About Egan Bernal
Colombian rider Egan Bernal, winner of the 2019 Tour de France, will compete in the Giro d'Italia for Team Ineos, according to the British formation's planning. In addition, Ineos is considering Geraint Thomas, Geoghegan Hart, and Carapaz for the Tour de France, and Adam Yates for the Vuelta.
Dave Brailsford, director of Ineos, states that Bernal needs to "find the joy of competing" while incorporating a new expansive philosophy in the team. He also comments that the two time trials included in this year's Tour, of 27 and 31 kilometers, are a good opportunity for Geraint Thomas and Richard Carapaz.
"We asked ourselves: 'Do we put all our best cyclists in the Tour? Or do we distribute them among the three grand tours?' I think this gives us a good balance in the races," Brailsford said.
Although Bernal, 24 years old, has not been ruled out for the Tour, his plan is to debut in the Giro d'Italia. According to Brailsford, Bernal's participation in the Giro gives the Colombian less time to recover from the back injury that forced him to withdraw from the Tour.
"The first thing I noticed with Egan was his big smile, and he was an aggressive and charismatic rider. It is very important for him to find that joy for racing again," Brailsford comments.
During the competition, Bernal would be accompanied by Colombian rider Daniel Martínez, Russian rider Pavel Sivakov, and the world time trial champion Filippo Ganna.