Julian Alaphilippe prepared to loose rainbow jersey in Wollongong - "Now I feel even less pressure"
Cycling
Julian Alaphilippe would on normal terms be a prime contender for the World Championships this weekend in Wollongong, but due to how his season has gone, it may be much more difficult for him to fight for a top result when comparing to the last two seasons.
"I'm here with a lot of motivation and I'm mostly relaxed," the Frenchman said ahead of the race in a press conference, on the same day where Thomas Voeckler confirmed the team's lineup for the road race. "I'm not in the best shape, that much is certain. I was injured in my previous race. Again, almost the injury too much. I'm not 100 percent, but I'm not worthless either. Only now I have no guarantees."
Having gotten serious injuries at Liège-Bastogne-Liège, he was forced to miss the Tour de France. His comeback at the Tour de Wallonie saw him come down with Covid-19, and then his Vuelta a Espana finished prematurely with a crash that caused a dislocated shoulder. With all the mishaps, Alaphilippe has not shown his best form since the spring, and enters the race as an outsider.
"I'm not the only leader," he points out however. "I have no problem with that. Other leaders have performed better and this course suits them too. I am prepared to give everything for my teammates." The likes of last-minute addition Benoît Cosnefroy, Romain Bardet, Christophe Laporte, Pavel Sivakov and Valentin Madouas are all contenders for a medal, giving the French nation an incredible amount of quality and cards to play in the finale.
He was asked if he feels the pressure coming into the race, to which Alaphilippe responded: "Not at all. In Imola there was pressure, last year I was prepared to lose. I had no pressure in Leuven and now I feel even less pressure (laughs)."
"Of course we are here for a result. I would like to relive everything from the past two years," he concluded. If he was to win, Alaphilippe would match the historic feat achieved by Peter Sagan from 2015 to 2017 in which he took the world title on three consecutive years.
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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.
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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)...
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- I had no idea about that either.
santiagobenites10-11-2026 - great analysis thanks! appreciate you posting this. I didn't realize CX had a different standard for deviation. this is even more egregious it seems.mij10-11-2026
- As he isn't currently with Red Bull, I guess if he want to race for one more year he needs to find a team. He's 37 so this will be his last year I would guess, unless he wants to race for almost nothing like Froome did.awp10-11-2026
- I think some are making much ado about nothing. Even though Jonas is getting older, before his crash in the Tour, he looked like a solid 2nd all the way home. No one can really climb with Tadej until this year, Eric Mas showed himself which I think was a one off year for him and Paul Seixas has been able to be pretty close to him. Whatever stage race Jonas enters as long as Tadej is not there he is a favorite to win.awp10-11-2026
- Giro or not Giro, he won't win the Tour!MajorPayne10-11-2026
- Very true.awp10-11-2026
- Ciccone had a very strong end of season. Consistently attacking and livening up races. Hope he makes that last leap in progress and starts notching some significant wins. Great rider to watch.Occam10-11-2026
- Me too!!!!!Occam10-11-2026
- they can sign any 100 of top riders today but Pogi will win over Remco any time at the TDF unless something goes wrongabstractengineer10-11-2026
- the time for a GC rider to retire is when they cannot win stages, or have a significant level drop like from winner/podium into top 5/10 consistently. Roglic is still competitive and Froome raced even though he became pack fodder.abstractengineer10-11-2026
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