"I cannot even imagine a comparison" - Paul Seixas on Tadej Pogacar and Tour de France debut

Paul Seixas is going to be the youngest rider at the 2026 Tour de France and one of the many debutants. The Frenchman has talked extensively about his debut within two months, his mentality and training change ahead of it; and the comparison with Tadej Pogacar.

It was something that had been strongly hinted at for several months, however only this past Monday was it announced officially that the 19-year old would set his sights on the upcoming Grand Boucle. With Olav Kooij's continuous health struggles, he may end up having sole leadership in the team.

“For my grandfather, it is something exceptional. He has watched the Tour for a very long time, and so have I since I was little. It is a childhood dream coming true, and I am very happy to be able to share that with my family," Seixas said on the Super Moscato Show.

The decision had been made before Monday though, it can be confirmed through his words: “There were not many people who knew. My grandfather and my grandmother did not know. There were my parents, my brother and the team management. That was it, six or seven people, not more.”

One one-day races Seixas has shown his prowess, and in one-week races he has done the same this spring. Recently in April he won the Itzulia Basque Country and La Flèche Wallonne whilst finishing second to Pogacar at Liège-Bastogne-Liège - where he followed Pogacar's initial attack on La Redoute.

The logical next step is to test himself in a Grand Tour. “I think I always wanted to do the Tour this year. There were a lot of things in competition with the Giro and the Vuelta, but it was quickly refocused on the Tour. It really mattered to me to do a two or three week race this year.”

The French nationality and the French team meant that it was inevitable to race at the Tour, even if his ambitions would only revolve around hunting stage wins and possibly the KOM classification. But he aims to see where he stands amongst the great GC contenders.

“Yes, of course, I am going there for the general classification, I do not want to lose time in the first week to go for stages. I really want to ride for the general classification," he assures. "That is where I will gain a lot of experience.”

“The first week will be something I know, even if it will be different at the Tour because of everything around it. The riders are extremely motivated. Everyone is at their peak. After that, the last two weeks will be unknown for me. There will be a part of discovery, but I hope to be up there.”

The demands of a Tour de France are above those of any race he's done so far this year, starting with the long climbs. This year's route specially features its queen stage on the 20th day, with over 5000 meters of climbing leading up to the Alpe d'Huez. This will require a different preparation to what he's done earlier this spring.

“When you look at my objectives, I worked more on shorter efforts, around four or five minutes. Now it will be different preparation, more around threshold. On longer efforts, I hope to be even better. Durability, repeating efforts and handling the days will make a big difference.”

Durability is where Pogacar has an edge on Seixas, clearly displayed at Liège where Seixas could follow his first attack, but cracked completely on the second. It is perhaps the attribute that has become the most crucial in pro cycling over the past few years.

“The facts speak for him. He has won almost everything at the start of the season and he has won the Tour four times," Seixas said of Pogacar. "For now, I cannot even imagine a comparison. But of course, I will fight to be the best I can and try to tease him a little, even if only at the start of the Tour.”

But at the same time, he does not want to limit himself: “Nothing is impossible, but you still have to be measured in your ambitions. At the Tour, it will be different. You have to manage your efforts well. I will be more measured, calculate more, knowing that there are three weeks ahead and that I have never done it before.”

At the Tour Auvergne - Rhône Alpes, only Isaac del Toro is scheduled to race. Seixas is going into the Tour without recent competition against any of his other podium contention rivals. Finishing on the Top3 would already be a major success for the Frenchman, he confirms.

“If I had to choose, finishing on the podium would give me the most satisfaction. But if there is one of the three, a podium, a big stage win or wearing yellow, I think the Tour would be successful. In any case, there is no failure. It is a discovery," he concluded.