Patrick Konrad - "I want to be a guy who is a role-model for young cyclists"

This week I spoke to young Austrian cyclist Patrick Konrad. You might not have heard of him yet but you'll be hearing a lot more of him in the next few years. Bora-Argon 18 have a wildcard for the Tour this year and Patrick wants to be with them in Utrecht. Looking at his form so far, it's hard to argue against him. We talk about his amateur career, racing on the Madeleine and the future of Austrian cycling.

Patrick's time trialling ability marks him out as
one to watch in the future.

BikeRouteHub: You're halfway through your first full season as a pro. The highlights so far have been 10th overall in the Tour of Oman and 13th overall in the Criterium International. How do you think the season as gone?
Patrick Konrad: The start of the season was quite good. I made a good start in Oman and the Criterium International and I feel really good and the winter training has been worthwhile. I'm really happy with the team and everything is working.

BRH: You've been riding for team mates a lot this season but you've also had your own chances. How happy have you been with your role at the team?
PK: I'm really happy. I can do my own thing because normally as a neo-pro you have to do a lot of work. But of course I have to ride for my team mates but when I am in shape and when I feel really strong and good then I get to take my own chances. I think I've had enough chances to show my talent.

BRH: You had an incredibly successful youth career coming 9th and 3rd in the Tour de l'Avenir and 10th in the U23 World Championships. How much confidence have you taken from those results?
PK: I was really happy with 10th in the World Championships. Straight afterwards I was pretty angry because I saw the chance to get a better result but that's how cycling works, there are 200 or 120 riders who all want to win, but I was pleased with the result. I also had a really good season last year with the Tour of Austria (4th overall) and winning my first stage race (The Oberösterreichrundfahrt) but now I'm really happy that I'm a pro and I get the chance to show my talent in a professional peloton and a professional team.

BRH: Can you tell us a bit about the Oberösterreichrundfahrt?
PK: It's a really hard race with a lot of climbing, which is normal for Austria, we have the mountains! It was a really really important race for my team for last season because it was the home race so it was really important to get a good result and the team told me they wanted to win it. When I did a good race in the Tour of Austria and then won there I could tell that I was in form and everything was working which was really really nice for me.

BRH: In the 2013 Tour l'Avenir you came 2nd on the stage to Stade Francois Longchamp on the Madeleine. I've ridden the Col du Madeleine and thought it was the hardest climb I've ever done, how did it rank for you?
PK: It is a really really long climb, I remember it well. One of the Yates brothers (Adam) was with me there. On the stage I felt really good and I saw that it was a really important day for the GC so I was happy to be second but unfortunately a Spanish guy (Ruben Fernandez) attacked and nobody really knew that he was so strong and we didn't catch him again. He attacked on the bottom of the climb and we couldn't catch him which was stupid. The climbs in France are really nice though and the Tour l'Avenir was my favourite race as an U23, I raced it three times and always got good results.

BRH: You said earlier in the season that you hoped to get a ride in the Tour de France, have you had this confirmed?

Konrad racing in the white jersey in the Tour of Oman

PK: I don't know yet. I had a rest for the whole of May to prepare for the rest of the season so we will see. They will tell me in the next two weeks who will go to the Tour de France. Everybody is in training camps and altitude camps and I spent the last few weeks there but now I have some races. This week I am going to Switzerland to the GP Argovie and then I will go to the ZLM Tour and then I will go to the National Championships. I hope I get a place at the Tour but I don't know yet.

BRH: Why do you think it is that cycling isn't as big in Austria as it is in Switzerland or Italy?
PK: Yeah, that's true. Cycling is getting popular again, we had some troubles a few years ago with Bernhard Kohl and they stopped showing cycling on the TV. But cycling as a hobby is popular and it is getting bigger and bigger. Also the TV and the newspapers are more focused on cycling in the summer which is really nice. But, all in all we are a winter sports nation so it's not possible for cycling to get as popular as skiing or snow jumping or football even.

BRH: Do you think cycling will continue to improve in Austria?
PK: Now we have a lot of good young Austrian riders also the weekend before last we had a really strong weekend for Austrian cycling. Haller won the Tour des Fjords and Gregor Mühlberger won the U23 Course de la Paix, he raced with me last year with Net App. Five years ago there was a big change in Austrian cycling when the continental teams put the focus on the really young riders and try to grow them up and create future talent. I was one of the guys from the first generation and now you see the results of these teams and also the U23 national team and that's really really nice to see.

BRH: If I were to interview you again in five years Patrick, what would you have liked to achieve in that time?

Will Bora-Argon 18 throw the Austrian into the Tour this year?
He certainly hopes so!

PK: I want to have a few grand tours in my legs, a few successful tours. I want to be a guy who is a role-model for young cyclists and I also want to be successful. I know that I am really strong in GC riding but this year I did Liege-Bastogne-Liege and for me it was a really really nice race. There was a crash with 40km to go which destroyed the chances of a better result but at the finish I was really excited about that race. I like the shorter climbs like in the Ardennes but I also like the long, hard, steep climbs like at the Giro, Tour and Vuelta.

BRH: I like to think of this blog as the go to place for cycling nerds, so I always like to end my interviews with a quiz to see how much of a cycling nerd you are. Are you a cycling nerd?
PK: Ermmm, yeah, a little bit. I also have a life but all the time my head is filled with cycling. I think you need to have distance from cycling when you're at home though.

It looks like this quiz might be one of the few times anyone
beats Patrick for a while....

BRH: At the Giro del Trentino TTT you rode alongside two guys who came 1st and 4th in the 2010 Vuelta a Catalunya prologue, can you name them?
PK: Paul Voss, I think he won it? And fourth was maybe...Dominik Nerz? (1-0 Patrick)

BRH: Who is the current National champion of the Netherlands?
PK: Johnny Hoogerland won it in 2013. He rides for Garmin, I know it but I don't know his name now...no I don't know it. (1-1 It is Sebastian Langeveld)

BRH: Who won the points jersey in the 2015 Giro d'Italia?
PK: A guy from Trek Factory Racing, an Italian one. But his name is.......ermm...today I saw a picture but I don't know it. (1-2 It is Giacomo Nizzolo, BRH wins again!) Ahh of course Nizzolo!

BRH: Thank you very much for you time
PK: Ciao!

Tour de France 2018 - Stages 15-17

Introduction
It's two more sprint stages followed by the first foray into the Pyrenees. We have two of the longest stages and then the shortest road stage in Tour memory but all three will be testing for the peloton. Due to the way the race has been structured, we have four sprint stages in a row which is unusual for this late in the race but it should ensure that we keep hold of the high class sprinters this late on. Added to this is that the race hugs the Pyrenean foothills without venturing into them for the first two days, they act as a constant reminder of the hell that awaits them in the final few days.

Stage 15 - Perpignan - Pamiers - 183.6km

This is a long stage compared to what we've seen before and, although the final 80km's are very flat the first 100km a hilly. The total stage has more than 1,800m of ascent which is going to be really difficult this far into a Grand Tour. Despite the rolling nature of the stage it should still end in a bunch sprint, having come this far the sprinters and sprint teams won't want to waste an opportunity to win this stage. It's not a simple finish though, it's a very narrow run into Pamiers and there's a 90 degree turn with under 500m to go. Expect to see a big fight for position on the run into the town, including the overall contenders who won't want to lose any time. There's a lot of potential for drama on this stage.

Stage 16 - Toulouse - Pau - 199.7km

It's the longest stage of the race and it's only 300m shorter than breaking the 200km barrier. It's not a very difficult stage at all though, it has fewer meters gained than the previous stage and it's all downhill for the final 20km. We're flirting with the Pyrenees though and the riders will be very aware what will happen when they do head further south in the next few days. After this stage the green jersey will be put to bed for three days until we hit the streets of Paris so expect to see all the sprinter's teams massing at the head of the peloton.

Stage 17 - Biarritz - Aia - 97.5km
This might just be the best stage of the entire Tour and it won't even last 3 hours. The stage starts in the French Basque country and heads into the Spanish Basque country after 26km. Amazingly, we don't really begin climbing for another 7km's which means that in the final 64km more than 2,000m of vertical height is gained. That is spread over 4 categorised climbs and numerous unclassified rises, if you've just looked at the distance and assumed this stage will be easy then you will be in for a sickening surprise. Riders who have ridden the Tour of the Basque Country will have an advantage here as the last 15km are a replica of the stage to Aia this year. The finish is unspeakably steep and it's the kind of non-sensical situation where actually riding the bike is the slowest way to the top. Teams won't have seen a stage like this ever before and it will be interesting to see how they ride it, one thing is certain; the ambush potential is incredibly high and the race leader will be watching his back all day.

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2020 Vision - Tour de France Green Jersey winner

Introduction
As Peter Sagan has proven, you don't need to be a prolific stage winner to win the green jersey. Surprisingly, he crossed the finish line as a winner 7 times last year and yet he won 4 points jerseys (Tirreno, Tour of California, Tour de Suisse and Tour de France). Recently, Giacomo Nizzolo proved that you can win a points jersey by just bagging some top 5's and showing an interest in the intermediate sprints. But who will be winning these jerseys in 5 years?

Sam Bennett
Age in 2020: 29
Current Team: Bora Argon 18
Best GT Performance: Not Raced

Bennett is a proven winner

Sam is yet to win a points jersey but he's already proven to be a prolific sprinter and he will get stronger with more high quality races. He first came to cycling's attention in 2012, with top 10's in the AN Post Ras and Tour of Britain stages. He's best result of the year however, was 10th on the hilly U23 World Championships course, which shows that he isn't just a pure sprinter. Since that year he seems to have just got better and better; in 2013 he won 2 stages of the AN Post Ras and the very hilly Caerphilly stage of the Tour of Britain and was best of the rest behind Cavendish in the final stage. in 2014 he made the step up to pro continental level with Netapp-Endura. He took 3 wins, including the final stage of the Bayern Rundfahrt and numerous high quality top 5's.
So far this year Bennett has already won 3 races and it looks likely that he will be lining up in Utrecht in a month's time. Bora are lacking an overall contender so expect them to get behind Bennett in the early stages. If he can steal a couple of podium places in the sprint stages then it will considered a successful Tour for him.

Moreno Hofland
Age in 2020: 28
Current Team: LottoNL-Jumbo
Best GT Performance: 136th 2015 Giro d'Italia

The winner of all LottoNL's wins

It's not often that a sprinter accounts for 100% of his team's wins but that's the case with Hofland this season. He's been the thin sliver of success in a desert of misery for the Dutch team this year.
Hofland's successes started in 2011 when he won 3 stages, including a stage of the Tour de l'Avenir. He also came second behind current teammate Barry Markus in the Dutch junior semi-classic Dorpenomloop Rucphen. 2012 was more of the same really with 3 wins including a stage of l'Avenir and he also took the U23 Netherlands champion win. Moreno made the step up to the World Tour in 2013 but overall it was a disappointing season for the Dutch rider. He didn't win a race until October when the Belkin team went over to China for the Tour of Hainan and won all 9 stages as well as the points and overall with Hofland. 2014 was Hofland's best season to date, he won 6 races in total including; a stage of Paris Nice, the Volta Limburg and a stage of the Ruta del Sol. He also came 2nd in the Kuurne-Bruxelles-Kuurne and got 2 top 10's in the 9 stages of the Vuelta in which he raced.
2015 has been disappointing for LottoNL-Jumbo and Hofland but he's shown consistency in the sprints, 6 top 10's at World Tour level. He's also notched up a Grand Tour at the Giro and that will give him some added confidence. Hopefully LottoNL will send him to the Tour, at least for the first 10 days because he is a potential winner, something the Dutch team are severely lacking.

Fernando Gaviria
Age in 2020: 25
Current Team: Etixx Quickstep (as of 01/08)
Best GT Performance: Not Raced

The Columbian sprint sensation has already beaten the best

The difficulty with picking young riders for future success is the very limited amount of data that is available. This is especially difficult in the case of Gaviria, he has less than 2 seasons of road results to look at.
Although Gaviria came to international attention this season at the Tour de San Luis his performances really began in 2012, on the track where he took the Omnium and Madison titles in the Junior World Championship. His road career started in 2014, although the early part of the season was quite disappointing he did manage a win in the U23 Pan American Road Race. From that moment his season continued to improve, he went to the Tour de l'Avenir and although he failed to win a stage he did 3 top 10's and a 2nd in the points jersey. As I mentioned though, his biggest performance was this year in the Tour de San Luis. He won two stages, beating Cavendish in both and came 2nd in a third stage. What was even more impressive was that his second stage win came the day after a mountain stage which suggest he does have the ability to win a points jersey in a major tour.
Fernando is moving to Etixx at the end of this year and they will be hoping that he continues his winning ways. It's hard to imagine him not doing this, especially with a better lead out train and more professional training. Whether he turns into a green jersey or just a flat out sprinter will be interesting to see, one thing is for sure - he has a massive future in the sport.

Caleb Ewan
Age in 2020: 25
Current Team: Orica GreenEDGE
Best GT Performance: Not Raced

Can Ewan keep up his winning ways?

Caleb is another rider who is difficult to judge because of his youth and lack of experience. What is true though is that he's prolific, 5 pro wins in a season prove this. What is also true though is that he can win even on difficult stages and it's this which proves that he can be a green jersey winner.
Ewan's career really started in 2013 but in 2012 he came 2nd in the Junior World Championships behind current Cannondale-Garmin rider Mohoric. In 2013 though he took 7 wins, the best of these were 2 stage wins in both the International Thuringen-Rundfahrt and Tour de l'Avenir - he also came 3rd in the points jersey in the latter. He also won the hilly junior nation's cup event, La Cote Picarde. 2014 was a harder year for Ewan, he took just 2 wins; the U23 national championships and a stage of the Tour de l'Avenir. He did turn pro towards the end of the season though, coming 2nd in the U23 World Championships and 2nd in the opening stage of his first World Tour race, Tour of Beijing. 2015 has been another step up for the young Australian, he came 2nd in the Australian Champs at the start of the season and then took 4 wins and then took 9 top 5's in the next 13 racing days. Since then he's won another race at the Vuelta la Rioja. Orica seem to be building him up slowly so don't expect to see him at the Tour but they might decide to send him to the Vuelta for a couple of weeks, either in support of Michael Matthews or as the team's main sprint option. In 5 years, Ewan will still only be 25 but I would expect to see him winning Grand Tour stages and maybe Ghent-Wevelgem or Milan San-Remo by then.

Tour de France 2018 - Stages 12 - 14

Introduction
After a tough few days for the sprinters it's finally time for more bunch sprints as the Tour heads towards the south coast. Before that though there's one final day in the Alps. As much as they might want to, the overall favourites can't ignore this stage, the final climb of the Col du Vence is seriously hard and it could unhitch many of the GC guys. After that it's two stages that look deceptively easy on paper but in reality will be very difficult if the conditions are just right.

Stage 12 - Briancon - Grenoble - 144.1km
It's ranked as a medium mountain stage but there's still 2,800m of vertical ascent in less than 100 miles of riding. The first 28km are all uphill as the peloton climb the Col du Lautaret. The Lautaret is not one of the most beautiful climbs in the Alps, it's a main road up a valley which is straight for almost its entire length. It trends downwards at the top though for the best part of 70km so there is a benefit to the initial climb. The peloton will enter Grenoble with 30km to go and oh how they will wish that they can just nip one street over to the finish line. Unfortunately they have to leave Grenoble to climb the Col du Vence. The road is narrow and the climb is incredibly steep so don't expect any more than 10 riders to fight it out in the final sprint.

Stage 13 - Valence - Nimes - 145.3km
It's not totally flat today but there's only two categorised climbs on the whole route so it should be a large bunch sprint. We're following the Rhone river today all the way into Nimes. The whole day is custom built for sprinters, it's towards the coast so expect a headwind to push the breakaway group back towards the sprint teams. The finish is also built for a sprint. The last 2km are made up of two 1km straights with a 90 degree bend between them. The next few days are great for the sprinters and it will be a race for the green jersey until the Basque country where the overall contenders will come back to the front.

Stage 14 - Montpellier - Perpignan - 189.5km

It looks like the easier stage of the entire race, there's barely 700m of climbing in the whole day. It will be the easiest day as well, unless the wind blows. There's a tiny amount of the route which doesn't hug the coastline so if there is a wind expect the race to be blown to pieces. If there's no wind though, this will be another opportunity for the sprinters to get a stage win. The one minor obstacle actually comes in the last kilometer. Although the stage has been pan flat up until this point, there's a 15m rise after the red kite. This shouldn't prevent the sprinters from winning but it will mean that they have to time their efforts much better. If you go for a long one then expect your legs to die far before you hit the line.

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Søren Kragh Andersen - "Some teams have called my agent and said, 'he's really good'"

In 5 years time, the name Søren Kragh Andersen will be known by even the most part-time of cycling fans. He is a supremely talented all rounder and seems to have the mentality to deal with the World Tour. I arranged this interview before his great victory in the Tour des Fjords where he rode away from the breakaway on the hilly finale into Sandnes. Before that victory it was going to be an interview with a very promising young rider who should be able to get into the World Tour in the next few years. It's now an interview with a guy who will almost certainly join the top level next year and who has a ceiling of talent similar to that of Peter Sagan. For this interview we talked about stage race consistency, racing in China and we saw whether Søren's quiz knowledge is as good as his cycling ability.

Bike Route Hub: You came second overall in the recent Tour des Fjords and you won a stage. When you look back, how big do you think that result was?
Soren Kragh Andersen: That was a big result. But of course I have got some big victories earlier in the season as well. I knew I was in good shape, but of course Tour des Fjords was a very big race and to come second overall was one of my biggest victories in my career. It's very important for me and my career.

A career changing victory in the Tour des Fjords

BRH: You haven't finished lower than 25th overall in a stage race since last August. How have you managed to be so consistent?
SKA: I am working hard on my mentality, my head and how I think. I think that is why I am so stable and able to perform consistently. I wake up every morning and feel my body and if I don't feel good then I listen to my body and that is why I can be so consistent.

BRH: Do you feel confident racing with the World Tour guys?
SKA: Yes, in fact I feel more confident in a race like Tour de Fjords or Tour of Denmark than in races I do more at the junior level. I hope I can ride at the World Tour level next year because I think I can perform at that level and I think I will be even better at that level.

BRH: When you won the stage of the Tour des Fjords Amets Txurruka said that you had the speed of a track guy and were too fast. Firstly, how does it feel to be given those kind of compliments by a fellow rider?
SKA: That was so amazing when guys like Kristoff or Boasson-Hagen come up to me the day after the victory and say congratulations and you were really strong that was really great. That is just wonderful to hear.

Racing in the U23 Danish National Time Trial Champion
colours

BRH: Secondly, you can time trial, climb and clearly you can sprint, what kind of rider do you think you will turn into?
SKA: That is difficult to say, I'm only 20 years old. What I will be really good at in the future I really don't know, the future will show that. At the moment I am an all rounder and I can do well in almost everything but one day I will focus on one discipline and maybe I will be a better climber but I don't know.

BRH: Earlier this season you won the first stage of the ZLM Roompot Tour which was raced on the same roads as the first stage of the Tour de France will be, can you tell us a bit about that race and what you think might happen in the Tour?
SKA: That was a Nation's Cup race with the National team and I had just come back from a week at Circuit des Ardennes where I was sick and had to pull out of the race. I was thinking for the ZLM tour that I would just take the race as training but on the first few days I was feeling really good and so I went on the attack. Since that victory I've been feeling great and I've just been hungry for more.
In the Tour, if there is a lot of wind then the crosswind will clearly impact the race and I think the riders will be coming one by one across the finish line if it is windy. But if there is no wind and no rain then the race will just be a sprint and there will be no chance of doing a hard race. So I hope for the riders that they will be racing in crosswinds because then it will be more fun.

Get used to seeing Søren's victory celebrations!

BRH: Towards the end of last season you were racing in China, what was that like?
SKA: I came in with really bad shape, we were travelling over there just for fun. The races were really fun and it was a good race to take part in in the winter. If my team go back there this year then I will definitely go with them. That was a really good race. I was really surprised about the organisation and it was very safe.

BRH: You have the National Championships coming up, what is your ambition there?
SKA: I am defending my U23 time trial championships and I hope I can do well but I haven't been training for it I have just been training for the stage races, but I will see what will happen. Then the road race on Sunday, a lot of guys will look at me because I am the favourite but the course is really hard so I hope I can still be there on the last two laps. One of my team mates will be there as well so we can take the jersey back for the team.

BRH: Can you tell us a bit about what your schedule looks like for the rest of the season?
SKA: I really don't know. I have focussed on this last month of the first part of the season and then after that I will talk to my agent about next year and who wants me, if somebody wants me. But right now I just dream and dream about it. The Tour of Denmark is the biggest goal for me for the whole season so I prepare for that and I think about that race really often.

BRH: You've had some great results, not just this year but in previous years. Have you had any World Tour offers?
SKA: No, no I don't have any right now. But I hope some will come.

The Kragh Andersen brothers go 1-2 

BRH: Have you had any rumours? I know that Katusha look at Norway and Denmark a lot, have you had any discussions?
SKA: No, I can't tell you right now. There's nothing official. Some teams have called my agent and said "hello, he's good". Not more than that but I hope so. I dream and I hope I will be on a World Tour team.

BRH: I saw your brother's, Asbjørn Kragh Andersen, results which are really impressive. Do you think you guys can be the new Schlecks of cycling?
SKA: He is on the same team and he is very strong. I hope we can give cycling a boost and some more kids will go on their bikes and have fun racing. I'm not a celebrity or rock star yet though.

BRH: I like to end all my interviews with a cycling quiz, so far no one has got them all right but if you do then I think it will be a big victory than your Tour des Fjords stage victory.
SKA: Yes I think so, that will be big!

BRH: First question, in 2012 you came 10th in the Junior World Championships. One guy finished ahead of you and this year he has won two stages of the Tour of Langkawi and won the points jersey in that race. Can you name him?
SKA: I don't know... (It was Caleb Ewan 1-0 BikeRouteHub) Ahh Caleb Ewan, yes I know him.

BRH: Number 2, who is the current national champion of Finland?
SKA: Finland? Yeah, I don't know (Jussi Veikannen 2-0)

BRH: Lastly, who am I? I'm a Danish cyclist who rode for CSC and Saxo Bank for 8 years, my best result was 3rd in the 2011 Paris-Tours.
SKA: I think it could be Nikki Sorensen or Lars Bak (It was Kasper Klostergaard 3-0 Bike Route Hub)

BRH: At least your cycling is better than your cycling knowledge!
SKA: Yes I think so.

BRH: Thank you very much for your time Søren.
SKA: You're welcome.

Tour de France 2018 - Stages 9-11

Introduction
The route has avoided the high mountains so far but it all changes in these next three stages. There are a number of classic climbs included but also some new terrain is explored, especially around Geneva and Annecy. There will be a number of overall favourites who will have had their overall ambitions trampled in the high Alps.

Stage 9 - Geneva - Annecy - 139.1km
We won't break the 1,000m mark on this stage but there is more than 2,000m of vertical ascent. The stage is one of the most beautiful of the whole Tour, starting on the plains of Geneva and rolling into the far Northern Alps before a flying descent into the beautiful lakeside town of Annecy.
Neither of the 2nd category climbs are overly steep but they are long and the positioning of the final climb means that the race will be on at this point so the field will split apart. Don't expect too many fireworks though, the big stages are tomorrow and the next day so the overall contenders are likely to be watchful rather than aggressive so it could be a chance for someone further down the overall standings to take some time back.



Stage 10 - Annecy - Val Claret - 134.9km
Despite starting with almost 60km of flat there is over 4,000m of ascent in the whole stage. The Cormet de Roseland is less sustained from this side but it's slightly longer. As it traverses the edge of the Barrage de Roseland it flattens off substantially before the final kick up to the summit, anyone who is having an off day will be pleased to reach the halfway point but it's an incredibly difficult job to recoup enough energy on that false flat to stay in the wheels until the top.
The descent off the Roseland is fairly technical but the road is reasonably wide and the favourites will have done some reconnaissance of it so don't expect too much drama. From Bourg St Maurice to the base of the final climb there's a slowly rising flat section where the riders will be looking to take on as much energy and drinks as they can. As soon as they hit the climb it's a hideous first few kilometres before you can settle into a rhythm for the mid-section of the climb. The final drag into Tignes is very steep again and previous tours have finished here, however, not in this case. The final few kilometres hugs the edge of the Tignes lake to finish at the slightly higher resort of Val Claret. There's likely to be strong headwind through the valley so expect to see the attackers suffering, if they've made it this far.

Stage 11 - Tignes - Briancon - 173.8km
The peloton will start in Tignes rather than Val Claret and they will be grateful not just of the downhill start but also the fact that the first climb of the day, Col de i'Iseran, will be climbed from halfway up. Despite the favourable start they still have to complete almost 1,000m of vertical ascent from Val d'Isere to the summit of the i'Iseran. Expect to see a breakaway go here because there's then the best part of 70km of descent to the base of the Col de Telegraphe in St Michel-de-Maurienne. From here there's 31km of ascent broken up by the slight descent off the Telegraph. The peloton will really be feeling it at this point, they haven't had an "easy" day for five stages and they're certainly not getting one here. When they do finally make it to the summit of the Galibier they will be presented with a 35km descent to the beautiful fortified city of Briancon. There's one final difficulty however, the ascent into the old town of Briancon. There's two sections to this climb, the first is the arrow straight road which is appallingly steep followed by the cobbled ascent through the old town which is perhaps even steeper and very narrow. If you go too soon on this final climb then all the energy you put in to stay with your rivals on the previous climbs will have been in vain as you leak seconds or even minutes here. Tomorrow is an easier day but it's not easy by any stretch of the imagination, as you will see....

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2020 Vision - Tour de France King of the Mountain winner

Introduction
Obviously the KOM jersey can be won in a number of different ways however in this instance I'm using it to signify the top 4 pure climbers in 2020. I have tried to pick just the pure climbers as I will have a separate 2020 vision for my predictions of Tour de France winners.

Heiner Rodrigo Parra
Age in 2020: 28
Current Team: Caja Rural - Seguros RGA
Best GT Performance: Not Raced

Parra has the build of a climber and the name of a climber

If you're looking for top quality climbers then you can't go wrong by directing the search towards the cyclists of Columbia. Heiner Rodrigo currently rides in the second division with Caja Rural but he had a pretty incredible amateur career which he has continued into his two years as a pro.
Heiner first came to prominence in 2013 when he won a stage of the Ronde de l'Isard finishing in a mountaintop finish to Goulier-Neige, he came 12th overall in the race. He followed that up with 5th overall in the Tour Alsace including 2nd on the Queen stage and 7th overall in the Tour de l'Avenir. He turned pro the following year and had a slightly disappointing season with 23rd in the Volta a Portugal and 15th in the Tour of Azerbaijan the highlights.
This year has been a significant step up in performance with the highlight being a 12th overall in the Tour of Turkey with two top 10s on the mountain stages. It's unclear what Parra's future schedule is but a trip to the Vuelta might be on the cards and if so then it will be great to see what he can do in the high mountains with the other pros. After all, we all know how good Parra's can be at climbing!

Tao Geoghegan Hart
Age in 2020: 25
Current Team: Axeon Cycling Team
Best GT Performance: Not Raced

Geoghegan Hart launching an attack on a climb.

Tao is ridiculously talented. If you've been following his career it's worrying to think he's only 20. He is due a mega contract in the next few years and when he does I'm sure he'll end up as one of the best climbers in the peloton in 5 years.
In 2012 Tao came 21st in the Junior World Championships which put him in a box marked "to be watched". His big results however, came in 2013, he came 3rd overall in the Junior Paris-Roubaix, overall and a stage of the Tour of Istria, 5th overall in the Course de la Paix and Overall and a stage of the mountainous Giro Della Lunigiana. Miraculously he managed to maintain that level despite making a step up in competition in 2014. He came 3rd in the Junior Liege-Bastogne-Liege, 10th overall in the Tour de l'Avenir and 15th in the Tour of Britain against World Tour opposition. If anything, 2015 might actually be even better than the previous 3 years. He has already bagged 3rd in the U23 Liege-Bastogne-Liege, 8th overall in the Tour of the Gila and 13th overall in the Tour of California. He's racing in an American team so I would expect him to race the American circuit for the rest of the year and then join up the the British Cycling team for the Tour de l'Avenir and the World Championships.
Tao is clearly a capable all round rider, however it's on the mountains and steep hills where he becomes extraordinary. Despite being just 20 he has already proven himself at the highest level in the sport so predicting him for future greatness is almost entirely without risk.

Daniel Whitehouse
Age in 2020: 25
Current Team: Team UKYO
Best GT Performance: Not Raced

Whitehouse is a dark horse here but
could be a major talent.

Selecting Daniel here is a risk because he is more of an unknown quantity. He has achieved very strong results in the Asian tour and I would expect that he will be making the step up to the World Tour within the next 5 years.
He raced with Rapha Condor JLT in 2014 and had some good results, the highlights were 4th in the New Zealand Cycle Classic and 13th on the Tour of Japan stage up the hideously steep Mt Fuji.
This year has been an improvement for the New Zealander. He came 3rd in the Tour de Ijen in Indonesia he also got another 13th on the stage to Mt Fuji in the Tour of Japan.
He's still only 20 and yet has achieved some really strong results. If he's given the opportunities to impress in bigger races then he needs to grab them and get himself a contract with a larger team. If he does that then I think he can end up being one of the best climbers in the peloton.

Gavin Mannion
Age in 2020: 28
Current Team: Jelly Belly p/b Maxxis
Best GT Performance: Not Raced

Mannion is at home on the biggest ascents.

After a 6th place finish in the recent American National championships Mannion has seen his stock rise considerably. As a young rider Gavin looked like he might be the next American hope, he's deviated from that slightly since, but he still looks like being a phenomenal rider.
Mannion showed some good form in 2010 by coming 5th on a stage of the Giro Valle D'aosta and 4th on a stage of the Coupe des Nations Ville Saguenay. 2011 was a disappointing season in general but 2012 showed that he was back to his best with 3rd in the National Championships and 17th overall in the USA Pro Cycling Challenge the highlights. It was 2013 though which was probably Mannion's best year. He came 5th in the National Championships, 6th overall in the Tour of the Gila, 15th in the U23 Liege-Bastogne-Liege and 8th overall in the Tour l'Avenir including 6th on the stage to Stade Francois Longchamp on the Col de la Madeline. 2014 was another disappointing year but so far in 2015 he has come 3rd overall in the Tour of Gila and 6th in the National Championships. He's suited to the late summer American stage races which tend to take in huge amounts of climbing so watch for him there. If he can improve his consistency and string together a couple of good seasons then he has a very lucrative contract awaiting, you would expect.