Ilnur Zakarin admits to losing 100k rubles after betting on teammate Marcel Kittel's victory at Tour de France: "I never bet on sports again"
Cycling
Ilnur Zakarin was the best Russian GC rider of past decade. With stage wins from Giro d'Italia and Tour de France as well as podium result at the 2017 Vuelta a Espana, he has many memories to be proud of. In 2018, he completed a great Tour de France in the Katusha-Alpecin jersey along the mythical sprinter Marcel Kittel. One memory connected to the German speedster draws a somewhat warped smile on Zakarin's face even after the years.
"I was very lucky that we rode the Tour de France on the same team," Zakarin recounts the story on his Facebook. "After the stage, we met for dinner and I noticed that he was already eating his third plate of pasta. I asked: 'What's wrong, man?' He replied that he felt that he would win the stage tomorrow, and this feeling never lets him down."
"I laughed, but didn't put the information about the feeling aside, because I have the same thing. Just a sidenote, he won 5 stages at the Tour de France a year earlier [in 2017, ed.]."
"After dinner, I quickly got to my room and wrote to my buddy to bet 100 thousand [100k Rubles = €1350 as per average 2018 exchange ratio, ed.] on Kittel's victory. My buddy, who understands cycling, said that it was a bad initiative. But my emotions were stronger and I still bet on him. Of course, I sent the money right away and waited for the next day. The bet should work, and I will earn a lot of money."
"In the morning, I woke up cheerful and charged and expecting a big win. I wished Marcel good luck, and all day I covered him from the wind, fed him and protected him. I fell behind by the finish line, and when I got there, I immediately asked how he finished? He calmly replied that something did not go well that day."
Kittel's best result at the 2018 Tour de France, which later turned out to be his last participation at the race, was third in the opening stage. For Zakarin who had lost a bit of time (and money) at the beginning of the race, that Tour turned out to be pretty successful as he finished 9th overall after three weeks of racing. And gained a bit of wisdom too: "After that, I never bet on sports again."
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Ilnur Zakarin admitted on Facebook that he once bet 100k on Marcel Kittel to win a Tour de France stage -after seeing him eat 3 plates of pasta and saying he had "a good feeling he'd win the next stage."
— La Flamme Rouge (@laflammerouge16) December 9, 2024
Kittel didn’t win, and Zakarin never bet on sports again. pic.twitter.com/pd2sKnQmhR
Ondrej ZhasilCycling Journalist
Ondřej Zhasil is a cycling journalist at CyclingUpToDate and has been part of the team since 2023. He is based in Ostrava, the third-largest city in the Czech Republic, and covers professional cycling across the main UCI competitions, including the Tour de France, the Giro d’Italia, and La Vuelta a España. A key focus of his work is startlist analysis and pre-race coverage, where he examines team selections, rider line-ups, and tactical scenarios ahead of major events.
Alongside WorldTour coverage, Ondřej has developed specific expertise in junior cycling and in racing across East Asia, including competitions in China and Japan. He also maintains a broad working knowledge of other disciplines and levels, including cyclocross, while continuing to expand his understanding of mountain bike racing.
Ondřej holds a bachelor’s degree in Mathematics and Physics, which supports his analytical, data-driven approach to performance and race analysis. In his reporting, he regularly uses ProCyclingStats for results, statistics, and historical context. He places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles promptly when new, verified information becomes available.
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