Thibaut Pinot is today to be where he wants to be — in his vegetable garden with his goats running around, far from the chaos of the Tour de France, a race he never loved even if he came close to winning it.
On Saturday’s penultimate stage, Jonas Vingegaard virtually clinched his second successive title, but huge crowds turned out to greet local hero Pinot, who was cheered up every mountain as he finished seventh on the day.
The 33-year-old is to call it quits in October after the Giro di Lombardia, a Monument classic he won in 2018, a year before he came agonizingly close to becoming the first Frenchman to prevail on the world’s biggest cycling race since 1985.
Photo: Reuters
In 2019, the Groupama-FDJ rider, who spent his whole career with the French team, was the strongest of the field, but was forced to quit a day before the last competitive stage with a thigh injury, leaving the race, and a country, in tears.
In 2020, his hopes were dashed after a crash in the first stage.
“We know that 2018, 2019 was the climax of my career. I would have liked to know where it could have taken me without that crash in 2020, but we’ll never know,” Pinot said.
The Tour has always been an event too big for a man who finds his peace at home, where he goes fishing, grows his vegetables and takes care of his goats, far from the constant din that goes with the race.
“I think I’ve seen it all and I’m happy like this. I’ve been preparing for it for a while. Mentally, I’m ready to quit and no victory could make me change my mind,” said Pinot, who has “Solo la vittoria e bella” (Only victory is beautiful) on his arm.
“I’m far from being the best and yet, I’m the one who gets the most support on the side of the road. I’m not embarrassed by it, but sometimes foreigners must be wondering why that is,” he said.
On Saturday, Pinot was on the attack in the Vosges mountains where he trains, leading the race until the last climb after being cheered on fans who had come from all over the country to support him one final time.
In a spine-chilling moment, Pinot was alone in front in the penultimate climb, the Petit Ballon. Thousands of fans waving flares and flags respectfully left the whole road for their favorite with former teammate Arthur Vichot leading the soccer-like chants.
“I was looking for my family. I saw some faces I knew. I never thought it would be so emotional. I did not think it would be so strong,” a teary-eyed Pinot said.
“A page of my story ends tonight,” he said.
Additional reporting by AFP
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