If you have been into cycling for over a decade, you will remember the Team Sky days. Even the most ardent fan of the British outfit would struggle to describe the squad as ‘fun’. They had a reputation of astute seriousness and being performance orientated at all costs. This was completely fair enough — they were operating at the highest level of professional sport, where their marginal gains got results. But even still, the relaxed attitude that resulted in Thymen Arensman’s second stage win at this Tour de France for his Ineos Grenadiers team seems at odds to the approach the squad’s previous iteration took to the roads of France every July in the 2010s.
“He's an adult, but they're just kids and they're here to race their bikes as best they can,” said Arensman’s sports director, Zak Dempster, who has been encouraging his riders to race in a liberated, unrestrained and enjoyable way.
“As I keep telling the team throughout this Tour: ‘all we can do is try — whatever happens happens’,” continued Dempster. The Grenadiers approach may be harnessing the enjoyment the riders get from racing, but it’s by no means laissez-faire or laidback. Ineos and Arensman, like the rest of the peloton, have been racing full throttle up and down hills, in stifling heat and hail, for 70 hours over the last few weeks.
“It is professional sport, so I think it's only normal that part of that process is trying new things and going through stuff and it's not f*cking easy what these guys do,” Dempster said. The sports director has been impressed by Arensman’s commitment and resilience: “You never know what he is capable of. He’s been in five breakaways, he’s learnt from every situation and it didn’t work out yesterday, but he’s turned it around and done something even more special today.”
Both of his victories have certainly been special. On stage 14 he finished ahead of Tadej Pogačar and Jonas Vingegaard on the day to Superbagnères. Today, the top two GC men were also the next across the line, only the Dane crossing first ahead of the yellow jersey this time.
That kind of calibre of stage podium for one stage win let alone two shows how impressive Arensman’s climbing has been at this Tour. It isn’t easy by any means, but the Dutchman is living his childhood dream, and the pain of the effort was smothered by the warm glow of victory, of it all being worth it: "I am absolutely destroyed. I can't believe it. Already to win one stage in the Tour: unbelievable, from a break. But now, from the GC group against the strongest riders in the world it feels like I'm dreaming."
There was something carefree about his multiple attacks on the final climb, when he got the separation, it was just down to how strong he was: "I tried to not look behind and go as fast as I could, and it was enough. It's just crazy."
Dempster recognised just how extraordinary Arensman’s win was, beating two of the best climbers ever: “It's pretty incredible to win from a group like that in the last mountain stage of a Grand Tour, let alone the Tour de France, I’m just so proud.”
“Obviously it was from the GC group. Winning stages from breaks in the Tour, you're basically trying to beat Grand Tour winners anyway, so I think when you do so when you've got Pogačar and Jonas and all those other guys there, it just shows his qualities.”
The sports director explained the benefit Arensman has got from being unshackled from GC ambitions, both physically but also mentally: “It's definitely a different kettle of fish if you're going for stages rather than GC — it's less of a constant, you can let the foot off the gas on some days, go be a bit more aggressive on others. It's a more fun way of racing if we're honest. I think he's really enjoyed that and he's capitalised on it.”
Dempster is hoping the fun isn’t over at this Tour for Ineos squad: “Today we can just be really proud that we've won two stages, but definitely tomorrow we're hatching plans again. Winning breeds winning, so I'm sure that the guys will come out swinging tomorrow.”
