"I hope to be even better": Paul Seixas ramps up Tour preparation at Sierra Nevada altitude camp

Paul Seixas and his Tour de France debut will be the main storyline of this summer, regardless of how the race goes for the Frenchman. At just 19 years of age, the Decathlon CMA CGM Team rider is listed among hottest podium prospects at the world's biggest cycling race, just behind Tadej Pogacar and Jonas Vingegaard. And most likely rightfully so.

Seixas is yet to finish worse than second in the final standings of a race this season. His year kicked off in style with a stage victory and second overall at Volta ao Algarve. And from there on, Seixas' form had only upward trajectory. Dominant victory at Faun-Ardeche Classic, Volta a Catalunya and La Fleche Wallonne, defeated only by Pogacar at Strade Bianche and Liege-Bastogne-Liege... the 2026 palmares of Seixas are nothing short of impressive.

His team denied for a long time whether Seixas would be nominated already for the 2026 Tour de France, until, under the pressure of his excellent performances, they finally made the call to bring Paul Seixas to Grande Boucle this summer. And the youngster intends to not underestimate a single detail, as he's been spotted exploring multiple of 2026 edition's key points.

And after reconnoitering the time trial course between Thonon-les-Bains and Évian-les-Bains and the stage to Le Markstein in the Vosges mountains, Paul Seixas arrived in southern Spain early last week.

Just like the vast majority of his Tour de France rivals, Seixas' destination was Sierra Nevada, and it's high-end facilities suited to the needs of top athletes at over 2,300 meters of altitude.

"Everyone goes to the same place for two reasons. First, because the Spanish weather is decent. And above all, up top, the center has the perfect infrastructure for sleeping well, eating well and recovering well," explains former cyclist Jérôme Coppel, now a consultant for RMC Sport.

Seixas is already in his second week at the altitude camp as we speak. His training sessions vary in length between one and six hours but have common denominator - plenty climbing.

"With all the accumulated data, the teams then know which point to work on," he continues. "During the May training camp, the riders do less volume than in December or January. We focus more on quality, really trying to activate levers such as PMA (maximum aerobic power), threshold, explosiveness…"

In early May, Paul Seixas revealed on the Super Moscato Show his desire to develop his threshold after having "worked on shorter efforts of the 4-5 minute type." "It's going to be a different kind of work in terms of threshold training. On longer efforts, I hope to be even better, and that will make a big difference, in terms of endurance as well."

Based on available information, we can assume that Nicolas Prodhomme, Aurélien Paret-Peintre, Dan Hoole, and Stefan Bissegger - all of them often seen alongside Seixas - are part of the Decathlon selection. Furthermore, lead-out men Cees Bol and Robbe Ghys are reportedly present in Spain even though the participation of their original leader Olav Kooij is uncertain. Finally, the other notable absentee Tiesj Benoot is also in Sierra Nevada, HLN reports, even though his schedule might be different.

"The training camps really help to bond the group because they live like monks for three weeks. Their days consist of sleeping, eating, riding, eating, sleeping," recalls former French time trial champion Jérôme Coppel, who retired in 2016. "At the start of the Tour, the eight riders need to get along as well as possible, firstly so they can sacrifice themselves for each other, and secondly, with all the pressure and fatigue, the smallest problem can become a major obstacle."