Pogacar and Vingegaard woken by overnight doping tests at Tour de France

Overnight anti-doping controls became a talking point ahead of stage 15 of the Tour de France after Tadej Pogačar and Jonas Vingegaard revealed they were both woken during the night for testing.

Vingegaard said officials from the International Testing Agency (ITA) knocked on his hotel room door at 2am, leaving the two-time Tour winner frustrated by the timing of the control.

“Yeah, I guess the ITA didn’t allow me to sleep much. I was sleeping very well, but then someone knocked on my door at 2am. It was a big surprise to me,” Vingegaard told Eurosport. 

“Of course it’s good that they test, but when it’s affecting your performance and your sleep, I don’t think it’s so good. Hopefully I’m not the only one, because it has to be equal for everyone.”

The Dane said the procedure kept him awake for around 40 minutes before he was able to return to bed.

“I think it took about 40 minutes before I was back in my room. So yeah, it was not the best night. I still feel OK, but it was not the best night. I can’t change it. That’s part of it, I guess.”

Tour leader Pogačar also had his sleep interrupted, although his visit came three hours later at 5am, leaving him unable to return to sleep and finding a few methods to try and prepare for the stage, including listening to Eminem.

“Not 2am, but 5am in the morning. I always go to sleep late so it was a big shock for me to get only four hours of sleep today, but I had a very cool, long morning,” Pogačar told Eurosport.

“I couldn't go back to sleep, so I was chilling listening to some old Eminem hits and making coffee, fully caffeinated and ready to start the day, but yeah, it was definitely a shock to get woken up in the middle of sweet dreams.”

Pogačar noted that anti-doping controls are a routine part of wearing the yellow jersey and something he has become well accustomed to.

“I go every day. Every day when you have the yellow jersey, you have control after the stage, after the media obligations and all that,” he said. “Also, they come randomly in the mornings through the Tour, and today they chose nighttime.”

Pogačar also defended the doping control officers themselves, considering the reactions they may face from disgruntled riders.

“I also feel sorry for the guys who are coming to do the controls because I can imagine some riders get upset and angry with them. But they’re just doing their jobs. The people who send them, their bosses, are the ones making the decisions.”