After his third pro season, the second at AG2R-La Mondiale, Alexis Vuillermoz finds himself at another level. Stage winner at the Mûr-de-Bretagne in the Tour de France and third in the stag to the Mur de Huy, winner of the Grand Prix de Plumelec and sixth in the Flèche Wallonne, the former mountain biker will change his status in the team for 2016. This year he wants to shine in the WorldTour races where he has already done well, and strongly hope for a good performance at the Olympics in Rio after he won the pre-Olympic test event last August.

Vuillermoz started his career on his mountain bike but very quickly he turned his attention to the road.

“I turned pro on the road in 2013 with Sojasun,” he told Cyclingpro.net in an interview. “I came from mountain biking and the transition went smoothly. Unfortunately, I did not win a race during my first pro year and I asked myself if I would ever raise my arms one day. I finally won with AG2R-La Mondiale (the final stage of the 2014 Tour of Gevaudan) after an eleventh place overall in the Giro. My third year was also successful with four wins, one in the Tour and it was almost unexpected. I've had a great time.”

Vuillermoz has started his preparations for the new season.

“I start a season where there are big expectations,” he said. “I have to confirm. I am aware of my level, I know that I have done good things but I'm not a Contador, a Froome or even a Romain Bardet. I need to know how to stay in my place, take my chances in finishes that can me while continuing to help the team. I must go step by step.”

Vuillermoz has proved to be a great puncheur, especially on short very steep climbs. However, he has mostly failed to do well in the GC at stage races and he knows why.
 

“The time trial is my weak point,” he said. “I am kind of lucky to have very little experience in this discipline. I did not have a time trial bike at home and I have done very little time trialling during my career. The room for improvementh is enormous. I know what I am capable of doing in a solo effort from my past in mountain biking. I must learn to develop power in this unusual position that is unnatural. Because of this shortcoming, I have currently no expectation that I will get a result in a Grand Tour.”

After his breakthrough at the Tour de France, Vuillermoz put himself in a perfect position to get one of the four spots in the French team for the Olympics when he won the test race on the same course in August.
 

“It is a goal for me like for other riders,” he said. “I have made good progress in recent years and I think I can expect a selection. I will first focus on the preparation to be at my best if I am selected. It requires a consistent racing program and to work on both my strengths and my weak points. However, I will not be obsessed. Then the disappointment will be too big if I'm not successful.”

Like last year Vuillermoz will have the Tour as a major focus.
 

“Yes, because I have been successful in the Tour,” he told the French website. “After digesting the Tour, I stayed in shape during August, including at the Clasica San Sebastian and then the pre-Olympic race. The field was not worthy of a WorldTour race but we still had to be strong. I proved that the course suits me and I am able to shine there.
 

“My racing program will be similar to 2015 but slightly lighter. I will not go to Bessèges or Romandie as I want to be fresher in August. The Tour de France is a great stepping stone to get fit for Rio. On the other hand, three weeks of racing are long and hard mentally. There is a lot of pressure. Easing the program will probably erase some effects of the Tour and I should arrive with better psychological and mental freshness.”

It is no surprise that Vuillermoz has his eyes on the Olympics. The course is described as being one for climbers and this has attracted interest from almost all the major grand tour stars.
 

“It is very hard, very selective,” Vuillermoz said. “I am lucky that it is made up of reasonable climbs. There are no major, long climbs like in the Tour de France where I'm not yet at the level of the best. Instead, they are 4-5 kilometers long with steep percentages and this is the kind of challenge I like.”

France missed out on the maximum number of five riders and this could be a setback for Vuillermoz’ aspirations.
 

“The best of us will get selected,” he said. “The French team has the means to get an Olympic medal and it will primarily be based on the collective. Everyone has his own qualities but some will have to put aside their ambitions to give the best for the designated leaders. The selected riders must respect the rules of the game but I trust the coach to select a balanced group.”

However, it is not all about the Olympics and the Tour. This year Vuillermoz proved his love for short, steep climbs when he finished sixth in Fleche Wallonne and he was also third in the Mur de Huy stage at the Tour de France. This year he will lead AG2R in the Belgian classic.
 

“Of course there will be a lot of pressure and expectation,” he said. “We're lucky to have a very strong team as we have seen this year. In Fleche, I punctured with 10 kilometers to go and Ben Gastauer brought me back before the Mur de Huy. I can count on quality teammates. If I have my chance as a leader, I will be happy to try.”

In general, Vuillermoz will have more opportunities in 2016.
 

“With the team, it was agreed that I will share the leadership role in some races,” he said. “It depends on my state of form but I think a lot about the race that have suited me in the past like Paris-Nice which was a breakthrough race for me in 2014. It's quite paradoxical because it's a race that I love but I also fear it. There are many crashes and the level is very homogeneous. Then I will necessarily target the Critérium du Dauphiné and the Tour which are important goals for the team.”
 

His new status means that he is now one of the riders that is expected to deliver results.

“There is more pressure than in previous years but I have already experienced that at the end of last season after victories at the Tour and in Plumelec,” he said. “They expected more from me and it was legitimate. The desire to do well and the fear of disappointing are both there. We have to remember that we are in a sporting environment with people who know that it does not work every time. That’s the case for [manager] Vincent Lavenu who is a former rider. The margin for error is high.”

Vuillermoz owes a lot to Lavenu who saved his career when Sojasun folded and the former mountain biker was unable to find a new team.
 

“In fact, Vincent signed me when I had done just one road season,” Vuillermoz said. “He took a financial risk, he trusted me more than anyone else and that was important. When you feel valued, it is a mark of recognition and it makes you want to do well.”

Vuillermoz is now one of the leaders of a team that also includes Romain Bardet, Jean-Christophe Peraud and Domenico Pozzovivo.
 

“We are improving and I think we all develop in different ways,” Vuillermoz said. “I'm lucky to be with Jean-Christophe Péraud who came from mountain biking like me and is an Olympic silver medalist. He's become a friend but he is mostly an example. For me, Bardet is one step higher in the team. This group is composed of smart guys and we know that we can go to a race with two riders who can do something. It removes part of the pressure.”

The big question is whether Vuillermoz will focus on stage races or hilly classics. He is still undecided.
 

“I do not ask myself that question,” he said. “I try to progress as puncheur/climber. I like stage races and I like to climb. It is true that since my victory on the Mûr-de-Bretagne, people tend to see me as a puncheur whereas last year they saw me as a climber after my eleventh place in the Giro. I like both and I do not think it is wise to be put into a certain box when you can do both.”