On Sunday 26 July 2026, Mathieu van der Poel won the final stage of the Tour de France. He finished half a metre ahead of his pursuers. Afterwards, he said he\u2019d been preparing for this for a week. In reality, it was probably longer, because when the route book for the Tour \u201926 came out six months ago, he must have known that the final stage on the Champs-\u00c9lys\u00e9es would be his.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Success can be planned. In fact, success is a given if you plan properly. That is the credo of the 21st century. Failure isn\u2019t bad luck. Failure is the result of poor preparation. That\u2019s what cyclist Remco Evenepoel told his coach the day before, when he finished second on Alpe d\u2019Huez.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Mathieu van der Poel recorded his predictable \u2013 yet no less magnificent \u2013 Tour success a quarter of an hour before the start of the first episode of the Final Season of *Zomergasten*. A season featuring a star-studded line-up of people for whom failure is not an option. That applies to Janine Abbring, who began her six-week odyssey looking remarkably relaxed and \u2018in control\u2019; this Sunday, it applied above all to comedian Peter Pannekoek, about whom we now know for certain that he has a maniacal compulsion for control.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Success for this episode was a foregone conclusion; failure would have been a massive disaster, and so it was indeed a success. Even Peter Pannekoek\u2019s tears came \u2013 beautifully restrained \u2013 at just the right moment (about an hour before the end), and the rascal who\u2019d let a loose cable dangle from the ceiling provided just enough of a coincidence to keep things from getting bogged down. Janine\u2019s little dog, an adorable female who is perfectly trained, had to go for a quick walk to channel the built-up tension \u2013 something dogs are perfectly suited to.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
So there was plenty to criticise about this first episode of the final season of *Zomergasten*, but that certainly doesn\u2019t apply to Janine Abbring\u2019s interviewing skills. She has previously proved herself to be the best \u2018Zomergasten\u2019 host and once again managed to keep every question \u2018open-ended\u2019, even if that sometimes took some effort. \u2018Don\u2019t start your question with an auxiliary verb\u2019 is the rule of thumb, and she corrected herself perfectly in this regard. She also dared to show vulnerability in just the right way and occasionally revealed a little of herself. She also knew full well that Peter Pannekoek wouldn\u2019t be discussing politics or other truly sensitive topics \u2013 beyond the level of sensitivity he allows himself in his shows \u2013 so she didn\u2019t press the issue.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Should she have done that? Perhaps for the sake of exciting television, because whilst the evening was hugely entertaining, with interesting clips and occasionally fascinating revelations, we still got the feeling that this segment had been so incredibly well prepared by both titans that not even a crashing studio lamp would have thrown them off course. Although even an open door in the studio did its best to add a touch of symbolism.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The evening was written in the stars. Yet, just as it was drawing to a close, something small happened that has stayed with me. \u2018For you, it\u2019s very much about admiration,\u2019 Abbring tried to sum up the evening, but Pannekoek didn\u2019t agree. \u2018It\u2019s about time,\u2019 he said decisively, and they didn\u2019t go into it too deeply together. It was a moment reminiscent of *The Sopranos*. Abbring, who with her smart glasses bears a slight resemblance to that brilliant psychiatrist in the series, and Pannekoek as a hyperactive Tony Soprano, who seeks only confirmation of his brilliant insights from her.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Because \u2018time\u2019 \u2013 that might have been what it was all about for Pannekoek \u2013 but Abbring had rightly observed that, right from the very first sketch about a horribly old-fashioned, romantic Flemish artist, the successful comedian is someone who looks up to people he considers better than himself. And anyone who, in the limited time we\u2019ve been given, happens to cross the finish line a few cobblestones ahead of him is better than him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
After three hours of *Zomergasten*, I found myself longing passionately for a moment of silence, a moment of doubt, a slightly surprised smile at an insight that arose because the guest and the hostess had briefly stepped back from the action. Simply to take a moment to marvel at all the frantic panic that our seemingly inevitable success brings with it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n