I’ve seen and heard this word twice in two days of racing, so it must be important: La Pagaille. In the two cases below, it translates to ‘mayhem’ or ‘havoc’. First, this horse who found itself racing Demi Vollering for the win in Strade Bianche yesterday.

In the news feed I read, “un cheval provoque la pagaille“.

Today, during the first stage of Paris-Nice, Thomas Voeckler suggested that a hill with bonification points placed near the finish does not necessarily translate into an exciting ending, but instead it might be riders who like to “mettre la pagaille” (create mayhem) that are the ones to light up the race. You guessed it; the pagailleur was Pogacar, who took a couple of points because he could.