Haig feels ‘weight of uncertainty’ ahead of Tour de France

Australian climber Jack Haig doesn’t want to be an anonymous number in the peloton.

Jack Haig will start his career sixth Tour de France on Saturday unsure about his future.

The Australian climber signed with Bahrain Victorious in 2021 and has competed for the team at cycling’s pinnacle event every season since then.

Haig will enter the 112^th edition as a road captain, with GC contender Santiago Buitrago, who placed 10^th at the Tour last season, Frenchman Lenny Martinez and sprinter Phil Bauhaus headlining the squad.

The 31-year-old is fully committed to the team’s cause, having supported Martinez throughout the season, however being off-contract has made his lead-up more stressful than usual.

Jack Haig is one of 10 Australians who will start the Tour de France this weekend. Photo: Sprintcycling

Speaking to Spokes after a training ride in France overnight, Haig had more than team tactics and the ongoing debate about how to beat defending champion Tadej Pogacar (UAE Emirates-XRG) and two-time winner Jonas Vingegaard (Visma- Lease A Bike) on his mind.

“At the moment I don’t have a contract for next year and I’m actively searching for a contract,” Haig said.

“I haven’t turned down the potential option of staying with Bahrain, but I think it’s likely I’ll move on. You never know what will happen, maybe through the Tour de France they realise I have a really good relationship with Lenny, or something happens, and they offer me a contract. But at the moment nothing has been signed, and nothing is really concrete at all, which is both nice, but also a little bit stressful.”