Yesterday, Thibaut Pinot already seemed on his way to his first victory since the Tour of 2019. But in the final kilometer he saw Miguel Angel Lopez fluttering over him.
Pinot had to fight back tears afterwards. Today the French climber again took his chance in a rain-soaked stage.
On the last scramble of the day, Pinot shook all his companions off the wheels. De la Cruz rejoined Pinot in the soaking descent, who placed the Spaniard in the sprint between his sandwich.
10 minutes behind Pinot, it also exploded in the group of favorites. Team DSM had made nefarious plans to help Bardet (at 2 seconds from leader Bilbao) to the overall victory.
When Bardet gave it a lap, Bilbao creaked uphill. Only Storer and Bardet’s team mate Arensman were able to keep up with the Frenchman. Bilbao trickled in at 40 seconds from Bardet, who thus takes the overall victory.
Our 19-year-old compatriot Cian Uijtdebroeks settled in a handsome 16th place in the final standings.
–
