Amid the excitement surrounding the news that Paul Seixas will make his Tour de France debut this year, there is one figure who is no doubt rubbing his hands with glee. Christian Prudhomme, the director of the Tour, has the hottest property in world cycling on his start line for July.
“It’s great news,” Prudhomme said in an interview with French broadcaster RMC. “There is such a big surge of enthusiasm surrounding him after his impressive performances. We were very keen to see him at the start of the Tour de France.”
Seixas is only 19 years of age and has never ridden a race longer than eight days in length. However, the level he has reached in what is proving to be a breakthrough second season has seen him fast-tracked to the sport’s biggest stage, as confirmed by his Decathlon CMA CGM team on Monday.
Article continues belowSeixas has won six races already in 2026, taking out La Flèche Wallonne and dominating Itzulia Basque Country, while his runner-up finishes at Liège-Bastogne-Liège and Strade Bianche have fueled the narrative of this being the challenger-in-waiting to the dominance of Tadej Pogačar.
“Paul Seixas is clearly not the favorite for this year’s Tour, but seeing him at the start by the side of Pogačar, of Vingegaard, and the rest, it’s something very powerful, even more so when he says himself that he’s not coming to make up the numbers, he’s not coming to gain experience, but that he’s coming to achieve the best result possible," Prudhomme said.
“He will be the youngest rider at the start of the Tour since 1937, and with ambitions too, so it’s something huge.”
Prudhomme was not overly forthcoming in predicting what exactly Seixas might achieve in terms of results. “A stage win, why not?” he said, before adding that a place on the overall podium “doesn’t seem illusory”.
However, what Produhomme was keener to underline was the impact the 19-year-old might have on the racing itself.
“I’m convinced he’s going to give us emotions, because he is capable of attacking from afar, he is capable of attacking everywhere. He has the insouciance of youth. There’s terrain made for riders who are strong and who dare. He is strong, and he dares.
“The Tour, the popularity of the Tour and the legend of the Tour is constructed not by this or that champion, but by champions, generation after generation, from Maurice Garin through Coppi, Anquetil, Merckx, Hinault… he is going to enter into that legend, and I obviously wish him the best. But he’s going to offer us a lot of emotions.”
Seixas’ nationality is also clearly a major factor for the director of the Tour de France, where the home country has endured a painfully long wait for a home men’s winner since Bernard Hinault last triumphed in 1985. Prudhomme made several references to Hinault, especially when discussing the fervour already building around Seixas, and that will surely reach fever pitch in July.
“Already, at Liège-Bastogne-Liège, I was in the car behind Pogačar and Seixas, and what did I hear from the side of the roads? 'Go on Paul! Come on Seixas!' Evidently, that support will be stronger still at the Tour de France,” Prudhomme said.
“I can’t imagine what [the pressure] will be like, and I don’t think he really realises that fully either. It’s a very important aspect. Recovery is paramount at the Tour de France. I remember seeing Julian Alaphilippe in 2019, so friendly, spending so much time with people after the stages. But it’s clear that, at a certain moment, that wears you down. So recovery is paramount. We will see how he deals with all that.”
