Ben O'Connor and the Tour de France: From a love-hate relationship to a newfound peace

There are those who experience the Tour de France as a burden, and those who, after years of ups and downs, are learning to truly love it. Ben O'Connor , 30, an Australian rider for Jayco-AlUla, arrived at his fifth participation in the Grande Boucle with a newfound serenity, that of someone who has come to terms with the past and decided to move on.

O'Connor's Tour career has been a true romance: unfortunate crashes, days to forget, but also flashes of pure class, such as stage victories in Tignes and Courchevel, as well as a precious fourth place in the general classification. A far from linear path, which he himself described as a "love-hate" relationship. Now, however, something has changed.

"I initially called it a love-hate relationship, but I think I can take that back. In the end, the Tour has treated me really well," O'Connor told Cyclingnews before the ninth stage in Malemort. "I won two stages here, I finished fourth overall, and sure, I've had a few crashes—never my fault, always due to race situations—but essentially, this race has always given me my best results, especially in breakaways. I've won several times. So, yes, I love being here. It's exciting. It's the biggest platform on the calendar, and in recent years, I've started to appreciate it more and more."

On the sixth stage to Gavarnie-Gèdre, O'Connor had already attempted a solo attack, attacking before the Col d'Aspin and the Col du Tourmalet. But UAE Team Emirates-XRG left the field empty-handed, pushing at a frenetic pace even in the valleys to prepare the ground for Pogačar's winning attack. "It was a strange day. Normally, rivals sit back and wait, then Pog's team says, 'It doesn't matter, let's start from the first hill.' Instead, they decided to go 50 km/h even on the flats, and that was probably the difference," O'Connor explained. "Even on the sprinters' stages, they never relax; they keep everyone on edge. That's why Liam Slock almost won stage eight. Cycling is definitely more intense now."

Another interesting topic raised by the Australian concerns the Giro d'Italia-Tour de France double in the same season. O'Connor, who already has the 2026 Giro under his belt, dispels a myth: "Honestly, I'm feeling great. Maybe after the twentieth stage I'll think differently, but I think the Giro-Tour situation is a bit overstated as a problem. The month between the two races is probably one of the best you can have: you've already done a lot of work, a lot of days at altitude, and there's a lot of accumulated load. If you take care of yourself, I don't see why it's not more popular among the riders."

Photo: Sprint Cycling Agency