The Tour takes on a brand new dimension in the present day because it goes into the Pyrenees for the primary summit end. Can Tadej Pogačar ship the large blow to Jonas Vingegaard or can Visma-LAB undo UAE and strike again?
Ici si tu cognes tu gagnes: transfer over Penn and Teller, David Copperfield and different illusionists as a result of Thierry Gouvenou is stealing your thunder. Followers anticipating a dash stage had been fooled by the optical phantasm of what regarded like a flat stage however as a substitute turned out to be probably the most dynamic races of the season to this point. Loyal readers right here knew extra was on the playing cards, however absolutely no person predicted what was going occur?
Stage 11 was a day of anarchy with not a quiet second from begin to end. Davide Ballerini, Jonas Abrahamsen and Mauro Schmid because the flag dropped and the latter two would keep out all day. This state of affairs regarded unbelievable all through the stage, within the first hour the race coated 51km and but the trio wasn’t cooked as they fought to remain away.
Groups battled fireplace riders ahead. At one level some tried to sit down up and ease off however Mathieu Burgaudeau and Fred Wright shot out of the peloton and made it throughout to type a quintet within the lead and behind the wasps’ nest stored being poked. On a regular basis extra strikes raged as groups fired riders off the entrance, refusing to surrender. At this price Stage 17 to Valence may not be a dash stage both.
A high quality counter-attack of Wout van Aert, Mathieu van der Poel, Quinn Simmons, Arnaud De Lie and Axel Laurance fashioned. That they had the opposite 5 in sight for a lot of the ultimate 40km however couldn’t shut the ultimate metres, for a very long time they had been simply twenty seconds away. Every most likely attempting to carry one thing again and counting on the opposite for that further pull. The speculation was confirmed when Van Aert tried an assault then Quinn Simmons made his transfer to show they’d some power to spare. The American’s transfer on the penultimate climb appeared to immediate Abrahamsen and Schmid to maneuver, accelerating to maintain the chaser away.
Van der Poel set off in pursuit… of the win on the ultimate climb of Pech David amid a roaring crowd, this small highway that features as a gymnasium for native cyclists was was town’s liveliest stadium. Van der Poel later stated he didn’t realise there have been nonetheless two riders up forward, a shock given for a way lengthy his group had the leaders in sight at instances. However his pursuit prompted the lead pair not play video games.
The boulevards of Toulouse took on a distinct attract, Compans-Caffarelli grew to become the Serengeti with Van der Poel as a imply lion pursuing two exhausted antelopes. Solely this time there was no meal, the 2 bucks had been secure with 200 metres to spare.
It had been such a very good race till this level that as the 2 stood on the pedals to dash a prayer was made to want for a clear end, and answered as the 2 riders went facet by facet. The suspense lasted past the end line as Schmid and Abrahamsen had been appeared stage on the road and it took a second to assessment and declare that the Norwegian received.
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It’s a fairy story for Abrahamsen who crashed out of the Tour of Belgium much less 4 weeks in the past with a damaged collarbone, and for his workforce, wildcard invitees.
The one loser of the day was Tadej Pogačar, Jhonatan Narvaez for firm on the ultimate climb with Adam Yates shut however behind, then he crashed on the doorway to Toulouse. He was up shortly and the peloton waited for him – the topic of a post-stage polemic however the group was hardly racing to the road and there have been solely huge boulevards left – however he will likely be sore in the present day, touchdown first on his hips then earlier than his shoulder slammed into the kerb. There are sometimes unintended effects past this with irritation, bruising, disturbed cortisol ranges and misplaced sleep. Not very best going into three mountain levels.
In any other case it was an distinctive day’s racing, it may solely have been bettered if the GC riders had traded extra assaults on the ultimate climbs. If the Tour needs to return again to Toulouse, the one objection to having an equivalent route once more could be that it may not be fairly nearly as good.
The Route: 180km and three,850m of vertical acquire. The Tour de France returns to Auch for the primary time since 1977. That’s a lifetime, or extra for Nicolas Portal who by no means bought to see the Tour right here. He died in 2020 and there will likely be a tribute to him in the present day.
It’s out of Auch on the route nationale for over 40km, a giant extensive highway that rises and falls. After Rabastens the route turns onto smaller roads however stays flat.
The primary climb of the day places the race on the path to the Col du Soulor, the marked climb out of Labatmale and the unmarked 7% kicker to Arthez d’Asson have been regulars over the yr.
The highway will get increasingly slender in the direction of Ferrières after which the Col du Soulor begins. The climb is 12km at 7% and there aren’t any traps or hidden surprises, only a regular slope up which varies between 6-9% however with none abrupt modifications because it climbs up the small highway via woodland after which onto open pastures.
The descent of the Soulor is totally different, a detour to take the Col des Bordères, a backroad climb with some 8-9% slopes and a correct climb reasonably than a pause alongside the descent. The highway picks up the principle highway off the Soulor right down to Argelès.
The End: a short crossing of the valley ground after which the climb of Hautacam begins. Gently at first to the official begin level of the climb. It is a ski station highway that’s extensive however not a simple drive up. The second half has some steep elements, it is sort of a staircase in locations when the slope ideas as much as 10-12%, even 15% in locations and there’s additionally a descent that doesn’t present up on the profile. In brief it’s an irregular climb with a number of modifications in tempo.
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The Contenders: on paper Tadej Pogačar (UAE) is the plain decide, he’s bought two levels already. However how sore is he after yesterday’s fall? And his workforce appear to be falling unwell round him too however Pavel Sivakov says he’s higher for a stage on house roads. There’s no crimson alert however all the identical some issues and we’ll see what he and the workforce can do in the present day.
Jonas Vingegaard (Visma-LAB) for the upset, after days of monitoring Pogačar we’ll see what he and his workforce can do right here.
It’s arduous to see different GC contenders contesting the win, the likes of Remco Evenepoel (Soudal-Quickstep) and Florian Lipowitz (Crimson Bull) would absolutely signal for second place in the present day if a genie appeared earlier than breakfast providing this.
The breakaway has an opportunity however final yr it was uncommon for the transfer to stay and win. Nonetheless Bahrain pair Santiago Buitrago and Lenny Martinez sat as much as save themselves, likewise Harald Tejada (XDS-Astana) and Michael Storer (Tudor).
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Pogačar, Vingegaard
Storer, Skjelmose, Buitrago, O’Connor, Arensman
Climate: sunny and 30°C.
TV: KM0 is at 1.25pm the end is forecast for five.45pm CEST. Tune in for the begin to watch the struggle for the breakaway. The beginning of the Soulor is round 4.15pm.
Postcard from LourdesLourdes can appear like an interesting base for those who plan to go to the Pyrenees to experience the close by mountain passes just like the Soulour, Aubisque, Tourmalet and the Col de Tramassel, the opposite title for Hautacam.
You received’t be in need of locations to remain, it’s reputed to have extra lodge beds than residents. However that is the place the issues come, it’s a city for non secular pilgrims and if that sounds honest, to go to is to see the sacred and the profane alike. Emile Zola wrote it higher:
And there was additionally jewelry: rings, brooches and bracelets, loaded with stars and crosses, and ornamented with saintly figures. Lastly there was the Paris article, which rose above and submerged all the remainder: pencil-holders, purses, cigar-holders, paper-weights, paper-knives, even snuff-boxes; and innumerable different objects on which the Basilica, Grotto, and Blessed Virgin ever appeared, reproduced in each means, by each course of that’s identified.
Heaped collectively pell-mell in one of many instances reserved to articles at fifty centimes apiece had been napkin-rings, egg-cups, and picket pipes, on which was carved the beaming apparition of Our Woman of Lourdes.
Little by little, M. de Guersaint, with the annoyance of a person who prides himself on being an artist, grew to become disgusted and fairly unhappy. ‘However all that is frightful, frightful!’ he repeated at each new article he picked up to have a look at.– Les Trois Villes – Lourdes, 1894 (translated)
You possibly can go to see it for your self and wherever within the Pyrenees can higher than someplace else… however Bagnères-de-Bigorre and Luchon are options.
