is it to have great duels like the one between Pogacar and Vingegaard?
"It is essential. Cycling, like sport in general, needs duels and uncertainty. When a rider dominates too much, it becomes less interesting. Today, however, we have great rivalries, not only between Pogacar and Vingegaard, but also with other young riders who are ready to join in. Pogacar remains very strong, but modern cycling shows that he can be beaten as we saw at Roubaix. And that is what makes the Tour so fascinating: the presence of real challenges.
Looking towards Italy, what does he see?
"Italy is a great cycling nation. It has had legendary champions like Coppi and Bartali, who wrote the history of the sport and, more recently, Vincenzo Nibali, an extraordinary rider.
It has been 12 years since his success at the Tour...
"Today Italy is in a phase of searching for new champions, a bit like what happened in France. We too have had riders like Alaphilippe, Pinot and Bardet, and now we see a new generation emerging with youngsters like Gregoire and Seixas. Italy is also in this same phase of building and searching for new talent.
The popularity of a sport depends on champions...
'Absolutely. They count so much. When you have great champions, you also have fans. Young people identify with the champions and that's how a sport grows. It's a bit like the phenomenon you are experiencing in tennis with Jannik Sinner: his impact is huge and he inspires a lot of young people.
Which stages of the next Tour should fans not miss?
"The course will be very spectacular and hard-fought from the start and right to the end. The start will be very punchy: in the second stage we will pass Montjuic three times, with very hard climbs, even at 18-20%.
"Together with Christian Prudhomme we have built a course that favours battle every day, with a different story to tell on each stage. The finish will be decisive: there will be iconic stages like Alpe d'Huez and the passages over Montmartre which will be tackled several times. The goal is to have an open race until the last weekend".
