Paul Seixas on the Tour de France: why a good part of the answer can be found this week in the Basque Country

The question that has been agitating the cycling world for months is whether Paul Seixas will participate in the Tour de France this summer. The response largely depends on his performance at the Tour of the Basque Country where the French prodigy makes his return starting this Monday.

A month after his sensational second place at the Strade Bianche, the 19-year-old from Lyon is back in the saddle for a six-stage race where his main rivals are expected to be two other young riders, Isaac Del Toro (22 years old) and Juan Ayuso (23 years old), along with veteran Primoz Roglic.

This is an opportunity to enrich his record and end a 19-year drought for French cycling on a World Tour level stage race. The last French winner was Christophe Moreau in 2007 at the Critérium du Dauphiné.

It is also a chance to continue a brilliant start to the season that has further fueled the hype around the climber from Team Decathlon CMA GCM, with a second place at the Tour of Algarve behind Ayuso and a solo victory at the Faun Ardèche Classic.

His results, the way he achieves them, and his maturity in racing have reassured those who see Seixas as the long-awaited successor to Bernard Hinault, the last French winner of the Tour de France in 1985. “He is the chosen one,” affirmed Marc Madiot, president of the Groupama-FDJ team.

Naturally, the question that was raised this winter about his first participation in the Tour de France as early as next summer, despite his young age, has resurfaced quickly.

The debate has quickly stirred the cycling world, with some believing it is too early and that the young man would be better off gaining experience first in a Vuelta or a Giro, away from the voracious pressure of the media and the general public, before attending the main event in July.

Dominique Serieys, the head of the Decathlon CMA-CGM team, expressed his support for seeing Seixas in the 2026 Tour last year.

Since then, the French team’s management has set a roadmap that will lead to a decision after the Flèche Wallonne on April 22, 2026, and Liège-Bastogne-Liège four days later. The Tour of the Basque Country plays a fundamental role in this reflection process.

“After Liège, we will analyze all his races, especially the Basque Country, as it is a challenging one-week race,” explained Dominique Serieys to AFP during the last Paris-Nice, stating that the team will focus on the phenomenon’s recovery capacity.

This schedule remains on track for Seixas, who has been training in Nice in recent weeks.

“I feel ready and I will be surrounded by most of the best climbers on the team. There is a very competitive field, and it motivates me for my first World Tour stage race of the year,” explained the young talent, who will be accompanied this week by Matthew Riccitello, Nicolas Prodhomme, and Aurélien Paret-Peintre.

Indeed, the Basque Country will provide valuable indicators with an individual time trial of 13.8 km on the first day and then – due to the topography – five stages full of ascents.

An ideal playground for Seixas’ qualities as an excellent climber and former junior world champion in time trials, an essential combination for shining on the Tour de France, whether in 2026 or later.