Given lost for cycling after falling in a ravine four years ago, the Dane Michael Valgren completed his rebirth on Wednesday on the roads of the Tour of Italy by winning the 17th stage, in Andalo.
To celebrate, the 34-year-old Dane took out of his jersey pocket a Pokémon given to him by his son as a talisman, a green disc which he brandished like a host before clenching it between his teeth and crossing the line in a moment of ecstasy inversely proportional to his distress four years ago.
On June 19, 2022, Valgreen came close to the worst when he fell on a descent and tipped into a ravine shortly after the start of the fourth and final stage of the Route d’Occitanie aux Angles.
The EF Education rider was found polytraumatized, with a fractured pelvis, a dislocated hip and a shattered knee, forcing him to abandon the Tour de France which would start from his country a few weeks later.
“I think I deserve it”
Then began a long rehabilitation process, full of doubts for the man who was one of the most talented riders in the peloton, winner of the Amstel Gold Race in 2018 and bronze medalist of the 2021 World Championships.
It took him almost a year to return to competition with the EF Education reserve team, 18 months to race in the World Tour and another four years to return to victory, last March in Tirreno-Adriatico.
“My career was already busy but I was still missing a victory in a Grand Tour. I think I deserve it. She arrives today, in Italy, the country where I won most of my victories. I’m happy,” he reacted, proud and moved at the same time.
The rider from Osterild, in the north of the country, triumphed by achieving the “kilometer shot” to surprise the five other survivors of the morning breakaway with a dazzling start at the red flame.
On the line, he was ahead of the Norwegian Andreas Leknessund, who collected second places, and the Italian Damiano Caruso by a handful of seconds. Before the arrival of all the losers in the breakaway, which counted up to 29 elements including Giulio Ciccone, still frustrated, and Jhonatan Narvaez, who consoled himself by taking back the cyclamen jersey from Paul Magnier.
Peaceful day for Vingegaard
“People say I’m fast but in reality I’m really slow,” Valgren said. But this (starting under the red flame) is my signature and when I have good legs, I am quite good at this exercise.
The day was also marked by Rémi Cavagna’s reckless attempt. The Frenchman emerged alone from the breakaway 117 km from the goal to embark on a completely crazy adventure and bring a little balm to the heart of the Groupama-FDJ team which is experiencing a difficult start to the season with the bankruptcy of leaders like David Gaudu and Valentin Madouas.
A time specialist, the “TGV de Clermont-Ferrand” took up to two and a half minutes ahead of the 28 other breakaways before being caught 60 kilometers further, just before the intermediate sprint.
Well warm in the peloton which had decided to let go, Jonas Vingegaard retained the leader’s pink jersey with a comfortable lead of more than four minutes over the Austrian Felix Gall.
For the Dane, the day was peaceful and, in the end, the event of the day was the fact that he shaved his growing mustache.
“I looked in the mirror yesterday and realized that I looked like a teenager,” he explained while two big mountain stages still await the riders on Friday and Saturday, on the eve of the final arrival in Rome.
