Sunday, July 14, 2024 at 5:20 PM
Tadej Pogacar has gained the fifteenth stage of the Tour de France. The unleashed yellow jersey wearer dealt a hammer blow to Jonas Vingegaard on Plateau de Beille, who misplaced greater than a minute. Remco Evenepoel, nearly three minutes behind, took third place.
The solar was shining in the beginning in Loudenvielle on Sunday. It promised to be a hellish day, as a result of a gruelling mountain stage of virtually 200 kilometres was on the menu, with an arrival on the legendary climb Plateau de Beille. On the best way, 4 first class climbs needed to be conquered, together with the Col de Peyresourde and the Col de Portet-d’Aspet. A stage to die for.
Direct course
The fifteenth stage began with the climb of the Col de Peyresourde, which instantly opened up the race. Many riders attacked, together with Romain Bardet, Richard Carapaz, David Gaudu, Oier Lazkano and Biniam Girmay. A primary main group was fashioned, however there have been additionally quite a few riders who may or wished to carry out till the intermediate dash. Girmay took the total loot there, however was later demoted to 3rd place by the jury as a result of he took Michael Matthews for a stroll.
Girmay prolonged his lead within the factors classification – picture: Cor Vos
The peloton additionally had little interest in a number one group that gained many minutes. This was primarily as a result of Visma | Lease a Bike, as a result of they’d put Christophe Laporte in entrance. Laporte then noticed that the main group on the entrance fell aside and guys like Richard Carpapaz and Simon Yates tried to make the soar. They succeeded along with quite a few others, which resulted in a brand new and this time ‘secure’ main group after about fifty kilometers.
Yates, Hindley and Carapaz in assault
Named: Simon Yates (Jayco AlUla), Laurens De Plus (INEOS Grenadiers), Jai Hindley, Matteo Sobrero (Purple Bull-BORA-hansgrohe), Lenny Martinez (Groupama-FDJ), Richard Carapaz, Ben Healy (EF Training-EasyPost ), Jakob Fuglsang (Israel-Premier Tech), Guillaume Martin (Cofidis), Enric Mas, Alex Aranburu, Javier Romo (Movistar), Louis Meintjes (Intermarché-Wanty), Oscar Onley (dsm-firmenich PostNL) and Tobias Halland Johannessen ( Uno-X Mobility). A robust head group of sixteen.
Sixteen grew to become fifteen when Meintjes was thrown again into the peloton by a flat tire. In that peloton, it was nonetheless Visma | Lease a Bike that was using within the lead. Within the valley after the Col de Portet-d’Aspet, the lead of the main group elevated barely. Because of this, they arrived on the foot of the Col d’Agnes, the penultimate climb of the day, with a lead of three minutes and 40 seconds.
Jungels was an essential hyperlink within the main group, particularly in operate of Hindley – picture: Cor Vos
Initiative stays Visma’s | Lease a Bike to return
The main group didn’t attain the foot with fifteen, nonetheless, the cooperation didn’t appear to be that good in spite of everything. Simply earlier than the Col d’Agnes (10.1 kilometers at 8.1%) Hindley, Jungels, Sobrero, Healy, Romo, Mas and De Plus rode away. Within the chasing group the cooperation was now fully gone, after which Carapaz felt compelled to go solo in quest of the leaders. The leaders have been now Hindley, Mas and De Plus, they have been – along with Carapaz – the most effective climbers of the early breakaway.
It took some time, however Carapaz did be a part of the entrance of the race. 4 riders rode collectively to the highest of the Col d’Agnes. And within the peloton? There it was nonetheless Visma | Lease a Bike that rode in entrance. They’d clearly made a plan; to make the race as laborious as attainable. A robust Wilco Kelderman subsequently set a stable tempo, the group of favorites thinned out additional and additional. On the high of the Col d’Agnes there have been solely nineteen riders left within the severely thinned out peloton.
Visma | Lease a Bike made an impression – picture: Cor Vos
Spectacular flip by Jorgenson on Plateau de Beille
The 4 leaders have been joined by Halland Johannessen on the descent. The Norwegian rode a robust descent and was capable of rejoin his wagon. Within the valley to the ultimate climb, the 5 have been capable of lengthen their lead once more, after which they reached the foot of the Plateau de Beille (15.8 kilometres at 7.8%) with a lead of two minutes and 20 seconds. On the foot, Kelderman’s work, who had been within the lead for tens of kilometres, was undoubtedly over.
Matteo Jorgenson took over with out hesitation, the American instantly cracked the group of favorites. Amongst others, João Almeida, Giulio Ciccone, Felix Gall and Derek Gee needed to let go early. Tadej Pogacar, like Jonas Vingegaard, had just one extra lieutenant on the flanks of the Plateau de Beille. The 5 escapees tried to remain out of the palms of the classification riders on the entrance, however it grew to become clear early on that this was not going to work.
Jorgenson’s bear work in footage – picture: Cor Vos
Vingegaard tries early, Pogacar follows shortly
That was fully as a result of work of Kelderman and Jorgenson, who dropped nearly all of the favorites. Jorgenson pulled over ten kilometers from the end, after which Vingegaard instantly accelerated significantly. Pogacar caught to his rear wheel like glue, so we had an actual duel on Plateau de Beille. With 9 kilometers to go, the 2 tenors got here to Carapaz, the final remaining escapee. After just a few hundred meters of hanging on, the Olympic champion needed to go mercilessly.
Behind Vingegaard and Pogacar, Remco Evenepoel was the most effective. The chief of the younger rider classification initially adopted at a great twenty seconds, however misplaced increasingly floor. The Belgian did a wonderful job within the battle for the rostrum, as a result of his closest opponents – Almeida and Rodríguez – misplaced extra time once more. His place on the ultimate podium of the Tour de France appears to be getting nearer and nearer.
We briefly noticed a duel – picture: Cor Vos
Pogacar leaves Vingegaard behind
Again to the battle between Vingegaard and Pogacar now. Vingegaard continued to set the tempo, however Pogacar gave the impression to be sitting comfortably on his wheel. Pogacar opted for a defensive tactic in the beginning of the ultimate climb, however that modified 5 kilometres from the highest. The Slovenian blasted away and mercilessly left Vingegaard behind. Vingegaard may do something however observe and needed to concede greater than 30 seconds with three kilometres to go.
Pogacar didn’t relaxation within the last kilometres. In truth, he prolonged his lead. The yellow jersey wearer crossed the end line on the high of Plateau de Beille with a really massive lead. He dealt a hammer blow to Vingegaard, who ultimately got here in a single minute and eight seconds behind. Evenepoel got here in third, nearly three minutes behind.
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