Egan Bernal's long road to the Champs Elysees

When the then-22-year-old Egan Bernal won last year's Tour de France, he fulfilled the dreams of several generations of Colombian cycling fans – but was far from the first to compete in the prestigious event. 

Martin Emilio "Cochise" Rodriguez became the first Colombian cyclist to take part in the Tour in 1975. In 1984, Luis "Lucho" Herrera became the first Colombian to win a stage on the Tour de France and went on to overall victory at the Vuelta in 1987.

But both of these feats pale in comparison to Bernal becoming the third-youngest rider to wear the yellow jersey along the Champs Elysees. His Tour de France victory illicited enthusiastic celebrations in Colombia.

Modest winner

When he returned home, Bernal was greeted by tens of thousands of adoring fans and he was feted by the Colombian media. Only the modest winner himself managed to keep his feet on the ground. He even went as far as to decline to accept a medal of honor and a reception by Colombia's president. Instead, he donated his winning jersey to his hometown, saying that the achievement wasn't his alone, but belonged to the entire country. Thus, a hero was born.

"Of all the historic achievements in Colombian sport, none can be compared with Bernal's. The victory in the Tour de France is the most significant one," Pilar Velasquez, sports journalist for the magazine Semana told DW. "Although the "Escarabajos" ("beetles," as the Colombian team is dubbed back home) were already known to the world, Bernal was the key to elevating Colombia to the top of world cycling."

Maybe this is in part because Bernal, like all his compatriots, suffered from Colombian cycling's lack of infrastructure. In the absence of official support, private initiatives and foundations have stepped into the breach. They promote and support the country's many talents who would otherwise fall through the cracks. Bernal was already a regional and national champion in mountain biking when at the age of 12, he turned to the Mazuera Foundation for financial support – which he received at a crucial stage in his career.

Starting out on the mountain bike

"Colombian cyclists have to be strong-willed, because many of them struggle financially. They have the tenacity to battle persistent adversity in order to progress and build a sporting and economic future," Pablo Mazuera, told DW.

In 2010, Mazuera, who also serves as Bernal's coach, founded the Mazuera Foundation, which is dedicated to supporting cyclists with limited economic resources. Apart from Bernal, the foundation also supports Colombian cyclists Brandon Rivera, Jonathan Sotelo and Diego Vazquez.

When Mazuera first came across Bernal, the boy from Zipaquira, a small town north of Bogota, was still riding mountain bikes. In 2014 Mazuera managed to convince Bernal's father to let him take his son to Norway for the World Championships. They returned with a silver medal. Following this success in Norway and a bronze medal at the 2015 World Championships in Andorra, Bernal switched full time from mountain to road bikes. 

Mazuera says that despite the lack of state infrastructure, Colombian cyclists benefit from a number of advantages that their opponents may not have. These include their "genetic makeup, the country's geography with its high mountains, the major differences in altitude and the opportunity to train in these conditions on an ongoing basis."

Froome and Thomas on the sidelines

Not even in his wildest dreams did Pablo Mazuera expect success on the Tour to come so quickly for Bernal. But now, having won the race the first time he entered, Mazuera is utterly convinced that Bernal will make it to the podium in the 2020 edition. 

"He has a great chance, not only because of his exceptional talent and preparation, but also because of his strong mentality as a winner and a leader," Mazuera said.

Egan Bernal is the new face of Ineos, formerly Team Sky, which for years has been the most successful team in professional cycling – but whose riders have repeatedly faced doping allegations. He's even managed to unseat Chris Froome as team leader. Neither Froome, a four-time Tour winner. nor Geraint Thomas, who won the race in 2018, was named to Ineos' lineup for this year's event, a decision, which is thought to have been due to their performances this year. Ineos also elected not to extend Froome's expiring contract, which has led him to sign with Israel Start-Up Nation for the 2021 season.  

Now Ineos is pinning its hopes squarely on the shoulders of Bernal, who along with Roglic, is regarded as one of the favorites for this year's overall title, even though the Colombian has been struggling with back problems.

The dark cloud of doping

Bernal knows that his reputation is affected not only by the rumors of doping surrounding his team, but also by the latest doping cases in Colombian cycling. Tour stage winner Jarlinson Pantano ended his career in January 2019 at the age of 31 after testing positive for EPO. This allowed him to avoid a four-year suspension. The second-class Colombian professional team Manzana Postobon disbanded in 2019 after it was hit by a series of doping cases.

While Bernal was saddened by the news of these positive cases in his home country, he also sees something of a silver lining.

"If positives are coming out in Colombia, it's because they're carrying out anti-doping tests. What more can the federation do? It simply has to carry on testing and riders need to become more aware," Bernal told the website Cyclingnews last autumn.

 Irish sports journalist and doping expert David Walsh, who uncovered the doping affair surrounding Lance Armstrong, also sees a positive development.

"I think the Tour is cleaner, especially because a Colombian cyclist won," Walsh told ESPN. "Colombians have a natural advantage because many of them have lived at high altitudes for many years. Bernal has lived his whole life at 2,800 meters (9,186 feet) and trained at 4,000 meters. When EPO was widely being used, they didn't stand a chance, even though they were the best climbers. I think that in this clean era, it is no surprise that this Colombian racing star has now emerged.".

There's little Bernal can do little to convince the doubters – apart from continuing to perform well and have his doping tests come back negative. He advocates competition that is free from performance-enhancing substances – not only at this year's Tour de France. A return to the podium is certainly in the cards for him – provided he makes it to the Champs Elysee without suffering a crash.