A TOUR interview with Felix Gall
The Interview was led by Andreas Kublik
TOUR: You are currently sitting in the team bus on the way to the final stage to Paris. Let's look back: How did you feel on the steep section to the stage finish at the Courchevel airfield - your greatest success after 5,400 metres of altitude, with the chasers breathing down your neck?
Felix Gall: I was incredibly stressed. I was so scared that I could still be caught up. The gap to Simon Yates (the first runner-up; editor's note) was actually always quite constant - and of course it would have been nice if it had increased. I thought: Shit, now I'm going to collapse - or: I'm going to take the wrong bends on the descent and lose a lot of time as a result. In the end, I just tried to get up there as quickly as possible without any thoughts. I just gave it my all and only realised in the last 50 metres that I had won.
TOUR: You had pulled away from everyone on the most difficult climb of this tour, the Col de la Loze. When did you decide to risk the ultimately decisive attack?
Felix Gall: There was no key moment. I didn't even notice everything. It was so loud there, the atmosphere was absolutely crazy. I felt really good on the final climb and waited until the really steep part started. Ben (Team-mate O'Connor, fourth in the 2021 Tour de France; editor's note) had previously done some great tempo work for me.
TOUR: How do you motivate yourself when it hurts like on the Col de la Loze?
Felix Gall: Of course, you look a bit at the wattage figures. I feel comfortable riding at a high cadence and just try to keep the movement in my head: pull, push. And to breathe evenly, which is becoming increasingly difficult. And I try to relax the facial muscles - because it brings the focus back when you relax your face. You just try to get the best out of it with a few tricks.
TOUR: That sounds like professional mental coaching.
Felix Gall: I don't really do much there. It's already mentally stressful when you're the leader of the team for three weeks. I think I can do more to become more relaxed. I look very relaxed on the outside, but inside I worry a lot.
TOUR: Your ride to the stage win took you down the Col de la Loze, which is not without danger. Was Gino Mäder's accident at the Tour de Suisse in the back of your mind?
Felix Gall: I have to admit that I've pretty much blocked it out. It's in the back of my mind, but not really present. I also tried to process the whole thing in the days afterwards with friends, colleagues and psychologists.
TOUR: On the 20th Tour stage through the Vosges, you rode to second place on the day - behind Pogacar, directly ahead of Tour winner Vingegaard. Do you see any opportunities for yourself to stay at their level for three weeks?
Felix Gall: Wow. The two of them are simply even stronger than everyone else. Nobody can match them at the moment. Jumbo also has an incredible team. For me, that's a whole new level. In the winter, I can think about what else is possible for me.
TOUR: Some observers have wondered why you didn't go on the offensive to win the mountain jersey on stage 20 - it was within reach, Giulio Ciccone was only a few points away.
Felix Gall: I realise that I may never have the chance to win a jersey at the Tour again. But eighth place overall was very important for the team - and for me too. The day showed me what is possible for me in the third week. So I have no regrets.
TOUR: You come from Nußdorf-Debant in East Tyrol - with a view of the Lienz Dolomites. Did your homeland, did the mountains shape you?
Felix Gall: I feel very comfortable in the mountains. They are a retreat for me after the races, where you have so much on your plate - and I like being close to nature. In return, I accept that I have to travel a little longer to the airport.
By today's standards, I'm a late bloomer. I simply needed more time.
TOUR: You started cycling ambitiously as a triathlete in East Tyrol. It is said that you were discovered at the Tour of the Dolomites by your first coach Günther Feuchtner, who then led you to the world championship title in the junior road race in 2015.
Felix Gall: Triathlon was the first sport I did when I was 14 - almost like a pro. I stopped after two years. Cycling had always appealed to me. But I wasn't planning to become a professional cyclist. I did a few amateur races, hill climbs and also the Tour of the Dolomites, which is a well-known cycling marathon. And that's where some people noticed me.
TOUR: You are now 25 and you were the first Austrian to become junior world champion. But it took a while for you to really make a name for yourself among the pros. Why did your breakthrough with the pros take so long - compared to Pogacar, for example, who is the same age?
Felix Gall: Everyone has their own development curve. But of course it's true: by today's standards, I'm a late bloomer. I simply needed more time. In the past few years, my health wasn't stable enough for me to always be able to train as I would have liked or as I would have needed in order to take the next steps. Now, for the first time, I've managed to get through a long period without illness.
TOUR: You changed teams for the 2022 season - after five years with the junior and professional teams of Sunweb and DSM respectively. Why?
Felix Gall: Team DSM wasn't quite perfect for me. The Development Team before was absolutely great. I don't want to badmouth it. But some teams don't suit the racing driver - or the racing driver doesn't suit the team. We had different views on where the journey was going. It took a fresh start at AG2R. I feel very comfortable there and have found my self-confidence.
TOUR: What do you need to be successful?
Felix Gall: Freedom! And I want to have a say in what is good for me and what is not good for me. The most important thing was that Team AG2R gave me so much confidence, despite my results in the past few years. They saw potential in me that I had always seen in myself. So I was able to build myself up again. It's not a process that happens overnight. It comes slowly, from result to result.
Andreas Kublik
Editor
