Philippa York meets Pierre Latour
The 24-year-old has been touted as France’s next big thing
Philippa York spent the recent Tour de Romandie with Cyclingnews, producing a series of articles and podcasts. Here, she catches up with French time trial champion, and the nation’s next big hope, Pierre Latour.
Now in his fourth year as a professional, AG2R La Mondiale’s Pierre Latour has steadily risen to the forefront of French cycling. Quite often in the past, young hopefuls have been burdened by the expectations of a nation waiting for the next Bernard Hinault or Jacques Anquetil.
France has a proud history of Grand Tour winners, but managing the pressure of being labelled a future champion hasn’t always been easy for riders – such as Jean-François Bernard or Laurent Jalabert – who at an early age have been labelled as potential Tour de France winners.
PL: I knew it was possible to win it, and I was in great form. And I find that it motivates me even more now that I’m the TT national champion: I want to do well. It pushes me to try harder.
PY: Vincent Lavenu, AG2R’s team manager, is known for developing riders from his local Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region. Is that something that you hoped to be a part of as a youngster growing up there?

Thank you for reading 5 articles in the past 30 days*
Join now for unlimited access
Enjoy your first month for just £1 / $1 / €1
*Read any 5 articles for free in each 30-day period, this automatically resets
After your trial you will be billed £4.99 $7.99 €5.99 per month, cancel anytime. Or sign up for one year for just £49 $79 €59

Join now for unlimited access
Try your first month for just £1 / $1 / €1
Get The Leadout Newsletter
The latest race content, interviews, features, reviews and expert buying guides, direct to your inbox!
Philippa York is a long-standing Cyclingnews contributor who provides expert racing analysis. As a professional rider, she finished on the podium at the Giro d'Italia and Vuelta a España, as well as winning the mountains classification at the 1984 Tour de France.
The latest race content, interviews, features, reviews and expert buying guides, direct to your inbox!
Thank you for signing up to The Pick. You will receive a verification email shortly.
There was a problem. Please refresh the page and try again.