Nils Politt refuted claims he bullied or harassed riders trying to join the breakaway during stage 16 of the Tour de France, saying he was trying to remind riders of the unwritten rules of the peloton.
The UAE Team Emirates-XRG domestique was seen shouting at several riders, including Spain's Ivan Romeo of Movistar, during the high-speed first hour of racing. They were keen to go across to a three-rider breakaway and Politt was trying to control the race for team leader Tadej Pogačar.
A bigger break eventually formed on the road to Mont Ventoux and Politt was forced to do a lot of the work to keep them under control. Pogačar eventually finished fifth, 43 seconds behind Valentin Paret-Peintre (Soudal-QuickStep) who stayed away from the break to beat Ben Healy (EF Education-EasyPost) and so give France their first stage win of the 2025 Tour.
Some observers suggested his behaviour was tantamount to bullying. French national road coach Thomas Voeckler is following the Tour de France on a motorbike for French television and was critical of Politt.
“I hate riders who want to lay down the law under the pretext that they are stronger or in big teams. That's a detestable attitude,” said Voeckler.
Politt played down the whole thing when he spoke to Sporza on Wednesday before stage 17 in Bollène.
"It was nothing special," the German rider said. "We wanted to control the breakaway, and there was a breakaway with one minute, 20 seconds."
Politt suggested that he raised his voice after Pogačar stopped for a natural break. At the time, it seemed like a ploy by Pogačar to slow the peloton but riders kept attacking while riders were still off the back.
"He's the yellow jersey, and after he stopped, half the peloton stopped," Politt said.
"Tadej and I were the first riders to return to the peloton but then they started attacking again but there were still 30 to 40 riders behind.
"I've always been taught that the racing eases when the yellow jersey stops to pee. No one attacks then, but apparently we still have to learn the new rule."
The Tour de France is the biggest race in cycling, and a Cyclingnews subscription offers you unlimited access to our unrivalled coverage. Get all the breaking news and analysis from our team on the ground in France, plus the latest pro tech, live race reports, and a daily subscriber-only newsletter with exclusive insight into the action. Find out more.
