At the start of the Tour de France, an unidentified ‘secret pro’ wrote for Escape Collective that Florian Lipowitz races “atrociously bad.” The 24-year-old German, according to the unnamed peloton insider, is a rider “who is clueless but riding really strong.” They added of his ride at the Critérium du Dauphiné where he finished third: “I was watching him attack and then dangle five seconds in front of the peloton that was riding tempo, thus exposing himself to the wind and wasting incredible amount of energy… he was just constantly doing the opposite of what he should be doing. He’s clearly an insane talent, but he races horribly.”
At the end of the Tour de France, Lipowitz, that unstylish and at times suicidal bike rider, has won the white jersey for the best young rider and finished third overall, behind winner Tadej Pogačar and Jonas Vingegaard. Remove those two epoch-defining superstars from the picture, and Lipowitz, riding his first Tour, has been the best bike rider. Third, despite concerted pressure from Oscar Onley, is deservedly his.
Back in his home country of Germany, they’re getting excited about the skier-cum-cyclist. Talk of a heir to Jan Ullrich is no longer premature but justified. Lipowitz has not reached a level of fame yet where he’ll be recognised in most city centre streets, but he’s aware that Lipo Fever is now a thing. “To be honest, the last three weeks I’ve lived in a bubble,and I didn’t realise what’s going on outside of the cycling world. But I will realise it in the next few days.”
That “clueless” bike rider, it appears, is rather bloody good. If he refines his scattergun tactics, the top step in Paris could be his one day. “I haven’t even thought yet about the next goals or the next years. For now I don’t think about the future too much.”
