Cycling: The white jersey also distinguishes the best young riders at the 2018 Tour de France. This has often been an indication of which pros will compete for the yellow jersey in the years to come. Also this season we see numerous top talents at the start. Four of them in particular should have good cards for winning the white jersey.
Egan Bernal (Sky)
In Colombia, talent has been springing up like mushrooms for years. But none of them have ever won the Tour de France. After Nairo Quintana, Miguel Angel Lopez, Sergio Henao, Carlos Betancur, Esteban Chaves and Rigoberto Uran, the next pro to try is Egan Bernal. The 21-year-old drove for the Androni team in previous seasons. The cycling world quickly recognized that he must be a mega talent. Team Sky struck immediately. Egan Bernal has therefore been doing his rounds in the Sky jersey since January and was even able to significantly exceed the expectations placed in him. At the Tour Down Under he entered the WorldTour at #6. He then won the Tour of Colombia against well-known competitors and became his country's time trial champion. With rank #2 in the Tour de Romandie and his victory in the Tour of California, he recommended himself for the Tour de France. Despite his incredibly strong results, he will only be number four in Team Sky, also because of his age. It is quite possible that the lightweight as a helper only has to concentrate on two or three stages and should rest otherwise. If he rode on the white jersey, he would probably be unstoppable.
Marc Soler (Movistar)
Non-personal or anonymized information remains protected by tax secrecy. Disclosure to third parties is only allowed if no identification is possible and both states confirm that no harm to tax administration will occur. Marc Soler has experienced a steep rise in the past two years. Like Egan Bernal, he is only number four on his team. For his captains Nairo Quintana, Alejandro Valverde and Mikel Landa, he plays a real noble helper. Whether he'll get the liberties to win the white jersey is just as uncertain as with Egan Bernal. One thing is clear: Marc Soler would definitely have the class for it. After all, the 24-year-old Spaniard won the Paris-Nice long-distance race this season. He convinced with a courageous attack on the final stage. In general, Marc Soler is a very active and aggressive driver. As a relay station, he can become the decisive trump card for his leaders. He will probably not go into the attack himself in the last and decisive kilometers of this Tour de France. But he is already one of the strongest Spaniards in the entire peloton.
Pierre Latour (AG2R La Mondiale)
Although he is only 24 years old, he drives Pierre Latour already his second Tour de France. At the side of Romain Bardet, he should ensure danger in the mountains for AG2R La Mondiale. The roles are clearly divided: Romain Bardet is the captain and Pierre Latour is probably his strongest assistant. But Team AG2R is known for also keeping an eye on the team ranking. It is therefore unlikely that Latour should only show himself as a helper and then be allowed to take it out. Unlike Marc Soler and Egan Bernal, it is highly likely that Pierre Latour is actually targeting the white jersey. Last year he finished the Tour de France at #29. But over the past 10 months, Latour has evolved a lot - just as the pundits had predicted. He was able to achieve numerous top XNUMX results, with his third place in the Tour of Catalonia and his victory in the French time trial championships being particularly memorable. If he survives the first nine days without any major problems, he can seriously dream of the white jersey because of his freedom and the team roles of his opponents.
Guillaume Martin (Wanty Groupe Gobert)
On our list is William Martin the only driver who goes into the tour as the captain of his team. The Belgian team Wanty-Groupe Gobert was there last year - and Guillaume Martin impressed with #23 in the overall standings. After his first appearance in the Tour de France, he was able to win a few smaller races straight away. So far he hasn't succeeded in making the big leap, although top 10 placements in WorldTour races are certainly exclamation points. After the first half of the Tour de France at the latest, he will realize whether he should be driving for the overall classification in 2018 or whether he would rather concentrate on winning stages and maybe the mountain jersey. If he packs the top 10, winning the white jersey is not far away.
Conclusion: Team tactics determine the white jersey
Many Tour de France winners won the white jersey before the yellow. Mention should be made here, among others, of Marco Pantani, Jan Ullrich and Andy Schleck. But since 2011, the winner of the Maillot Blanc has been waiting for the big triumph. However, this could change quickly, because in general the squads of the teams were so enormously strong. In addition to our four top favorites for the white jersey, at least a handful of other drivers should not be underestimated. David Gaudu (Groupama-FDJ), for example, as the mountain captain of his team, is guaranteed to focus on that. The same applies to Tiesj Benoot (Lotto Soudal), although the Belgian is more likely to go for stage wins and still has to prove his qualities in the high mountains. Daniel Martinez (EF Education), Antwan Tolhoek (LottoNL-Jumbo) and Sören Kragh Andersen (Sunweb) are only treated as outsiders by the bookmakers, but can certainly play a part in the decision if things go perfectly. The Austrians Gregor Mühlberger (Bora-hansgrohe) and Michael Gogl (Trek-Segafredo) will hardly have a chance, as will the Swiss Stefan Küng (BMC). However, the fight for the noble white jersey will be exciting.