"This is the Tour. This is the Tour. There is nothing more important than the Tour de France. I want to take this jersey back to Colombia," stated by Bernal after completing the gruelling three-week, 3,409 km cycling marathon.
It was a memorable Tour de France and nothing short of great storylines:
- Bernal—the first Colombian and first Latin American Tour champion, and the youngest winner in modern race history.
- Caleb Ewan took the prestigious Stage 21 victory in a bunch sprint on the Champs-Élysées.
- Peter Sagan won a record-breaking seventh green jersey
- Romain Bardet won the King of the Mountains classification.
It was a victorious day in Paris as the 22-year old became the winner of Tour de France last Sunday. Egan Bernal joined the Tour de France fresh from being the top cyclist in the Tour of Switzerland.
Many people considered Bernal as a strong contender this year because of his exceptional climbing skills and dominance in high altitudes. He was victorious and became the first Colombian and the first Latin American to win Tour de France when he crossed the final leg on the Champs-Élysées.
Egan Bernal also became the youngest winner of Tour de France in modern race history. Included in the list are Francois Faber, who held the record in 1909, and Henri Cornet as the youngest ever who won the Tour in 1904.
Bernal launched a solo attack in the Alps and finished second on Stage 18 next to Nairo Quintana. He became the only overall contender to put in time on Julian Alaphilippe, the French cyclist who led the race for 14 stages this year.
On Stage 20, he comfortably defended his yellow jersey and became the likely winner of the 2019 Tour de France. His lead became official and permanent when the race concluded on Sunday.
The win secured Team Ineos its fifth-straight Tour de France title, as well as it's seventh in the last eight years. A record earned with four different riders. Bradley Wiggins won in 2012, Chris Froome won a total of four titles in 2013, 2015, 2016 and 2017 respectively, Geraint Thomas won it last year, and this year Egan Bernal.
This year's Tour has provided us with a new generation of contenders and pretty sure that in the years to come will pass their torch to these young riders. Bernal being the youngest competitor wearing the yellow jersey, he also won the white jersey as the race's Best Young Rider.
Everyone now is looking forward to the Tour in 2020 which will start on June 27 in the southeastern French city of Nice.
“The most recent editions of Paris-Nice, including the one that just finished yesterday, have shown us that the variety of landscapes and relief in this region are conducive to suspense, attacking and a thrilling spectacle," said by Christian Prudhomme, Tour de France director.
Until the committee announce the course this October then the focus will stay on this year's winner, Egan Bernal and his Ineos Team — and whether a new challenger will emerge in the coming years.
