Five-time Tour de France winner Bernard Hinault has categorically rejected hopes of seeing a French rider succeed him as winner of the Grande Boucle, at least in the short term.

In a lengthy interview he discussed his last victory in 1985, expressing admiration for Tadej Pogačar and explaining why he was not interested in equalling the record of five Tours, which he shares with Indurain, Anquetil and Merckx.

'It was never my priority,' Hinault insisted, adding that he was riding the Tour for fun, not for work, and that he sees the same attitude in Pogačar.

The harshest words were reserved for the French riders: 'I would be happy not to have this record of being the last Frenchman to win the Tour. It's a terrible realization, but it can't be avoided: in France there are no great champions capable of winning the Tour.'

'We don't have that 1000cc engine that can make the difference, only the 750cc one. I'm sure they do everything they can, but they don't have the results and above all they have no chance of winning the Tour.'

According to Hinault, after Laurent Fignon's defeat by LeMond in 1989 by just eight seconds, 'France has lost the habit of seeing itself as a possible winner, we have passed the baton to others'.

The French champion identified several causes for this crisis, including the globalization of cycling that has seen the emergence of Colombians, Americans, Australians and British. However, he praised riders like Julian Alaphilippe for having focused on other goals such as the World Championships instead of 'settling for a top 10 at the Tour that no one remembers'.