"The makers, in American style, are looking for sensation" - Jasper Philipsen doesn't like how he's portrayed in Tour de France documentary

The Tour de France series 'Unchained' will have it's third and final season premier this 2nd of July and as has been the case in the past, Jasper Philipsen will be one of the headliners in the series. The Alpecin-Deceuninck sprinter doesn't however enjoy the fact that on the series' trailer he is portrayed as a rider who takes extreme risks and endangers others.

"The makers, in American style, are looking for sensation to boost the viewing figures. Because they provide promotion and reaction," Philipsen said in words to Het Laatste Nieuws. "We (the team, ed.) do not get a preview, while it does determine your name and image to some extent".

Sprints are inherently dangerous and the Belgian rider has often been involved in situations where he was criticized by other riders or pundits due to his movements in the peloton. His ability to surf the wheels in the peloton and fight for positioning is also part of his success as a sprinter, and to a certain degree, all fast men require this skill - as well as their leadout men.

The introduction of new rules look to make sprints safer, although thus far it must be said the difference can't be noticed. Yellow cards as consequences for the riders were also introduced to try and have riders take less risks in the sprints but Philipsen doesn't think it's becoming a solution. "And that they are looking for solutions to make it safer. But what is yellow and what isn't? It's sometimes hard to determine."

He gives the example of a recent sprint at the Baloise Belgium Tour, where he saw first-hand a case where he doesn't agree with an attributed yellow card: "After the crash at the end of the second stage of the Baloise Belgium Tour, Davide Bomboi was punished. While that boy had done nothing wrong. He only avoided Jonas Rickaert, who dropped out after his lead-out. He just cycled around him - what else was he supposed to do? Hop, yellow. Unjust and unnecessary."