As the peloton arrives in Brittany this Friday, the heat returns to the roads of the seventh stage of the Tour de France. Doctors of the Cofidis and Totalnergies teams explained to RMC Sport how they help the runners prepare to resist large temperatures.
In the aftermath of the solo victory from Ben Healy to Vire, the Tour de France arrives this Friday in Brittany. On the lands of Bernard Hinault and before the final explanation in Mûr-de-Bretagne, the runners will also have to face the return of the hot weather on this 7th stage. And it could still last during the next racing days. Good news, everything is planned and the medical staff of the various teams committed prepared the peloton.
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Questioned by RMC Sport, the total doctor gave his method to help team members resist hot stroke.
“The main objective before departure is that their body temperature does not go up too much with the ambient heat,” revealed Paul Verhaeghe to RMC Sport. “Some will have cold vests, these are vests where we put ice pockets inside to maintain a low body temperature before departure.”
Ice pockets and drinks with salt during the race
After doing everything to keep a normal body temperature before the start of the race, the fight against the heat wave continues on the bicycle.
“Then, during the stage, we put pockets with ice cubes on the cans, which the runners can put at the level of their neck. For some time, the runners have also taken ice in the race,” continued the doctor of the total French team. “Ice pillaged in the cans or certain marks of gels also develop gels that are put in the fridge. During ingestion, they allow you to have a little fresh inside the body.”
On the side of Cofidis, Piet Daneels has another technique to help runners. His secret: good hydration.
“You have to drink a lot of water but you also put things in it like salt, or gastrolyte ors to hydrate them. And even before the race you hyper-hydrate, we try to give them water with gold so that they drink before,” said the Flemish doctor who has been working on the Bryan Coquard team for three years. “During the race they also take moisturizers, salt that is put in the cans.
Real inequalities between runners
As Piet Daneels explains, runners are prepared to cope with the hot weather during the race. But, despite the best preparation in the world, they remain uneven in the face of large temperatures.
“They are prepared but there are still individual differences. There are runners who find it difficult to bear (heat) so you also have to adapt,” said the doctor of the Cofidis. “The runners have also made controls in a laboratory to find out if they need more salt than normally. And like that we can adapt.”
Cold baths after the stage
After the arrival of the stage, one might think that the doctors of the teams engaged on the big loop can blow but no. Beyond the possible small sores to treat, the staff must not forget to manage the post-race and help organisms to descend in temperature.
“And afterwards, with the heat, we also try to make a good cooling down (cooling) after the end of the stage,” ends the doctor of the Cofidis.
Paul Verhaeghe, his counterpart is breastfeeding: “After the stage, there are the cold baths that are made. It is both to help recovery and to lower the body temperature.”