The Team Behind Tadej

Much has spoken about this Tour de France. The riders on the start line. The rider on the start line. Tadej Pogacar. So far in 2024, the Slovenian superstar has been as close to flawless as any rider in the sport’s history. He’s produced solo attacks that will live forever. He’s produced results that are incomparable to any rider in the modern era. All while doing so in a manner that has made him not only a global superstar, but the favorite among both the youngest fans of the sport and the most seasoned cycling aficionados. But who are the team behind the ‘Tufts’ at this year’s Tour de France that have rocked Cycling in 2024 and launched the sport into a new, unchartered stratosphere?

Adam Yates

The experienced Brit comes into the Tour as Pogacar’s right hand man in the mountains off the back of an excellent start to 2024. He kickstarted his year with a dominant victory at the Tour of Oman, taking the General Classification after storming victory on Stage 5. Yates, who enters his second season with UAE Team Emirates, then produced one of the most dominant performances of the season at the Tour de Suisse. Alongside his Portuguese teammate Joao Almeida, they decapitated the rest of the field in producing a 1-2 finish four successive stages on the bounce. His performances this season, coupled with his impressive podium finish at the Tour de France in 2023, makes him an incredibly strong ally to Pogacar as well as putting himself in the frame for a successive podium finish in Nice on July 21.

Joao Almeida

Almeida heads into his first Tour de France in imperious form. Alongside Yates, Almeida laid down an incredible marker to the rest of the field heading into the Tour after a blistering performance at the Tour de Suisse. Securing two stage victories to go with two podium finishes, Almeida looks as strong as he’s ever looked in the UAE Team Emirates jersey. The ex-Portuguese national champion is no stranger to Grand Tour racing, having secured his first stage victory at Giro D’Italia in 2023. Almeida’s role will be extremely similar to that of Yates, upping the tempo and pace on the toughest climbs to act as a launchpad for Pogacar’s famous attacks. That said, Almeida may well be a good bet for a podium place as the race enters into the final week.

Juan Ayuso

Like Almeida, the talented Spaniard will be taking to the start line at this years Tour de France for the very first time in his young career. Ayuso has had a solid 2024 season, missing out on an impressive victory at Tirreno Adriatico to current Tour de France Yellow jersey holder and Pogacar’s biggest rival, Jonas Vingegaard. He followed that up with a dominant victory at the Iztulia Basque Country, setting himself up nicely for the biggest race on the cycling calendar. As a strong time-trialist as well as super domestique, Ayuso will feel he has a strong chance at securing a stage victory at the Tour. Alongside his teammates, Ayuso has been at altitude camp for several weeks getting acclimatized and starting to really form the battle plans that will hopefully see the Yellow jersey returning to UAE Team Emirates this year.

Nils Politt

The German powerhouse, in his debut season with UAE Team Emirates, will have his work cut-out at the Tour. Alongside Tim Wellens, the two of them will be responsible for emptying themselves in managing and controlling the peloton for UAE Team Emirates, nullifying any attacks or breakaways to ensure Pogacar and his weapons are in a position to strike. Politt himself is no stranger to the Tour, having competed at the famous race seven times and securing a stage victory along the way. He heads into this year’s race having recently been crowned German time-trial champion.

Tim Wellens

Wellens, like many of his fellow UAE Team Emirates teammates, recently secured national time-trial victory to back up a strong start to the 2024 season. In his second season with UAE Team Emirates, Wellens has already proven himself as one of Pogacar’s favoured workhorses and has been alongside the Slovenian for may of his biggest wins, namely Strade Bianche this season. Wellens will be sharing the load with Nils Pollitt in managing the peloton and breakaway, ensuring the team are able to dictate the race to best utilize the star-studded weapons at their disposal.

Pavel Sivakov

Pavel Sivakov is an experienced Grand Tour racer, with 8 Grand Tours to his name in his career. Having joined the team from Ineos Grenadiers at the start of this season, Sivakov heads into this year’s Tour with the role of supporting the two workhorses in managing the peloton and breakaways, whilst also proving an invaluable asset to Pogacar and co. on the longer and more gradual climbs to set the foundation for the team. A powerful rider, Sivakov will also come into his own on the flatter stages to ensure that the team are constantly posing a question and a threat to their competitors across the 21-stage race.

Marc Soler

Spaniard Marc Soler rolls into the Tour de France as an experienced statesmen who has seen most things Grand Tour racing has to offer. In what will be the 13th Grand Tour of his career, Soler will be a cool and calm head in the peloton for the team, working alongside Sivakov on the flat as well as putting in the initial work on the longer and more challenging climbs. Soler is coming into the race following a battling performance at the Critérium du Dauphiné, again showcasing his form and reliability to the team. Pogacar will be relying on Soler to manage the group and ensure the race never gets away from the team.