Irish road race champion Nicolas Roche has been sidelined from racing since the Tour de Romandie, but he will make his competitive return this Sunday in the Tour du Canton d’Argovie in Switzerland. He will compete in the one day event before returning briefly home to his base in Italy, then travelling to the Tour de Suisse.
Providing all goes well and he can show signs of form in the latter race, he would appear to be in line to ride his second Tour de France with the Ag2r La Mondiale team.
The 25 year old was one of the squad’s best performers this season, with top five stage finishes in Paris-Nice, the Tour de Romandie and the Volta a Catalunya, as well as fifth overall in the latter. He also rode well in Liège-Bastogne-Liège.
The Tour de Romandie caused an interruption to his season, though. After placing third and ninth on stages, an incorrectly set-up time trial bike led to a hamstring tear which forced him to withdraw from the race. He had to take two and a half weeks off the bike, using swimming to try to hold onto his fitness, then returned to the bike on May 20th.
On Monday he began a training camp with his Ag2r La Mondiale squad at the ski village of La Touissure, and has been ramping up the intensity. While his endurance is still affected from the break, he reports that his leg is feeling fine. His plan now is to keep building form in the weeks ahead.
VeloNation spoke to him on Monday evening, getting an update as to where he stands.
VN: Nicolas, how are things going at your training camp?
Nicolas Roche: I just arrived yesterday…it is going okay, today we had a good ride. We went up the Col du Glandon, the Croix du Fer, some other climb and then back up here to La Toussuire. Three major climbs, a good four hours training, so I’m happy enough.
Tomorrow is a long day…we will leave the hotel at eight in the morning, have a two hour drive, then go to the stage of the Tour that arrives in Chambery…the one that goes up the Col de la Madelaine. It will be a long, hard day.
VN: How long will it be?
NR: I think six hours is planned, because we are cycling back to the hotel as well, going up La Toussuire again. So it will be a good six hours.
VN: Obviously if you are doing six hour spins, it suggests that the leg is feeling okay…
NR: Yes, the leg is feeling good. When I started back, I did four or five days of just easy, easy spins, then I started doing longer rides at the same pace.
Then last week, I did 28 hours of training. It was probably one of the biggest weeks of the year, I reckon. I was pretty happy – I was not doing any specific work, but I was happy just going along on the bike. The weather was good, and I was riding with Simon Clarke and Leigh Howard from HTC Columbia. The three of us had a great ride. There was nice sun, and good conditions. I was happy to go out on the bike again.
VN: So you have no twinges at all from the leg?
NR: No, I have only started doing specific work in the last four days, but the leg is alright. I am happy enough because I am feeling pretty good on the bike as well.
VN: Do you think that perhaps it was good for you to get a break?
NR: It was definitely good and I needed a break at some stage, but it is just that maybe three weeks was a good ten days too long!
Anyway, I have a month to get ready [for the Tour]. Hopefully it will be fine. It is two weeks tomorrow since when I started back riding my bike, and I already feel that I am progressing every day. Now it is just a question of working a bit on distance again. I did one of those Gran Fondo rides on Sunday…that was 180 kilometres, that’s like a race. I was grand for about 130, 140, then I felt a sudden tiredness towards the end.
Now it is just a question of working on the endurance, and doing other specific work.
VN: Your Ag2r La Mondiale team have indicated that you will do a one-day race before the Tour de Suisse?
NR: Yes, I am racing this Sunday in the Tour du Canton d’Argovie. After that, I will go home on Monday, then on Friday I will already be leaving for the Tour de Suisse. After that, I will go back to Ireland for the nationals. I’d love to defend my title there and get another jersey.
VN: What are your chances of making the Ag2r La Mondiale selection for the Tour?
NR: Well, if I get to a certain level, I will have a chance to go again to the Tour. We haven’t spoken about it, I haven’t seen Vincent Lavenu yet, but I think for the moment, everybody is waiting to see if the leg is okay…I’ve only been training two weeks. But I think the team trusts me now when I say that I feel I am going well, that I am going to be going okay. They can sit back and trust me now.
That is also very encouraging for me too, to know that the team trusts me when I say that I think I can make it in time. Now it just a question of me doing just that. But there is another month left, there is the Tour de Suisse before that, so we’ll see how it goes.
VN: It was announced in recent days that the Tour of Ireland will not be taking place this August. That must be something you are disappointed about?
NR: Yes, I heard that yesterday and of course it was disappointing. Even though I didn’t have a chance to ride it in the past two years and my first appearance was too brief [due to a saddle sore], it was important for the Irish public to have a proper pro race. The FBD Rás is a success, of course, but it is also good to see the riders that you watch on TV in the Tour.
I think it helped to keep the interest in cycling…not just watching the Tour in July, but also having this Tour of Ireland, with riders who had been racing in the Tour competing there.
My feeling is that cycling is so popular as it is so close to the people. That was a reason to have it in Ireland as well – when people go to the race start, they are just one metre away. There are no barriers in the car parks where the team buses are parked. That is very close, you don’t see that in other sports. I think that is also why cycling is surviving, because you are so close to the actual athletes.
When you are in the stadium, even when you are in the front row, you are still quite a bit away. So I think it was important to have the Tour of Ireland there, to keep the attraction going, but I think it is a hard time for everybody now.
VN: The organisers say that they hope to get the backing and put it on again next year….
NR: Yes…I do hope that the stop is not permanent, that they will keep on fighting for it to be on next year. Also, that I will get a chance to do it as well.
VN: Finally, one of the more unusual stories doing the rounds now is the suggestions that some riders may have been using bikes with hidden motors in them. What is your feeling about that?
NR: I have no idea, to be honest with you! I heard it on the radio when we were at the Classics, but I haven’t made my mind up about it yet. If it is true, it is ridiculous [laughs]. I certainly hope it is not true, because it would get of people in trouble. For sure there has got to be manufacturers involved in it as well. I don’t know…I haven’t made my mind up yet on it.