PRESS CONFERENCE | Jonas Vingegaard 100% ready for 2025 Tour de France: "I'm on the highest level I've ever been"
Cycling
Jonas Vingegaard is a headliner for this Tour de France and realistically the only rider who can battle with Tadej Pogacar in the mountains. The Team Visma | Lease a Bike rider responded to the media's questions during the team's press conference and CyclingUpToDate has learned about his answers.
The Dane has talked about his historic rivalry with Tadej Pogacar, aspects of his performance that have improved over the past year, his opinions on the 2025 Tour's route, the recovery from his 2024 and 2025 spring crashes and how he has gained weight since last year in an attempt to better the World Champion in his attacks.
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Question: What's the plan to defeat Tadej Pogacar to win the Tour.
Answer: I'm not going to tell you or anyone here, I tell my team. I obviously have my plan like we always do but we can't tell the media.
Q: Yesterday Pogacar said that you are very strong specially on the long climbs, do you agree with him?
A. That's a very nice complement from Tadej. Tadej is a nice guy and I think we aqw on the Dauphiné that he was better on the long climbs so I don't know if I would agree at least how it was in Dauphiné. Hopefully I can be even better here than I was at the Dauphiné. We have a strong team and I believe our plan.
Q: In what way do you think the key for the Tour victory is in the first 10 days?
A: For sure the first 10 days are very important, it will be a very hectic start, a very hectic first 10 days. I never tried a bunch sprint on stage 1 so that's a first. All the time I saw as a kid, from what I could tell from the television, it was very hecitc. First 10 days we have to stay out of trouble, not lose anytime, then normally you can make the big difference in the mountains.
Q: You're stronger than ever but you're also unsure if it's good enough to win.
A: I think I can say for sure I'm stronger than ever. Of course last year I was also on a very high level at the Tour de France but it was in a different way. I had a lot less muscles but I was also lighter. Of course I'm more heavy now than last year but it's muscle and we know that it gives a lot more power overall. I can say that I'm on the highest level I've ever been, and let's see if it's enough.
Q: You already talked about how you're a bit heavier this year, can you tell us what you feel in differences from this year's Tour to last year's?
A: This year there is a big difference compared to last year, last year I came back from the terrible crash and to be honest it took me way longer than I thought to actually come back. It's only be a few months that I would say that my body feels the same as it did before the crash. It took me almost a year to get back to the same as it was prior to my crash. And then obviously being in bed for three weeks we lose a lot of muscle. We tried to gain that back and we succeeded.
Q: It's a long way to Paris but a lot of riders talk about Montmarte, what do you think about it? Do you think you'll ride it as a proper stage?
A: To be honest I think it will be ridden more as a normal stage. i cannot see, how to say, if the GC is close that we do all the parades and stuff like normal. If it's close in GC there's still a chance to turn it upside down so it'll create a lot more stress. I said it also earlier but the whole thing about Montmartre is that in the Olympics they were there with 50 riders, now it will be over 150 riders fighting for position so it'll create a lot of stress as well which will make it much more dangerous in my opinion.
Q: Stats say this is probably the most intense rivalry in Tour de France ever between you and Tadej, a few seconds between you over five years. What's it meant for you? Has it been a source of inspiration, obsession? Can you talk us through the history of this rivalry and what it's meant in your career?
A: It's true as you say that having a rival that is as good as Tadej brings out the best in yourself and you know you have to train hard everyday to compete with him. For me it makes me better, a better cyclist and I have a lot of admiration for Tadej, he's a very nice guy and bike rider, I only have good words about him.
Q: Obviously yellow in Paris is the main goal for the team, but in the first part of the Tour de France there are opportunities for Wout van Aert. Is it a plan for you to also help Wout van Aert achieve his goals?
A: I'm also very happy when Wout is going to win a stage or more stages and if he could ride a few days in yellow, but we also talk about the main goal being to win the yellow jersey in Paris and we don't want to compromise that. But if there's a chance to help without compromising then I would do it obviously.
Q: Are you afraid of Pogacar or his teammates?
A: If we were afraid of Tadej we wouldn't be here, my good sports director (Grischa Niermann, ed.) said earlier that we would've better stayed at home [if we were]. If we would be afraid then it's better not to show up, obviously we're not afraid but we have a lot of respect for what he can do.
Q: In the Dauphiné in the time-trial you were a lot better than Tadej, do you think that's an advantage or does that depend from time-trial to time-trial?
A: It depends from time-trial to time-trial, I think also in the past I've showed that normally when you do a not-so-good time-trial in the Dauphiné you can still do a good time-trial in the Tour de France so a lot of things can happen in the meantime. Obviously it's better to do a good one there, but we will see on stage 5 where we will be.
Q: In the mountains what do you think will be the most challenging stage?
A: Honestly there are quite some challenging stages in the mountains this year, I'm not going to point out one that's more than the others. I think the two stages in the Pyrenees and two stages in the Alps are pretty equal all of them.
Q: After your crash at Paris-Nice, how long did it take to recover?
A: It took me one week on the couch, I had to sleep a lot for one week. I was awake for about an hour and then I had to sleep for an hour, the first five days were like this. From there on it started getting better then from day 8 or 9 I could start training at a very low intensity.
Q: You sprinted against Tadej in the first stage of the Dauphiné, you exchanged some words with him after the finish, could you share with us what they were?
A: I can't remember, sorry! (laughs, ed.)
Q: More power, more muscles. Does that help with the stages in the first week and also to match the accelerations of Tadej in the mountains.
A: Of course doing an acceleration is easier, or you have a better acceleration when you have more muscles, obviously that was also our plan last year because we felt like I was weak in the accelerations so we tried to increase that as well.
Q: Everybody is speaking about you today and Remco. Who do you consider the most dangerous outside of those three?
A: To be honest there's a lot of guys, it's the Tour de France and everyone brings their best teams. Primoz is a very good contender as well, he crashed out of the Giro, he will be ready for it I think and also INEOS have a very strong team, Movistar as well. There's a lot of guys, and of course there's a lot of guys I didn't even mention here.
Q: If you look back how do you describe these first four years and this particular Tour?
A: Like every year felt almost like a victory. First year I came in and at my first Tour de France so a second place feels like a victory. Then two victories felt like a victory, and last year came back from what I experienced almost felt like a victory itself. I almost feel like I have four victories in the Tour.
Q: So you're chasing the fifth?
A: Yeah let's say (laughs, ed.)
Q: You've got a Giro d'Italia winner (Simon Yates, ed.). How does it impact your confidence with the mountain trains?
A: It's true, Simon is a really good guy, he was super strong. He was also there in the altitude camp there in Tignes (in May, ed.) and we were watching his Giro victory. I'm super happy to have Simon on the team, not only him but also Sepp and Matteo for the mountains. For me it's a dream team in the climbs to be honest. Not only in the mountains but for the flats we have a full classics squad. I think we have the strongest team as well.
Q: Yesterday Tadej was asked about how he deals with the spotlight specially in a race like this, you've got a room full of people staring at you. What's that like and how has it changed over the years?
A: Of course the first time you're in it it's a bit overwhelming, there's quite some people in here, but you get used to it. You get more relaxed in these situations, and yeah something you learn with time, you don't think much about. Specially at the Tour de France it's more than the double of every other race so you kind of just know it it by now.
Q: In your opinion what are the weaknesses of Tadej?
A: I think in recent years he hasn't had many weaknesses I would say. To be honest, if he has any I wouldn't sit here and tell you, then they know. Those are cards we'll keep for ourselves.
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.
Beyond editorial work, he has been closely involved in the expansion and coordination of CyclingUpToDate’s wider network, helping establish and support sister platforms across multiple languages. This includes ongoing collaboration with CiclismoAlDia (Spanish), CiclismoAtual (Portuguese), WielrennenUpToDate (Dutch), and RadsportAktuell (German), contributing to a shared editorial vision and consistent international coverage.
He also helps oversee editorial governance across the network, setting standards for accuracy and consistency and coordinating updates or corrections when needed.
Originally from the Porto metropolitan area in Portugal, he holds a bachelor’s degree in Geography. His path into cycling journalism was shaped not through formal media training, but through independent reporting, community engagement, and sustained on-the-ground involvement in the sport.
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)...
Within 18 months of launch, he helped grow CyclingUpToDate’s English-language platform into one of the most-read cycling news websites, built entirely from the ground up. As both a professional journalist and lifelong cycling enthusiast, his focus remains on delivering accurate, timely, and well-contextualized coverage.
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- lol yeahmij08-11-2026
- I know, their headlines can be so misleading. Pidcock had a great season with 5 wins. and some solid 2nds. no reason to take away from that with a fake headline.mij08-11-2026
- You can clearly see the the posture change from slightly sitting to again out of the saddle while changing of gears in the video of the sprintabstractengineer08-11-2026
- He has already beaten Pogi twice in the TDF. the achievement is over. He cannot beat Pogi now and he only has a few years left at the top. Win Giro and compete in the TDF, maximise palmares.abstractengineer08-11-2026
- Just looked again at the photo. Yeah I stand by that. If MS had fallen over in Brands direction I don’t even think she would have hit her. You must be a UCI race commissioner. I’ll be sure to check my sock height should I ever see you on a ride. Looks like everyone else on here sees what I see.mij08-11-2026
- I said looking at the photo it doesn’t appear she deviated. Chill out, not stating my word is the final judgement. Just commenting that based on the photo I don’t see it. And BTW the Dutch coach even said she didn’t impede her.mij08-11-2026
- Blah Blah Blah !frieders308-11-2026
- MS said she was changing gears so that caused her slight deviation. Nothing was intentional.frieders308-11-2026
- How can you use a photo post incident to judge the incident itself (which is not hard to find if you’re prepared to invest the same amount of time in searching as writing that comment? It’s harsh but technically right even though this or worse is not always sanctioned in every race. The two things that went against MS (who unfortunately for her would still have won without making her mistake) are that it was not a bunch sprint where there could have been an overlooked incident or mitigating circumstances explaining a deviation. Everything was focused on just those 2, Schreiber was riding beautifully balanced which made her sudden deviation look unnatural stroke as if it could have been in some part intentional whilst she was slowly drifting ever closer towards the barrier to a point that would have reached obstruction level. In her defence, it might have been the realisation she was heading towards that that made her react suddenly and caused the deviation involuntarily. In any case, congratulations to her for the ride of her life, in people’s minds she will be credited for it.Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- Good boy Obviously doesn’t need that much help dealing with pressure, as some have suggested. Wiser (and humbler) than many far further along their careers. About offering him the moon, recently someone came up with an explanation of the downfall of a football great (either referring to Maradona or Portuguese Ronaldo) saying it was kind of normal after coming back from the moon, except that others, including some who actually did go to the moon like Armstrong (Neil in case anyone is too switched off to realise) didn’t go through any of the same motions after coming back. A lot of how you deal with situations has less to do with the situation than with your character.Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
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