Pidcock's mother was the one who came up with the improvised podium for La Vuelta

The protests that disrupted the usual tribute stage to the winner of La Vuelta did not prevent Jonas Vingegaard from having his moment thanks to the improvised podium ceremony that was prepared in the parking lot of one of the hotels in Madrid where the organization was hosting the teams. A ceremony that, contrary to what was thought, was not organized by the organization.

Jonas Vingegaard was able to enjoy his victory in La Vuelta thanks to Tom Pidcock

The images of Jonas Vingegaard after the suspension of the last stage of La Vuelta were quite a sight. Although during the race he was one of the few cyclists who publicly expressed his opinion on the matter, understanding the reasons why so many people were protesting in that way, the suspension of the stage in Madrid, a day of tribute to the wearer of the red jersey, left Vingegaard looking bewildered "When I found out there was no ceremony, I felt very disappointed. They took away the moment of that celebration".

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However, late into the night, images of the impromptu podium ceremony organized at one of the hotels where the cyclists were staying began to emerge. Contrary to what most of us thought at that moment, it had nothing to do with the organization but rather it all stemmed from an idea from Tom Pickcok's mother as Vingegaard explained in a tribute in the Netherlands given to him by the employees of Visma-Lease a Bike.

"The idea came up at the last moment. It came from Tom Pidcock's mother. Thanks to Q36.5 and our team, we were able to organize everything quickly, they had to come from different hotels. It was fantastic to make it possible. Obviously, we had to keep it a secret that Matthew Riccitello was also going to receive his white jersey. If the protesters had found out, it wouldn't have been safe," explained the Dane.

A moment that, while not the usual mass celebration for the winner of a grand tour, turned out to be endearing in the end "So, in a cooler, it was even more beautiful. A much more intimate moment. It's one of the best moments of my career".

Richard Plugge, director of Visma-Lease a Bike, also added details on how this peculiar trophy presentation was prepared "Yes, it was Tom Pidcock's mother who came up with it. Jonas had just changed so he wasn't really in the mood but we said 'let's honor our heroes'. I found it very special, a beautiful moment. Everything was organized in 45 minutes and everyone contributed something. The organization was also invited, which made the ceremony special".