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Follow us on GoogleBernard Hinault rarely holds back when it comes to the French. In an interview with RMC Sport, the five-time Tour de France winner is no different. Just as he did a year ago, he has strong words for the French public in response to questions about Tadej Pogačar.
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Cast your mind back to late April 2025, when TotalEnergies team boss Jean-René Bernaudeau linked doping and Pogačar. "Let him give guarantees. Some have done that," the Frenchman said at the time.
"We live with suspicion — we had the Festina affair. I don't think cycling can afford to get into another scandal," Bernaudeau continued. Hinault reacted sharply then too.
Bernaudeau is of course not the only Frenchman who struggles with all-powerful cyclists. The French cycling hero said cynically: "It's never the Spanish, Italian or Belgian teams. I think we're a bunch of complainers, and because we don't win, the others are cheating."
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Bernard Hinault
Hinault defends Pogačar again
In 2026 too, Hinault knows that doubts about Pogačar persist in France. And his anger about it has barely diminished compared to a year ago. "If Pogačar were French, we would have found it perfectly normal," he repeats his argument from 2025.
But Hinault adds a contemporary comparison: "And that is precisely the worst of it — and what stings me. Nobody asks these questions about Léon Marchand. He is breaking all records and lives and trains in the United States, but he is French, so we find that perfectly normal."
Marchand is a French swimmer who, at 23, is perhaps even more dominant in the pool than Pogačar is on the bike. Yet the Slovenian, partly because of cycling's doping history, faces regular doping questions whenever he competes in the Tour de France.
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Is Mauro Gianetti's past a reason for the Pogačar questions?
"These constant suspicions make me so angry," said a visibly furious Hinault — who nonetheless understands where the remarks come from. "Yes, Pogačar works with a manager who has done stupid things. But when you do stupid things, you go to prison."
Hinault is referring here to Mauro Gianetti, the Swiss team boss of UAE Team Emirates, who as a rider and team manager was linked to doping. "But that is no reason to condemn him for the rest of his life. He has served his time."
Bram van der PloegEditor-in-chief
Bram van der Ploeg (35) is the proud founder of In de Leiderstrui, IDL Pro Cycling's parent site, launched in 2018. Finally, he could create stories about the sport he had followed since childhood. He is the editor-in-chief on paper, but prefers to be with his recorder next to a rider, a team bus, or in the mud at a cyclocross race. Every year, from February to the end of May, Bram follows the entire Italian cycling season, from the Trofeo Laigueglia to the Giro d'Italia, with the grand finale in October in Lombardy. During that time, he lives in Tuscany, where he has since come to call Italy his 'home'.
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Latest Comments
- I’m still figuring out cyclocross: do the riders use the same bikes for the grass, sand and mud, or change them during the race?jeremya02-11-2026
- £50 seems a bit steep for a day out, though I suppose it’s a major event and the demand is clearly there. Do family tickets make it much more affordable?tourdeforce902-11-2026
- Fifteen thousand is a serious crowd for a World Cup round. Glasgow could be a huge moment for British ‘cross if Mason can get near the podium again.jennifer1902-11-2026
- Those junior races are a great addition — it gives young riders a proper spotlight before the elites take over. Hope the course makes the most of the park rather than just being a muddy spectator scrum!samanthak02-11-2026
- Fantastic to see cyclocross getting this kind of response in Scotland. A packed Kelvingrove Park should make for a brilliant atmosphere, especially with Mason racing on home roads.raceready702-11-2026
- No explanation after 15 years feels a bit thin. The budget pressure may be unrelated, but it’s hard not to wonder if all these changes are connected.samanthak02-11-2026
- I’m still learning how team directors work—does the head sports director decide race tactics, or is that mainly down to the riders and the person in the team car?velodromevirtuoso102-11-2026
- A proper changing of the guard at EF, especially with Carapaz going too. Hope they don’t lose the team identity in the reshuffle.cadencekingm02-11-2026
- White coming back just before Wegelius leaves makes the timing look significant, even if EF haven’t said there’s a connection. Interested to see who gets the head DS role.raceready702-11-2026
- Fifteen years is a huge stint in modern cycling. Wegelius’ knowledge of EF and its riders will be hard to replace.robert6502-11-2026