Tour de France rookie aims high in unknown territory

French teenager Paul Seixas was on Monday named co-captain of the Decathlon CMA CGM team to compete at the Tour de France.

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The 19-year-old Seixas has been sensational all year, performing at a level never seen before from a teenager, but his team have set him up alongside the sprinter Olav Kooij as co-captain, which should deflect a little pressure away from the starlet on his Tour debut.

The three-week race will set off from Barcelona on Saturday with Tadej Pogacar the favourite, but the Slovenian will be acutely aware that several other talents sit ready to pounce should he falter.

"I feel ready to give everything to get through these three weeks and achieve the best possible overall ranking," Seixas said on Monday.

"I'm not setting a more specific goal because I'm heading into the unknown, as I've never ridden a race that is so long and demanding," he said.

Seixas will be the youngest Tour de France participant since 1937 when he sets off from the Catalan capital aged 19 years, nine months and 10 days.

For his part, Kooij thanked the team for the honour bestowed on him.

"That Paul finishes as high in the standings as possible and that I win at least one sprint stage," Kooij said of his Tour aims.