Lyonnais Paul Seixas, 19, put an end to the suspense on Monday by announcing his participation in the Tour de France this summer.
“If he wants to show he’s the strongest, he risks a big setback, it’s like in tennis, you can’t mess up,” warns Bernard Hinault on Monday 4 May on ICI Armorique, as young French cycling prodigy Paul Seixas announced his participation in the 2026 Tour de France. The five-time Breton winner prefers to wait for the result of the Grande Boucle before getting excited. The Tour will start in Barcelona on July 4.
Bernard Hinault is particularly cautious because expectations will be high for Paul Seixas’ debut. “He is French, we must not forget, he will have all the fans to stimulate him, to win the Tour because he cannot afford to come to finish 5th or 6th, considering all he has done,” warns the former Breton cyclist. The 19-year-old Frenchman, who rides for the Decathlon CMA-CGM team, continues to impress the cycling world. The public will be out in force to support the young French star next July. Will this be enough for Paul Seixas to achieve the feat? “Or to mess up,” Bernard Hinault asserts. “The Tour de France is not a vacation,” he insists.
Despite everything, the five-time Tour winner acknowledges that the young Frenchman has above-average qualities: “He climbs, he rides, he does what is necessary,” he points out. “Afterward, we will see the result when he finishes the Tour, if he was right, or if it was me,” Bernard Hinault continues.
The former cycling legend believes the 19-year-old Frenchman is entering the Grande Boucle too early, even though he is having a very good season, with victories on the Tour du Pays Basque, the Flèche Wallone, and a second place at Liège-Bastogne-Liège, just behind Slovenian world champion Tadej Pogacar. “He has never done a race of more than eight days, so there are fifteen additional days to endure. The Tour de France is a monument, it’s not a joke,” warns the Badger.
“When you’re 19 and you go, you feel like it’s a vacation,” but “it’s not a vacation.” For his first participation in the Tour de France in 1978, Bernard Hinault was 23 years and 7 months old, four years older than Paul Seixas.
