Cycling star Tadej Pogacar recently spent a night in a hotel that isn’t really designed for celebrities. The world champion and four-time Tour de France winner and his team had to make do with accommodation without air conditioning on the night before the rest day in the French Massif Central. It is an old hotel without air conditioning, a team spokesperson confirmed when asked by the German Press Agency.
However, the problem was reportedly solved by the professional cyclists bringing their own portable air-conditioners and special mattress toppers. The team led by Pogacar and the German professional Nils Politt uses mattress toppers which, according to the manufacturer’s website, can cool or heat the sleeping surface via a water circulation system. The hotels for the teams are selected by the Tour organiser, ASO.
Heatwave in France
A heatwave is sweeping across central France. Temperatures in parts of the Massif Central are reaching around 40 degrees. On Sunday, ahead of the first rest day of the 113th Tour de France, the ninth stage was shortened for the first time in the Tour’s history due to the heat.
Pogacar, the current overall leader of the Tour, has recently spoken out frequently about the heat. In the debate over how the Tour organisers are handling the extreme conditions, the Slovenian put forward an idea. “If I had the power, I would reorganise the entire calendar and avoid racing in hot locations in July and August,” he said after the ninth stage, as reported by several media outlets. “I would draw up a completely different calendar, but that is beyond my control.”
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