Tour de France 2026 ***Spoilers***

[No Ta Doctor]

Seems odd as they increased the intermediate sprint points that he tended not to chase.

Yes, but they removed multiple intermediates in 2011 (when he won). So yes, you could get 20 points, but there was only one sprint to get it. At the same time they boosted the stage winning points, especially on flat stages, and they started mucking about with the position of the intermediate, so you might have to get over some fairly serious bumps to pick it up

 

[Dogtrousers]

Yes, but they removed multiple intermediates in 2011 (when he won).

That was the year he got lucky and got away with being OTL (with a load of others) wasn't it.

I'm not sensing any kind of anti-Cav conspiracy.

 

[Pblakeney]

Yes, but they removed multiple intermediates in 2011 (when he won). So yes, you could get 20 points, but there was only one sprint to get it. At the same time they boosted the stage winning points, especially on flat stages, and they started mucking about with the position of the intermediate, so you might have to get over some fairly serious bumps to pick it up

Reads more and more like “Who do we want to win it?” and adjusting the points to suit.

 

[No Ta Doctor]

Reads more and more like “Who do we want to win it?” and adjusting the points to suit.

Well I think it was a fair point - Cav won green for the first time in 2011, when he won 5 stages
He won 6 stages in 2009, and Hushovd won green with a single stage win, and 5 in 2010, when Pettachi won green with 2 stages. Quite rightly they thought it was making a mockery of the points competition when the supreme dominant sprinter of the age wasn't wearing the jersey despite banging out the stages.

 

[N0bodyOfTheGoat]

Wouldn't it be simpler if teams had to nominate riders for specific jerseys prior to the Tour and you identified them on the road by marks on their jersey?

 

[No Ta Doctor]

Wouldn't it be simpler if teams had to nominate riders for specific jerseys prior to the Tour and you identified them on the road by marks on their jersey?

They should just run each stage three times, once for each jersey and teams can choose which version to send riders to. If you want to be considered for two jerseys you'll have to ride stages twice. White jersey would be run with the yellow jersey race, obviously, as it would be stupid not to.

 

[Pblakeney]

Well I think it was a fair point - Cav won green for the first time in 2011, when he won 5 stages
He won 6 stages in 2009, and Hushovd won green with a single stage win, and 5 in 2010, when Pettachi won green with 2 stages. Quite rightly they thought it was making a mockery of the points competition when the supreme dominant sprinter of the age wasn't wearing the jersey despite banging out the stages.

The problem is right there in your post.
It is a points jersey, not a sprinters jersey.
Sagan knew how to win the jersey while not being the best sprinter. Maybe he is the main reason Cav didn’t win it more often.
Change the rules and change the name then fair enough but until then…

 

[No Ta Doctor]

The problem is right there in your post.
It is a points jersey, not a sprinters jersey.
Sagan knew how to win the jersey while not being the best sprinter. Maybe he is the main reason Cav didn’t win it more often.
Change the rules and change the name then fair enough but until then…

Well Sagan's first green jersey came in 2012, where Cav won three stages, but so did he (and Griepel). He also got placings in multiple stages where Cav was nowhere and chased the intermediates. I don't think anyone is going to complain about that

And yes, it's a points jersey not a sprints jersey, but it's designed for sprinters, that's why you don't get the same amount of points for winning on Hautacam as you do for winning in Bordeaux. And regardless of whether it's a sprinter jersey or points jersey, you want the guy winning nearly a third of the stages in the race to be wearing it over someone who's only won one or two

 

[Pblakeney]

Well Sagan's first green jersey came in 2012, where Cav won three stages, but so did he (and Griepel). He also got placings in multiple stages where Cav was nowhere and chased the intermediates. I don't think anyone is going to complain about that

And yes, it's a points jersey not a sprints jersey, but it's designed for sprinters, that's why you don't get the same amount of points for winning on Hautacam as you do for winning in Bordeaux. And regardless of whether it's a sprinter jersey or points jersey, you want the guy winning nearly a third of the stages in the race to be wearing it over someone who's only won one or two

Yeah but, Sagan won the jersey 7 times with only 12 stage wins. I suppose he wasn’t a worthy winner?

 

[mjr]

Yeah but, Sagan won the jersey 7 times with only 12 stage wins. I suppose he wasn’t a worthy winner?

Nope, as he's demonstrated by doing those terrible adverts about paying for things with his "whoosh" which sounds like a euphemism for his bottom!

 

[Jameshow]

Prudhomme said in 2011 :
"I first realised there was an issue when I realised that we had a sprinter like Mark Cavendish and he hadn't won the green jersey in three Tours,"

No sweat Sherlock!🤣

 

[Jameshow]

Wout Van Aert uled out of the Tour - elbow injury lingers. Per Dan Benson.

That's a shame!

I wonder if he would like a bit of company?

We are his fan club and we did help him get the the PR win recently!

If anyone got his address we could arrange a coach?!🍻🍻🍻🤣

 

[No Ta Doctor]

Yeah but, Sagan won the jersey 7 times with only 12 stage wins. I suppose he wasn’t a worthy winner?

Well he won in both 2014 and 2015 without a stage win (Kittel got 4 in '14, Greipel 4 in '15)

But if we look closer, in '14 he had eleven top ten finishes, including four second places and in '15 he had eleven top ten finishes, five of which were second place so I think we can be OK with that, he was literally in the top ten for over half the stages raced for those two years. In the seven editions he won green he was in the top ten on 74 stages out of 147, that's 50.3% It would be churlish to deny that was green jersey worthy.


Just for interest, in the twelve Tours he started he was in the top ten on 92 stages out of 235 (he only raced four stages in 2017 when he was rightly DQed for putting Cav into the barriers). That's 39% of stages he raced in the Tour he was in the top ten. Pretty much the same as Pogacar, though obviously a lot more of Pog's were stage wins.

 

[M.R.M]

It should be a sprint jersey and not a points jersey. A points jersey is a pointless jersey. A sprint jersey designates the best sprinter in the race.

The polka dot jersey is equally pointless since it doesn't actually designate the best climber. That is usually the best GC rider.

 

[matticus]

The polka dot jersey is equally pointless since it doesn't actually designate the best climber. That is usually the best GC rider.

... with the slight twist that GC is on TIME, not positions.