Egan Bernal - "We don't know yet whether to do the Tour de France"

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Egan Bernal - "We don't know yet whether to do the Tour de France"
Egan Bernal (Ineos Grenadiers) is not yet fully sure if he will do the Tour de France this summer, but if he will participate, he confirmed whether an overall classification bid is possible.

The Colombians are currently competing in the Tour de Switzerland, the same race he won in 2019 that he won in the Tour de France. It's down to you to join in. He previously raced the Tour de Romandi, in South America for 1 month before returning home.

Following a life-threatening crash in early 2022 and a return to the race, Bernal's overall condition has been steadily improving, reaching 3rd place in Volta, Catalonia, on May 3 this year, earning his first world Tour podium since his comeback.

Now back for more races in Europe and talking with Lequipe, Bernal is not yet sure if he will be part of the Ineos Grenadiers line-up of the tour If he does, he is keen to see if the overall classification is a realistic possibility, but the idea that it was erased very quickly. We are aware that this may be the case.

"Depending on whether you go or not, if you go on a tour, you want to go overall and finish as high as possible in the rankings. But if you lose 2 or 3 minutes in the first 5 or 6 stages, you readjust the goal," he said.

His goal at the Tour de Switzerland "is to give the maximum for the result and at the same time keep in mind that the main objective is to reach the start of the tour in the best possible form," he said.

As for his top results in Catalonia and elsewhere this spring, he concluded, "It is all over the results of a lot of hard work." I am very happy to see me back to a high level after everything that has happened to me. It helps me stay calm."

None of the absolute standout GC candidates from May 7 have participated in this year's Tour de Switzerland, but the lineup is still strong. Former Tour de France podium finishers Adam Yates (UAE Team Emirates) and Richard Karapas (EF Education-EasyPost) are racing alongside Bernal alongside Enric Mas (Movistar) and former Tour de Switzerland winner Louis (EF Education-EasyPost). Many of the current Peloton's young guns also include Renee Martinez (Groupama-FDJ), Joao Almeida and Isaac del Toro (both UAE team Emirates), defending champion Mattias Skjelmose (Lidl-Trek), Austrian climber Felix Gall (Decathlon-AG2R La), and many others. Mondiale), Visma-Reese Bike's Cian Uijtdebroeks and Bernal's teammate Tom Pidcock will be present for Sunday's opening prologue at Vaduz.

After the Tour de Romandi, he was ranked 10th overall, but Bernal returned to Switzerland for the next race. Between 2 guys, he told Lequipe that after spending almost 1 week off the bike first, he started training for more than 1 month and switched volumes and certain efforts as part of the late-season build-up.

"They are basic, but you have to do them well. Sometimes we overthink things, but it's pretty simple to cycle through. It's mainly about whether you train well, eat well, rest and sleep. If your body is in good shape, the shape comes naturally.”

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