PARIS – The Frenchman Thibaut Pinot (Groupama-FDJ) offered himself a second success this season, on Saturday during the 7th and penultimate stage of the Tour de Suisse, between Ambri (Ticino) and Malbun in Liechtenstein, which allowed the Colombian Sergio Higuita (Bora) to take the overall lead.
Coming out of a group of breakaways, Pinot won solo at the top of the Malbun (hors category pass). He beat Spaniard Oscar Rodriguez (Movistar) and Kazakh Alexey Lutsenko (Astana).
Higuita (Bora), 4th in the stage, stole the leader’s yellow jersey from Dane Jakob Fuglsang (Israel-PT), 7th on arrival in Malbun. In general, the Colombian is only two seconds ahead of the Briton Geraint Thomas (Ineos) and 19 Fuglsang, now 3rd.
“It was very hot, very heavy. For me, winning under 35 degrees was important. I have always said that I came to win (…) What I just want is to win races, ”reacted the 32-year-old runner on the Channel The Teamat the end of his victory, the second in a few weeks after the 5th stage of the Tour of the Alps at the end of April.
During this seventh stage of the Tour de Suisse, Pinot was for a long time in a group of fourteen breakaways, which formed at the start of the stage and counted up to almost 8 minutes ahead of the peloton.
Still in the lead before the ascent of the Malbun, a non-category pass (12.4 km at 8.4% average), the group gradually split up, leaving two men alone in front, the Kazakh Alexey Lutsenko (Astana) and the Spaniard Ion Izaguirre (Cofidis), pursued by Thibaut Pinot.
The Frenchman finally joined and then let go of the two men to take off for the stage victory.
The 85th edition of the Tour de Suisse, disrupted by the abandonment of COVID-positive riders, ends on Sunday with a 25.6 km time trial in Vaduz, the capital of Liechtenstein. Higuita and her two-second lead will have a hard time resisting exercise specialist Thomas.
Classification of the 7th stage :
1. Thibaut Pinot (FRA / GFJ) the 194.6 km in 5 h 06:39.
(average: 38.2 km/h)
2. Oscar Rodríguez (ESP/MOV) at 25.
3. Alexey Lutsenko (KAZ/AST) 38.
4. Sergio Higuita (COL/BOR) 1:19.
5. Geraint Thomas (GBR/INE) 1:30.
6. Nicolas Prodhomme (FRA/AG2) 1:40.
7. Jakob Fuglsang (DEN/ISR) 1:48.
8. Domenico Pozzovivo (ITA/INT) 1:59.
9. Sebastien Reichenbach (SUI/GFJ) 2:09.
10. Neilson Powless (USA/EF1) 2:19.
…
12. Remco Evenepoel (BEL/DEC) 2:30.
13. Ion Izagirre (ESP/COF) 2:32.
…
15. Mathieu Burgaudeau (FRA/TOT) 2:43.
…
20. Felix Grossschartner (AUT/BOR) 3:42.
…
32. Fausto Masnada (ITA/DEC) 9:20.
33. Michael Matthews (AUS/BIK) 9:31.
…
35. Jose Herrada (ESP/COF) 9:38.
…
49. Clement Champoussin (FRA / AG2) 16:25.
50. Benoît Cosnefroy (FRA / AG2) 16:25.
…
54. Philippe Gilbert (BEL/LOT) 19:34.
…
74. Gianni Moscon (ITA/AST) 28:36.
…
79. Peter Sagan (SVK/TOT) 29:10.
give up : Luke Rowe (GBR/INE) Thomas De Gendt (BEL/LOT) 84. Lukas Rüegg (SUI/SUI)
Not runners : Marco Haller (AUT/BOR) Sander Armée (BEL/COF) Quentin Pacher (FRA/GFJ)
General classification after the 7th stage :
1. Sergio Higuita (COL/Bora) 32:38:38.
2. Geraint Thomas (GBR/INE) at 2.
3. Jakob Fuglsang (DEN/ISR) 19.
4. Neilson Powless (USA/EF1) 1:16.
5. Domenico Pozzovivo (ITA/INT) 1:37.
6. Sebastien Reichenbach (SUI/GFJ) 2:09.
7. Stefan Küng (SUI/GFJ) 2:19.
8. Bob Jungels (LUX/AG2) 2:31.
9. Felix Grossschartner (AUT/BOR) 2:47.
10. Andreas Leknessund (NOR/DSM) 2:59.
11. Maximilian Schachmann (GER/BOR) 3:11.
12. Daniel Martinez (COL/INE) 3:16.
13. Remco Evenepoel (BEL/DEC) 4:09.
…
15. Thibaut Pinot (FRA / GFJ) 4:40.
…
17. Mathieu Burgaudeau (FRA/TOT) 5:50.
…
20. Fausto Masnada (ITA/DEC) 14:45.
21. Jose Herrada (ESP / COF) 17:12.
…
23. Michael Matthews (AUS/BIK) 19:13.
…
28. Clement Champoussin (FRA / AG2) 28:40.
29. Oscar Rodríguez (ESP/MOV) 32:32.
…
38. Nicolas Prodhomme (FRA / AG2) 46:31.
…
44. Philippe Gilbert (BEL/LOT) 56:53.
…
63. Gianni Moscon (ITA / AST) 1:22:11.
…
65. Benoît Cosnefroy (FRA / AG2) 1 h 28:21.
…
77. Peter Sagan (SVK/TOT) 1:52:20 a.m.
