BMC were the first team to hold their press conference on the second rest day of the Tour de France in Gap, with Tejay van Garderen looking relaxed and confident as he spoke to a small gathering of media in his team hotel after breakfast and just before the team’s training ride.
Van Garderen slipped to third overall on stage 14 to Mende after losing time to both Chris Froome (Team Sky) and Nairo Quintana (Movistar). He is targeting a place on the final podium in Paris but accepted that he will also have to watch out for the likes of Alberto Contador and Alejandro Valverde as they try to take his prestigious podium spot.
“They say there’s never an easy day on the Tour de France and that’s certainly true after the tough first week and the even tougher second week. But I feel like I’m recovering well every day, the team is strong every day and we always have strength in numbers in the final. I expect that to continue all the way to Paris,” van Garderen said in reply to questions from Cyclingnews.