Although the Mexicans were knocked out of the World Cup on home soil, a young professional cyclist from that North American country is stepping into the spotlight at the Tour de France.
Isaac del Toro, aged 22 and making his Tour debut, celebrated his first stage victory at the 113th Tour de France on the second stage in Barcelona, riding under the guidance of his supportive team leader Tadej Pogacar. The following day, thanks to his surge on the final climb, he helped Pogacar secure the stage victory and take the Yellow Jersey from Jonas Vingegaard.
“You can’t imagine how I’m feeling right now,” he said on Monday after his stage victory: “Everything that’s going on right now is just absolutely mad.”
Pogacar: “I gave more than a hundred per cent”
A day later, his team-mate Pogacar had nothing but praise for him: “Thanks to Isaac, I had a bit of extra power today. He gave more than one hundred per cent today,” said Pogacar, before he and del Toro chatted amiably as they coasted to a halt.
He is well on his way to becoming a great stage racer. Del Toro is currently wearing the white jersey as the best young rider. Last year, he narrowly missed out on overall victory in the Giro d’Italia, finishing second. In the final mountain stage, Simon Yates thwarted del Toro’s hopes of victory.
He can now be sure of a loyal following here, just as he was in Barcelona. “We’ve got a new fan club from Mexico. It’s great to see so many fans from Mexico here,” said his German team-mate Nils Politt.
Breakdown in Barcelona
Initially, Sunday’s stage did not go to plan for del Toro, who, curiously enough, received help from, amongst others, the rival Visma team – for whom the Danish rider Vingegaard, a rival to Pogacar, rides. The young professional had suffered a mechanical problem and was standing at the side of the road waiting for assistance. His own team’s support car was too far away – so his rivals spotted the dejected rider and came to his aid.
In the end, he managed to secure the stage victory despite this setback. It was a gift from Pogacar, who crossed the finish line alongside him. Pogacar later triumphantly hoisted the young star aloft to celebrate his first stage victory. However, he is not the only Mexican stage winner in France. Raúl Alcalá once won two stages, though that was 37 years ago.
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