Bilbao offends with remark about last year's much-discussed 'Vingegaard and Evenepoel crash' in the Basque Country

Pello Bilbao is Basque and calls the Tour of the Basque Country 'the most special event of the year.' Nevertheless, the Spanish stage race is struggling because, after last year's dramatic crashes of Jonas Vingegaard, Remco Evenepoel, and Primoz Roglic, none of the big names are present this year. Bilbao thinks that is a shame, he tells Marca.

The 35-year-old Spaniard was also there last year in his home race and saw from the front row how Vingegaard, Evenepoel, Roglic, and a whole bunch of others flew out of a corner at full speed. A lot of bones were broken, although Vingegaard and Evenepoel, in second and third place in the Tour de France, were just back on form in time. Bilbao did not crash and finished the race in sixth place in the final ranking. Juan Ayuso was the overall winner.

No one will really remember it because the 2024 Tour of the Basque Country will forever carry the reputation of being the tour of the crash. Men like Jay Vine (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) and Steff Cras (TotalEnergies) also returned from the race badly injured. The stage was neutralized because too many ambulances were needed to transport all the injured. This led to a renewed and intense discussion about safety.

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Bilbao calls discussion after Basque Country crash 'exaggerated'

Bilbao also heard it all and has his own opinion about it. "This is my special home race and on a spectacular course. Some teams don't push their leaders, but this race differs from other years. What happened last year was somewhat exaggerated by the consequences for all involved. It wasn't due to the course; there have been editions of the Tour of the Basque Country in which much narrower and more technical roads were used. In the end, what happened happened."

Without the big names in the Basque Country, Bilbao sees its chance to ride a good GC again. The winner of a Giro or Tour stage has been a constant factor in the subtop of road cycling for years. He seems to be completely in his element at Bahrain Victorious. And yet, this could very well be the penultimate time Basque Country will see Bilbao, whose contract expires after 2026. "It's not that I'm no longer motivated, but you must give up a lot in cycling. It is a demanding sport. Maybe it's time to change my life."

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