'I'm not on my knees' - Vingegaard believes Giro was ideal preparation for Tour

Now for the Tour de France. Jonas Vingegaard has more or less completed the first leg of the double at the Giro d’Italia, and thoughts are already turning firmly towards July and the big rendezvous with Tadej Pogačar.

Vingegaard and Pogačar have occupied the top two places at the past five editions of the Tour, with the Dane winning the race in 2022 and 2023. After suffering hefty defeats to Pogačar in the last two years, Vingegaard opted for a change of approach in 2026, making his debut at the Giro.

The decision to ride the Giro was born partly from Vingegaard’s desire to complete a full set of Grand Tour victories after his triumph at last year’s Vuelta a España, but also due to Visma Lease a Bike’s belief that the corsa rosa might offer the ideal build-up to the Tour.

Two years ago, after all, Pogačar secured the Giro-Tour double, but he was also the first rider to do so since Marco Pantani in 1998. In the intervening period, men like Chris Froome and Alberto Contador had delved too deep into their reservoirs in Italy and fallen short in July.

Riding the Giro was a calculated risk for Vingegaard, but, like Pogačar, he encountered no alarms or surprises along the way. He has been a dominant winner of the race, racking up five stage wins along the way without ever being pushed too hard by his rivals and without facing the worst excesses of May weather in these parts.

After crowning his Giro with a fifth stage victory at Piancavallo on stage 20, Vingegaard expressed confidence that it had been the right decision to line up at the race ahead of the Tour. 

“I think it also depends on how you get out of the Giro,” Vingegaard. “If you get out of the Giro completely on your knees and you need to take two weeks of rest to be able to train again, then it wouldn’t be a good preparation. But I believe that I’m not on my knees. I have a good feeling coming out of this Giro as well.

“So I also believe in the whole training here and I also feel like I improved a lot throughout this Giro itself. I actually think that it’s the best preparation for me and for the team.”

Vingegaard will train at home in Denmark for the first two weeks after the Giro before linking up with Visma’s Tour squad for an altitude camp in Tignes after the Critérium du Dauphiné. His rival Pogačar, meanwhile, will warm up for the Tour by making his debut at the revamped, five-stage Tour de Suisse.

Earlier this week, Vingegaard suggested that he had still been affected by his 2024 Itzulia Basque Country crash at the past two editions of the Tour, but he declared himself back to his best on this Giro. 

“I hope so, I hope. Time will tell,” Vingegaard said on Saturday when asked if his 2026 shape would be enough to win back the yellow jersey.

“I mean, of course, to be able to match Pogačar, you need to be at your best. I think also, compared to other years, I’ve needed to take a step”