"I wasn't a fan of the Sky era" - Tour de France director Christian Prudhomme admits racing is more exciting in the modern day

Christian Prudhomme has long been the spearhead of the Tour de France, operating as race director for cycling's most watched race since 2007. Over a big portion of that time, Team Sky dominated, taking the Maillot Jaune through the likes of Bradley Wiggins, Chris Froome, Geraint Thomas and Egan Bernal.

"I wasn't a fan of the Sky era, where it was completely locked down, they attacked 800 meters from the finish," Prudhomme says to Midi Libre though, admitting he gets more enjoyment out of the modern day's racing. "Now, they attack from afar, they make or break. We had an absolutely fantastic Tour 2 years ago, we had an exceptional half of the Tour last year. I just hope that everyone arrives in full possession of their means."

According to Prudhomme, things started to switch around in 2019. "We have been lucky to have had attacks from afar for 4 or 5 years, since 2019 and the turn of the gun-toting grandpas, if you will allow me the expression, of Thibaut Pinot and Julian Alaphilippe," he laughs. "Then, there were Van Aert, Van Der Poel, Pogacar, Evenepoel, etc."

As was the case when the likes of Chris Froome and Bradley Wiggins were in full flow, over recent years there have also been doping questions in regards to Tadej Pogacar and Jonas Vingegaard. According to Prudhomme, there is nothing wrong with asking these questions, given past doping scandals in the sport and the Tour de France. 

"Given the history of cycling, we can always ask questions everywhere. We fought for years to have an independent agency that takes care of the controls," he explains, insisting his race and cycling as a whole can combat the doping questions better than in the past. "Today, there is the ITA (International Control Agency). I do not doubt for a single second its effectiveness."