Geraint Thomas on Tadej Pogacar and Jonas Vingegaard's Plateau de Beille performance: "I've heard the numbers. It's just bonkers"
Cycling
Stage 15 of the Tour de France has seen climbing performances unlike any other in the history of the sport. After 200 kilometers and almost 5000 meters of climbing, Tadej Pogacar climbed Plateau de Beille at almost 7W/Kg and over three and a half minutes faster than Marco Pantani's previous record of 1998. He, Jonas Vingegaard and Remco Evenepoel have done career-best performances in this ascent, which has blown Geraint Thomas.
The Welshman has tested positive for Covid-19 a few days ago, and has since been in the back of the peloton trying to recover and improve as fast as possible. "They (the last days, ed.) were ok. I was expecting them to be worse, but I was able to choose when to get dropped really and get to the points where I had to in order to survive as best as possible," Thomas told Cyclingnews at the start of stage 16. "But it's hard on the head because I didn't come here just to survive. I wanted to at least race on the front, do my bit for Carlos [Rodríguez] and try to go for a stage. It's been tough going but I'm still in it, so I'll see what the next week holds."
One thing is for sure, INEOS will not risk having Thomas work for Rodríguez whilst Thomas is symptomatic, so as to not risk infecting the leader they have been working for for weeks. Thomas entered the Tour with some good form but hasn't been able to improve on it. He is far from the level he reached at the Giro d'Italia where he finished on the podium, but even his best performance there would be nowhere within reach of what the main favourites have done this Sunday.
"I didn't actually watch the highlights, but I've heard the numbers. It's just bonkers, really," Thomas said of the power output estimates that according to Jonas Vingegaard, were very accurate. "But what can you say, really? It's just unbelievable. The team he has around him as well…. Obviously, Jonas isn't 100% but it's going to be an exciting final week. It's unbelievable what he's done this weekend. Fair play to them."
Read also
Rúben SilvaEditor-in-Chief
A founding contributor to CyclingUpToDate since its launch in January 2022, Ruben Silva has played a central role in shaping the site’s editorial direction and long-term growth. Before joining the project, he built his experience through independent blogging at Echelons Hub and by producing race previews for Ciclismo Internacional, developing a strong analytical voice rooted in daily engagement with professional cycling.
Beyond editorial work, he has been closely involved in the expansion and coordination of CyclingUpToDate’s wider network, helping establish and support sister platforms across multiple languages. This includes ongoing collaboration with CiclismoAlDia (Spanish), CiclismoAtual (Portuguese), WielrennenUpToDate (Dutch), and RadsportAktuell (German), contributing to a shared editorial vision and consistent international coverage.
He also helps oversee editorial governance across the network, setting standards for accuracy and consistency and coordinating updates or corrections when needed.
Originally from the Porto metropolitan area in Portugal, he holds a bachelor’s degree in Geography. His path into cycling journalism was shaped not through formal media training, but through independent reporting, community engagement, and sustained on-the-ground involvement in the sport.
Over the course of his career, he has conducted approximately 100 interviews across road cycling and cyclocross, ranging from one-to-one conversations and online formats to press conferences and on-site pre- and post-race coverage. His interviews include leading riders, team managers, and prominent figures within cycling media: Tadej Pogacar, Jonas Vingegaard, Mathieu van der Poel, Primoz Roglic, Wout van Aert, Joao Almeida and Tom Pidcock; managers like Patrick Lefevere and Joxean Matxin; and YouTube personality Bryan Kennedy (BKXC)...
Within 18 months of launch, he helped grow CyclingUpToDate’s English-language platform into one of the most-read cycling news websites, built entirely from the ground up. As both a professional journalist and lifelong cycling enthusiast, his focus remains on delivering accurate, timely, and well-contextualized coverage.
claps 7visitors 7
Just in
Popular news
Latest comments
- I get the point totally. We live in the snowflake society where some riders forget they are getting paid to ride and get results. When they have a few issues they try to look outside of the real issue instead of themselves. It odd so many of the team are making no complaints and getting on with their job. If you do not like what you do find another job simples. Tough love as my mum would say.paultryan200207-11-2026
- many people advise him to grow slowly and rather do giro and/or vuelta instead of tdf. but i can totally understand that he is not satisfied with taking over once pogi declines, but instead beat him in his prime. so if he goes for tdf again, i‘m all for it. let‘s hope that pogi recovers soon!Ketterechts07-11-2026
- So gracious to offer something no-one would be prepared to pay for. The Giro is not the Tour and doesn’t command the same interest or attract the same “elite” (those willing to pay to be a part of something they consider has ego boosting potential). Roadside viewing will always largely remain free for everyone outside circuits. Introduction of a symbolic entrance to mountain climbs is worthy of exploration. Asking 1-2€ isn’t going to repulse real fans (most will spend 50-100€ on their outing that day all things included) but will prevent a portion of the total knobhead thrillseekers who will join in any large gathering as long as it’s free, just because they’re attracted to crowds, without which it it difficult for them to work up their anti-social behaviour.Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- How is radio going to help when someone went over a cliff or bridge or off the roadside into a forest unnoticed and is laying there unconscious?Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- Yep, next we’ll be accusing F1 drivers of avoiding Le Mans.Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- But on what is that opinion based? Are you holding him to a different standard than others? Are you saying he should do learn to like something he doesn’t Are you saying he hasn’t achieved enough Are you saying he pretends to be better than his results? It’s actually a really strange opinion to oust if you consider it objectively or rationally. Try applying it to others or yourself by asking if not EVERYONE should then be doing more? Nobody in athletics or swimming gets criticism for not expanding their repertoire when a rival or someone else does. In fact, most who move to another event get accused of running from their rival. Opinions are boring, the reasons behind them are what count.Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- for a medical chief to throw things like is just bad. There are already radios which were banned for spectacle. allow radios. Gps trackers are not a complete solutionabstractengineer07-11-2026
- any rider less than 25 whether they are really ready for the position of leadership of GT is probably not the case. I think Pogi himself suffered when he was defeated by Jonas in the TDF twice. But that would be the team's job to ensure support so that they can bounce back. It requires a team and time to get back up and win after getting knocked down.abstractengineer07-11-2026
- I'm very glad he got the big late Quickstep Vuelta win and I hope he has a few left for Euskaltel-Euskadi.flyer07-11-2026
- My memories of Ivan Basso aren't good but I liked his sister Elisa ok.flyer07-11-2026
Loading
🦺 Safe passage through stage 16 at #TDF2024 Some good teamwork saw the Grenadiers navigate the tricky finale. Tomorrow? Back to the ⛰️!
4 Comments