Jonathan Milan a few kilos lighter at the start of the Tour de France: "Green jersey is one of my big goals"

You could describe the 24-year-old Italian as a BFG: Big Friendly Giant. As imposing as his presence is on and off the bike, he’s just as relaxed off it. That was clear at the press event Lidl-Trek organized Wednesday morning ahead of the Grand Départ.

With a constant smile, Milan spoke to the journalists. Had he learned any Dutch words yet from his lead-out men Jasper Stuyven and Edward Theuns? “One, but I’m not going to say it here,” he laughed. The comparison with rivals Merlier and Jasper Philipsen? “I’m taller,” he said dryly.

He isn’t quite as big as he was at the start of the Dauphiné. “I’ve lost a few kilos during altitude training and at the Dauphiné, but it doesn’t make a huge difference. We work a lot on getting over the climbs well,” said Milan, who finished an impressive seventh at the Italian national championships on Sunday.

Milan knows what’s at stake on Saturday in the Lille metropolis. “I’m a favorite, but so are Tim Merlier, Jasper Philipsen, Dylan Groenewegen, and a few others. The yellow jersey is a big dream; for me, it’s equal to the pink jersey. We know what’s on the line.”

“We have one of the best teams when it comes to lead-outs,” said the Italian, referring to his trusted train, which includes Theuns, Stuyven, and his friend Simone Consonni. “That takes some of the pressure off because they can guide me perfectly to the final kilometer.” With a final straight of one and a half kilometers, this stage seems tailor-made for Milan.

When you think of sprinting, you also immediately think of the points classification in the Tour. “The green jersey will be difficult, but it always is. It’s one of my big goals for this Tour, although I think if you win stages and get good results, you automatically start competing for it. Right now, I’m mainly focusing on the first sprint stages, and then we’ll see. I see five or six real chances.”

Milan doesn’t explicitly mention the final stage on the Champs-Élysées, knowing that it now includes the climb of Montmartre. “The last stage is a bit of a question mark now. As a sprinter, of course, I would have preferred the old stage, but now it might be a bit more open. But that’s still far away – first, let’s get to that sprint on Saturday.”