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Paul Seixas will make his grand tour debut this summer at the Tour de France and target the yellow jersey.
The 19-year-old confirmed Monday he will line up alongside Tadej Pogačar and Jonas Vingegaard this July in what will be the most hotly anticipated grand tour debut in years.
“I am really very happy to announce that I will participate in the next Tour de France,” Seixas said Monday in a note from his team, Decathlon CMA-CGM.
“It is not my state of mind or my conception of cycling to align myself with the Tour de France simply for experience,” he added. “I will aim for the best possible ranking.”
The news ends ongoing speculation about the French phenom and his future program.
His rise has been so meteoric in the past 10 months he’s already being hailed by home fans as the rider who could break the nation’s long yellow jersey drought.
There are whispers he could even be a threat to Pogačar’s crown.
The long, lean climber matched King Pog last month on La Redoute at Liège-Bastogne-Liège and resisted his first moves earlier in spring at Strade Bianche.
In Pogačar’s absense, he dominated the brutal Mur de Huy of La Flèche Wallonne for a marquee victory and won Itzulia Basque Country.
With a birthday in September, Seixas will roll out for the grand départ on July 4 still aged 19.
“I’m only 19 years old but, as I’ve already said, age is neither a brake nor an excuse,” Seixas said.
“This decision, taken in consultation with the team management, has been carefully considered and has been built collectively in recent days,” he said. “My results since the beginning of the season have given me a lot of confidence; I feel ready, and I will have ambitious goals.”
Seixas’ team Decathlon CMA-CGM made a nod to the rider’s tender age in the tweet it posted to confirm the news Monday.
How far can Seixas go this summer?
Seixas fever is gripping the French public right now.
His impact this season has reportedly sparked a bidding war among rival teams for his contract.
Seixas is a sensation, there’s no doubt. However, opinions will be divided on whether he should race the Tour so young.
Seixas is bullish that age is no object.
Team Decathlon CMA-CGM agrees.
“He made a remarkable start to the season and is already among the best riders in the world,” said team manager Dominique Serieys. “And the best are destined to be aligned on the biggest race on the calendar: the Tour de France.”
Pogačar first burst onto the world stage aged 20 when he won three stages, the white jersey, and placed third at the 2019 Vuelta a España in his first grand tour.
Nobody will bet against Seixas doing similar at the Tour de France in 2026.
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