Jonas Vingegaard opted for a Roman holiday and plans to enjoy some Italian pasta and wine after winning the Giro d'Italia but he also knows that the clock is ticking to the start of the Tour de France.
The Dane woke up on Monday morning as a Giro d'Italia winner and only the eighth rider to complete the Grand Tour trilogy. He will enjoy a few days in Rome with his family and rest up for a week before a final block of training with his Visma-Lease a Bike teammates at altitude in the French Alps.
He will travel to Barcelona on Tuesday June 30 for the Tour's Grand Départ, with the race starting out with a crucial team time trial on Saturday July 4.
"I'll stay in Rome for a few days, and just relax a bit, be with my family, and have some nice food here. I'm sure I can get that in Italy, then already the work towards the Tour starts," Vingegaard said on Sunday evening, as he completed his final interviews, photo-shoots and pink jersey signings for Giro organiser RCS Sport.
Staying in Rome allows Vingegaard to avoid any public celebrations in Denmark and to be with his Visma-Lease a Bike team. He is a national hero in Denmark but will likely return to his home in Glyngøre in the north of the country and simply enjoy staying with his wife Trine and young children, Frida and Hugo.
"When I'm at home, I want to be a good dad," he said on Sunday after his children joined him on the podium.
"I can mix those things together. I can train hard, I can eat, or lose weight if that's what I want, and I can still have some quality time with my family.
"This week, I'll focus on my recovery, and then I'll soon be thinking about the Tour. But obviously, you need to just relax mentally a bit. It's five weeks away, so I think I'll have a week of rest, then three and a half weeks of normal training."
'A benefit for the second Grand Tour'
Vingegaard accepted the Giro-Tour challenge last winter after speaking to the Visma management and performance staff. He liked the idea of completing his Grand Tour trilogy and then taking on Tadej Pogačar at the Tour de France.
He has been trying to rebuild his Grand Tour form and return to his very best ever since his life-threatening crash at the 2024 Itzulia Basque Country race. He finished second in the 2024 Tour and again in 2025 Tour but only returned to his best when he won the 2025 Vuelta a España.
"It's hard to predict anything but when I've done the Vuelta after I've done the Tour, I've done well. I know my body pretty well and how it reacts to the first Grand Tour of the year," Vingegaard explained.
"With the level I showed here in the Giro. I believe I will be in very, very good shape for the Tour de France."
Vingegaard won five mountain stages but he and Visma-Lease a Bike rode a controlled and conservative Giro, limiting their efforts with July in mind. They let other riders and teams carry the responsibility of the maglia rosa until stage 14 and encouraged breakaways to dominate certain stages as part of a calculated strategy that spanned from May to July.
Vingegaard showed some sign of fatigue in Rome but victory at the Giro also boosted his morale.
"I gained confidence with the shape I had here and I think I've gained shape as well," he said, perhaps sending a message to Pogačar and anyone else targeting the Tour de France.
"For me, it depends on how you get out of the first Grand Tour. If you're completely on your knees, it's not good to do the following Grand Tour. But if you're somewhat OK, which I feel that I am at the moment, I see that it's actually a benefit for the second Grand Tour."
