As the World Tour resumes with Strade Bianche on August 1, teams, riders, and coaches are preparing their riders to perform at their best in the relatively short and intense second half of the season. Groupama-FDJ coach Julien Pinot, brother of team leader Thibaut Pinot, shared what he believes it will take to be successful.

For the older Pinot, the outlook needs to be like the normal start of the season, before the 2020 season is interrupted in March by the coronavirus pandemic.

"In June, we had to resume our individual training camps, sometimes in high altitude, and have a big work week. 'As always, we got into full-blown season preparation, kind of like January, but more intense. The season itself is very intense, and we know that every rider has to be competitive in August."

"In January we can usually plan far-reaching goals with some riders, but now all 28 riders, whether at training camp or at home, are 100 percent involved in preparation, training, and recovery," Pino said.

The now 33-year-old French rider joined the team at the end of 2011 after coaching for CC Etupe, an elite French amateur team, before his brother Thibault turned pro in 2009.

This means that Pinot has spent nearly a decade on Marc Madiot's World Tour team, working alongside his brother for most of that time.

But while Thibault is the undisputed team leader in the Grand Tour, Julien must put those family ties to the side to work for the team as a whole.

"Thibault, of course, also takes care of Stéphane Kühn, Arnaud Demaret, Anthony Roux, Rudy Morard (who was already training at CC Etupe), Sebastian Reichenbach, Tobias Ludvigsson and Kevin Jenietz." Pino explains.

"Each coach has his own vision and sensibility. I consider myself, above all, someone who guides each player and tries to give him everything he needs to reach his full potential." I see myself as a guide rather than as a dictator/trainer. I think I have developed a close and healthy relationship with my riders and I leave them at their disposal and try to give them as much information as possible so that they can always absorb and understand what I am doing."

Pino also added that he really enjoys working with such a diverse group of characters.

"Analyzing their running data is obviously part of our job, but we also try to connect with their emotions, their senses, and ultimately their moods and mental states. I find that mixture fascinating and it creates a real human adventure that spans several years."

"My goal, of course, is for the rider to win, but before that, I want him to do his job to the fullest. It is usually when he is doing so that he can perform at his best."

The team includes sprinter Demare, classical and time trial specialist Kühn, and his brother Thibault, who finished fifth overall in last year's Tour de France, 20 seconds behind eventual winner Egan Bernal (Team Ineos), but was forced to retire due to injury. His brother, Thibault, was forced to retire due to injury.

"My goal is always to think about the team. I coach a lot of leaders and that's a lot of pressure." I know that if a player is not doing well, the coaches are quick to point it out. On the other hand, it is of course really satisfying when the preparation we have established works and leads to results.

"At last year's Tour, I remembered the months of preparation and the time we spent together in training camp, and I saw how united and cooperative the team was.

Fred Grappe, the team's performance director, gradually gave Pino more and more responsibility, he explains.

"When I arrived, he created my position. He became director of the performance department." He also gives us more and more freedom because he can see me evolve, along with David (Han), who has been with us for five years, and Anthony (Bouillod), who is in his third season."

"The work of our performance department, the trust between our coaches, is a great strength. 'We stay in touch from morning to night, we understand each other, we have very few disagreements. I think the whole team recognizes that."

Through the continued improvement of Thibaut Pinot and the strong performances of recent riders such as Romain Bardet of rival French team AG2R La Mondiale and Julien Alaphilippe of Belgian team Deceuninck-QuickStep, Julien Pinot believes that the French riders are now, or will be, the real deal.

"Over the past 10 years, France and French riders' position on the international scene has developed significantly, and I don't think we can exclude team coaches from that success. While this may not be the case everywhere, the strength of our Groupama-FDJ lies in the fact that we all work together for the common good of the team." Developing this confidence is extremely valuable and something that was not there just a few years ago."