"Maybe I'll tangle in the power lines
And it might be over in a second's time
But I'll gladly go down in a flame
If the flame's what it takes to remember my name"
Marc Soler of Spain & Tadej Pogačar of Slovenia and UAE Team Emirates during the 110th Tour de France 2023, Stage 17 a 165.7km at stage from Saint-Gervais Mont-Blanc to Courchevel on July 19, 2023 in Courchevel, France. (Photos by Michael Steele & Anne-Christine Poujoulat via Getty Images)
Round Two, Match Seven: Jonas Vingegaard v. Marc Soler
Jonas Vingegaard Propaganda
No propaganda submitted.
Marc Soler Propaganda
He may be ranked #130 in the UCI rankings but he is #1 in my heart ❤️
More propaganda under the cut.
As you may know, Marc Soler moved to UAE Team Emirates in 2022 and has since been one of Tadej Pogačar's most valuable mountain domestiques – pulling the peloton for kilometres on end, being there in the final group before Tadej and Jonas start attacking each other. Then there's stage 17 this year; his infamous ‘scary eyes’ and comforting hand, pulling his leader up the Col de la Loze and helping maintain his podium place.
However! There is much more to Marc Soler than that! Before 2022, his entire professional career was spent with Movistar – that blue-clad stalwart of Spanish cycling hopes. With them, he was again an invaluable domestique to the likes of Enric Mas, Alejandro Valverde, Nairo Quintana, and Richard Carapaz. In the intra-team ~drama~ that plagued Movistar’s 2019/2020 seasons, he remained if not neutral, but relatively uninvolved. This is well-documented in their documentary ‘Movistar: The Least Expected Day’, the series that first endeared him to me.
In 2018, he had his day as a GC challenger – a week, really, swooping to victory at Paris-Nice to take the overall win with a fantastic attack on the final stage to make up more than a minute on Simon Yates
Now let me discuss stage 5 of the Vuelta 2022: Marc’s second stage win at this race – the first being in 2020. There was a battle for the breakaway, and Marc missed out! Never fear – the intrepid Spaniard did what he does best; launch a seemingly futile attempt to bridge, riding solo or in a small group for 50km+ that never really gets anywhere. Not today, though! He joined them, when Stewart attacked he countered brilliantly and rode solo for the final 15km. Brilliant stuff. This won him the stage, the combativity award, and later actions brought him the overall super-combative award, all while supporting Juan Ayuso to the podium.
Oh yeah, did I mention the mullet?? And the earring??
Outside of racing, he comes across as a genuinely nice guy – though I have yet to come across an interview in English, translations of Spanish-language seem cheerful and respectful, having fun in UAE’s social media videos!
He recovered brilliantly from having to abandon in both the Giro and the Tour in 2021 – breaking both of his arms in a crash in the latter, yet soldiering on and completing the stage.
Soler in his natural habitats; pulling the peloton up some steep, steep slopes, or breaking away for a hail-Mary attack that’s seemingly done only for the sheer joy of doing so. He’s a valuable domestique, brilliant rider, and most certainly embodies the spirit of ciclismo!
La Academia (2024) - Serija Godina: 2024- Žanr: Drama / Sport Glavne uloge: Marc Soler, Ton Vieira, Diego Martín, Marc Martínez, Rita González, Bárbara Goen https://filmonizirani.net/la-academia-2024/
Remco Evenpoel wins Stage 3 of the 2023 Vuelta a Espana, a mountaintop finish punctuated by a collision with a fan just after the line. Evenpoel bested Jonas Vingegaard for the win and takes over the red leader’s jersey.
After the opening week-end in Barcelona, La Vuelta headed to Andorra with a first mountain stage and a summit finish in Arinsal after overcoming the cat-1 climb of Coll d’Ordino.…