Motorcycles, once again involved in an incident during this Tour de France 2023. This Thursday, several vehicles were stationary during a climb in the Col de la Loze located eight kilometers from the finish. Several motorcycles, including that of Thomas Voeckler, hampered the riders. Jonas Vingegaard blocked. Thibaut Pinot would have lost 30 seconds.
“The motorcycle did not stall, would like to explain Thomas Voeckler on France 2. A motorcycle stopped. A car too and yet another motorbike. We had to stop behind but we didn’t stall. With the weight of the bike (more than 350 kilos empty) and a slope of almost 25%, we could not restart. The public came to help us but wanting to do well… The pilot Joël Charly managed not to put her down. If the bike goes down, it’s even worse.”
On the Vélo Club set, the usual commentator wanted to deliver his version of the facts on this incident which will have earned him a day of exclusion from the Tour. Thomas Voeckler readily admits his fault and accepts the penalty. “We had the right to be in that place, swears the former Europcar team rider. We were within the rules. We were responsible for the fact that runners were hampered. We were sanctioned and that’s normal. Our fault is that we couldn’t leave. We interfered with the race. Luckily, it didn’t have too big of an impact.”
During this incident, several vehicles were stationary on this 25% slope, as confided by the manager of the France team. “We could talk about it for hours because it’s not just us who have been blocked. It was a very complicated climb for the motorcycles.”
Asked about the large number of people on the roadside, Thomas Voeckler does not want to overwhelm the spectators. On the contrary ! “There are no problems with the public but there may be things to adapt, but it is not for me to say, swears the former wearer of the yellow jersey. There may be a more festive audience. Well, that doesn’t bother me. You may just have to adapt. But we’re not going to complain! I was not worried by the public, I know how it behaves. What worried me was the safety of the runners but also of the spectators.
Finally, Thomas Voeckler wishes to salute the class of riders embarrassed by the incident, who remained very polite according to him. “They were even nice. Me, I would have screamed three times more. The runners yelled a little but that’s normal. They were soft.”
Sanctioned for a day, the former rider should resume his place this Friday for the 19th stage of this Tour de France between Moirans-en-Montagne and Poligny.
