Vlasov struggles but finishes fifth on Tour de France debut - "We can be proud of it"

Aleksandr Vlasov had his run-up to the Tour de France spoilt due to a Covid-19 infection whilst he was leading the Tour de Suisse, however the Russian rider managed to ride consistently at the Tour to finish a strong fifth place in Paris.

"The Tour is different to all the other races. Everyone tells you that before their first Tour, but it's hard to grasp this until you experience it yourself," Vlasov said in a press release after reaching Paris. "This was my first Tour and it's really true: the Tour has its own way of racing. The level is extremely hard every day, there are no easy stages and every day in the peloton is quite stressful."

After coming into the race with an unknown level, Vlasov shed a lot of time at Planche des Belles Filles indicating he was far from his best level. He managed to briefly get in the Top10 in the Alps, but the race was going far from plan before reaching the Pyrenees. A crash on stage six saw him slightly injured aswell, however he recovered towards the decisive final week.

"I started the race in good shape and was confident, even though I had Covid after the Tour de Suisse, which was certainly not optimal. My preparation was otherwise very good, so we did everything right. Unfortunately, then I had the crash and from then on, this Tour was a real struggle for me. I really suffered a lot," Vlasov explained. "But I think my fighting spirit and my teammates, who were always there for me, kept us in the race."

"After my crash, I never really had the feeling that I was able to deliver a performance that was at the level of my true form. I had good days and bad days, but I was never really at the place where I was beforehand in this season," he said, lamenting his performances were below the expected level. Nevertheless the Russian showed good form in the Pyrenees jumping into the Top10, and in the final time-trial put on a strong performance that saw him climbing to fifth, a good result taking into account his words.

"In the end, fifth place is still a good result and I'm almost a little surprised that it was possible under these circumstances to be so high in the overall standings. I am pleased with the result and I think we can be proud of it as a team, and particularly of the way we fought for this result," he continued. Whether he will return or not, he hinted: "Should I return back here next year, I know what to expect and that will certainly make a difference".