"He'll be one of the big names in the peloton," says Bardet as he passes the torch in his final Grand Tour

Before the Giro d'Italia, all eyes were on the sprints with Van Uden, Poole's first taste of a Grand Tour GC, and Bardet, who, as Poole's mentor in a free role, was given the chance to try and win a Giro stage. That trio delivered. Van Uden won stage 4 and finished second in the sprint on day 12, Bardet fought for the stage win on days 15 and 17, and Poole climbed to 11th place in the general classification despite losing a lot of time in the Siena stage.

"It seems like a long time ago since we started in Albania, but at the same time not that long ago. It’s been quite a fun Giro, actually," said Poole in a press release from the team. "I’ve had some ups and downs, some challenging periods that I had to overcome, but I’m happy to make it to Rome, and we can look back on the race in a good way. Learning how I deal with the tough moments and realizing that I’ll have them over the next three weeks is some of the main things I can take from this race. I've also learned a bit about myself and knowing that I can push through things."

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Speaking to IDLProCycling.com, Bardet said he was impressed by Poole. "Max is still very young, and he was competing for the GC for the first time. That's super tough over three weeks, and the result isn't even that important. It's about the mindset he had for three weeks. Even when he was dropped, he showed fighting spirit and kept going until the finish. He's going to make big progress, and in the future, he'll be one of the big names in the peloton."

A nice prediction. On the other hand, Poole was proud to have been able to experience Bardet's last Grand Tour up close. The French climber is retiring after the Critérium du Dauphiné. "It's extraordinary to have been part of Romain's last Giro. I spent a lot of time with him this year. He's such a great guy, on and off the bike. Everyone knows him and knows what he has achieved on the bike, so it's very special that I got to spend all that time with him."

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"It feels good to be here in Rome," said Bardet himself about his final day in a Grand Tour. "A lot can happen in a race like this, so I'm glad I made it. It was a successful Giro for the team, with two young leaders, Casper and Max, who did a great job. That offers a perspective for the future, as we spent three fantastic weeks together. Something developed in this group."

Bram van der Ploeg (Twitter: @BvdPloegg | email: [email protected])