Tour latest: Egan Bernal tells us he’s ”proud” of himself; TDF boss lifts lid on 2024 route; Puy de Dôme analysis; why there’s no rest on a rest day

As the Tour de France pauses in Clermont-Ferrand for its rest day, these are RadioCycling's latest headlines...

2019 Tour de France champion Egan Bernal has made a miraculous return to racing after his near-fatal training crash in Colombia last year.  The Ineos Grenadier tells us why he's proud of what he's achieved in making it back to the Tour, what he's hoping for from the rest of the race, and why Jonas Vingegaard and Tadej Pogačar are racers "from another planet" and that his long-term goal is to join them on it.

In an exclusive interview, Tour boss Christian Prudhomme reveals the thinking behind the organisation's bold planning for the opening week of the race, confesses that the 2024 Tour could follow a similar pattern with an early visit to the Alps after its Grand Départ in Florence, and confirms that talks about a British Grand Départ in 2026 are ongoing.

We look back on the Puy de Dôme, which ran true to form in this all-action Tour, producing an enthralling – and quite heartbreaking finale – and another major setpiece in the contest for the yellow jersey.

Pre-Tour reconnaissance of key stages has been a requisite for almost all yellow jersey contenders for three decades, but the Puy de Dôme, which is closed for all bar one day of the year, highlighted how this is changing. We speak to Jayco-AlUla team director Matt White and Jumbo-Visma DS Frans Maassen to hear how technology is changing Grand Tour preparation.

Rest days may offer a break from racing, but there's little chance to rest for rider agents, who traditionally spend them flitting from one hotel to the next trying to secure contracts for their clients. We speak to Jai Hindley's agent Gary McQuaid, who explains why they're so important to those in his trade and how longer-term contracts are changing negotiations.

And, finally, in our Coffee Beans section of news and gossip...
– Barcelona's angling for a Grand Départ
– Israel-PremierTech owner Sylvan Adams is testing his team's bikes himself
– Plus the latest on the Lidl fruit furore, a story we broke earlier this week

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