If Chris Froome was not to win at Alpe Huez, it might as well be his compatriot Thomas Pidcock who spoils the fairy tale to write his own.
Olympic mountain bike champion, world cyclo-cross champion, Pidcock confirmed the full extent of his potential on the road by winning the 12e stage of the Tour de France, Thursday, at the top of the legendary climb with 21 bends.
At 22, the runner from Ineos-Grenadier is in his baptism of the Grande Boucle. “Not bad, is it?” amused the winner, tongue-in-cheek. It’s been my Tour de France so far. Even if something happens and I get let go every day, I don’t care. A stage victory in my first Tour is not bad. »
After losing time the day before, Pidcock was able to join a seven-rider breakaway by attacking the peloton on the Galibier descent, exploiting his formidable riding skills developed on gravel and mud. Along the way, he pinned Froome (Israel-Premier Tech), who started a little earlier on the climb.
At the foot of the interminable Col de la Croix de Fer (29 km), the group of seven fugitives had given themselves a lead of just over seven minutes over the peloton. This was led with authority by the Jumbo-Visma of the new yellow jersey Jonas Vingegaard.
Five kilometers from the summit, Pidcock attacked to get rid of the dead wood. Louis Meintjes (Intermarché), Froome, Giulio Ciccone (Trek) and Neilson Powless (EF) hung on.
The final battle would take place on Alpe Huez amidst tens of thousands of partisans. Pidcock accelerated early to give himself a few seconds of priority over Meintjes and Froome. The rubber band eventually let go for both the South African and the Briton.
PHOTO MARCO BERTORELLO, FRANCE-PRESSE AGENCY
Thomas Pidcock
Pidcock crossed the line with his arms in the air, 48s before Mentjies (2e) and 2 min 6 s before Froome (3e).
“It was definitely one of my best experiences in cycling, it was unreal,” raved Pidcock, who went from 11e at 8e overall rank. “When you’re literally slaloming through flags, fists and God knows what else, you can’t experience that anywhere but Alpe d’Huez in the Tour de France. »
The presence of Froome, 15 years her senior, made the moment even more memorable.
He’s a legend and I just beat him at Alpe Huez. He may not be as fast as before, but he’s still Chris Froome, right?
Tom Pidcock
The quadruple winner of the Tour has not shown himself at this level since his dramatic fall during a warm-up for the time trial at the Critérium du Dauphiné in 2019. According to his relatives, he could have died there.
“A small victory”
It was not the expected success, but Froome did not hide his relief on arrival. “It feels like a small victory for me. It was amazing to be up there again in the middle of the action. I think I can fall asleep smiling tonight. »
PHOTOGONZALO FUENTES, REUTERS
Chris Froome
Shortly after, the Briton called his coach Paulo Saldanha, back in Quebec after accompanying his famous protege last week.
“He said, ‘Thank you for always believing in me,'” Saldanha said over the phone. He was almost crying and he was very emotional. »
Almost everyone said he was finished, that he would never get back to form again. Of course it’s not there yet, but at least it’s a bit of positive energy and hope.
Paulo Saldanha, coach of Chris Froome
In “good progress for two months”, Froome has been slowed down by “congestion” since the start of the Tour in Denmark, the same boredom which forced him to abandon the Dauphiné, revealed the coach.
“We were scared. He was told to take a few days off in the peloton and waste time. It was the right decision because he had a lot of energy today. He still did well for a guy who was in the gruppetto last year. Pidcock was just too strong. »
After the dramatic reversal the day before in the Col du Granon, the race returned to a more classic scenario. Towed by the inexhaustible Wout van Aert, Vingegaard’s Jumbo-Visma formation discouraged any attack until the Alpe, where the American climber Sepp Kuss was imperial.
The white jersey Tadej Pogačar (UAE) placed two mines before the finish, but the Dane neutralized him on the spot. They returned to the line together, accompanied by Geraint Thomas (Ineos). Victim of a heat stroke, Romain Bardet (11e) saved the day by only losing about twenty seconds to its direct rivals. The Frenchman from DSM nevertheless tumbles in the 4the position of the general, in favor of Pogačar (2e) and Thomas (3e). They are now the only three within 3 minutes of the yellow jersey.
” Impressive ”
Picked up 1 km from the top of the Croix de Fer, Hugo Houle found the yellow jersey peloton on the descent. To save energy, the member of Israel-Premier Tech accompanied him to the foot of Alpe d’Huez, which he climbed at his own pace under the encouragement of the many Canadians and Quebecers on site. “There were a lot of people, a lot of noise, it’s impressive,” said the man who finished 50e 19 min 40 sec from Pidcock. The Quebecer praised the performance of his teammate Chris Froome: “It will relieve him and restore his confidence for the future. He had a difficult period, so I’m happy to see him come back to his level. Antoine Duchesne and Guillaume Boivin finished 62 respectivelye and 119e. David Gaudu, Duchesne’s teammate at Groupama, left some feathers in the general standings, but managed to maintain his 7e position (+ 4 min 17 s). With the Alps in the rearview mirror, a few transition stages are looming, where Houle could try to break away. “Friday there may be a chance of a sprint finish, depending on which team wants to control or not. The next steps look very, very interesting. »
