Cycling
Eyes on the Tour de France
Hugo Houle returned to Monaco with a sense of duty accomplished on Monday. The day after Liège-Bastogne-Liège, where he assisted Michael Woods (10and), the cyclist from Sainte-Perpétue could draw an excellent record of his first half of the season with his new team, Israel-Premier Tech (IPT).
“I have raised my level compared to other years, so it’s encouraging,” he said after the arrival of the Doyenne. My arrival in the team went well and I had a very good start to the season. I was present at all the races. I’m very, very happy with how it went for me. It looks good for the future, especially since I’m used to being better in the second half. I’m motivated for the next block. »
Like the Israeli-Quebec formation, Houle nevertheless hit a few speed bumps at the start of the campaign. He first tested positive for COVID-19 after his participation in the Étoile de Bessèges in February. On his return, he struck a blow by finishing 13and of the general classification on Paris-Nice. He was alone when he concluded this first major stage race of the season. All his teammates retired due to illness or physical problems.
The double Olympic athlete himself was struck down by a cold a few days later, which canceled his participation in Milan-San Remo. After a return to the Flanders classics, he saw his team withdraw from the Tour of Flanders due to COVID-19 and a lack of enough healthy riders. He therefore made an unplanned detour via the Tour of the Basque Country, where he reached a personal high with a fourth place in a stage won by world champion Julian Alaphilippe.
PHOTO FROM INSTAGRAM ACCOUNT @ISRAELPREMIERTECH
Hugo Houle
“It’s a bit beyond my expectations. You never know what to expect. We train hard, but I had no guarantee that I was going to be better than the year before. I’m happy because I found sensations similar to those of the Tour de France in 2020. “
Despite some solid results – sixth in a stage at the Tour de Suisse, 12and stage at the Tour de France and 13and the time trial at the Tokyo Olympics – and the usual exercise of his role as a teammate, Houle did not evolve at the desired level last year.
“It didn’t seem like much, but I still felt a bit tired from a cold I caught at the start of the season. I had chronic sinusitis, and it kind of bothered me all year. I had finished the Ardennes classics completely drained. Maybe I should have skipped it. I learned through that. »
When you get sick, you have to be able to show resilience and stop for as long as necessary.
Hugo Houle
Hence his decision, taken by mutual agreement with his team, to withdraw from the Tour de Romandie, which begins with a prologue on Tuesday in Lausanne.
The 31-year-old athlete will therefore regain his strength over the next few days at home. Like last year, he will spend a good part of May in the Canary Islands for a training course at altitude. He will not resume competition before the Tour de Suisse, from June 12 to 19.
Houle will then turn his eyes to the Tour de France (from 1er to July 24), in which he wishes to take part for a fourth consecutive year. IPT must announce a provisional list of six riders at the end of the Tour de Suisse. Houle expects to be part of it.
“With the start of the season that I have known, I dare to believe that I should have my place. I don’t have official confirmation, but in theory, that’s the plan. I am preparing for this and I have every chance. However, I have learned over the years that nothing is guaranteed until you have your bib on your back. »
Rest for Boivin
PHOTO FROM INSTAGRAM ACCOUNT @ISRAELPREMIERTECH Guillaume Boivin during Paris-Roubaix, where he finished 62and after three punctures
Guillaume Boivin had also planned to accompany Woods in the Tour de Romandie, but he was caught up in health problems. Weakened by a flu contracted at the end of last month, the Canadian champion then took part in Paris-Roubaix and the Flèche Wallonne, where he gave up after about fifty kilometers, exhausted. “I really forced my luck to make Roubaix and it was too much, judged Boivin by text message. I’m going to take tests this week. I probably just need some rest. If all goes well, the 32-year-old athlete would like to hand over a bib in mid-May at the Tour of Hungary. He too is aiming for the Tour de France, which he would be competing in for the second time.
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Source: lapresse
Sophia Jhon is a sports journalist and author. He has worked as a news editor for Sportish and is now a sport columnist for the same publication. Alberta’s professional interests lie largely in sports news, with an emphasis on English football. He has also written articles on other sporting topics.