Tour de France: “Very hard”: Van der Poel misses Coup – Bauhaus Seventh

Mathieu van der Poel looked at the ground and rank for air. And yet the Dutch ex-world champion was unable to resist a slight smile after his spectacular tear-off maneuver on the 112nd Tour de France over 170 kilometers.

But his brave attempt with colleague Jonas Rickaert failed very narrowly with the second fastest tour stage ever according to the organizers. Van der Poel was only caught up just a kilometer before the finish after Rickaert had fallen.

“It is very hard not to be able to get it through to the end,” said the two-time tourist winner van der Poel. “I discussed with Jonas if we wanted to do that,” he added. The escape group was the plan from the start.

Immediately after the start, the duo opened up and followed the brave plan. Van der Poel had recently won the second stage and had a small duel with defending champion Tadej Pogacar around the yellow jersey – but the Slovenian exceptional driver continues.

Phil Bauhaus took seventh place as the best German place. The sprinter, who continued to win his first stage in the tour, had no pity with the Dutch van der Poel. “He chose that for himself, he shouldn’t have attacked,” said Bocholter, born. “It’s okay for me,” he said about his placement. He had finished third on the third stage.

Second fastest tour stage of all time

The 30-year-old van der Poel, who also provided the hectic race, was only placed in the final sprint and had to experience how Belgian European champion Tim Merlier celebrated his second stage victory at this year’s tour of France.

The Italian cyclist Jonathan Milan missed his next success after the victory the day before. On the ninth stage, Merlier’s compatriot Arnaud de Lie finished third after the 174.1 kilometers between Chino and Châteauroux. In the end, it was only 68 for Van der Poel.

According to the organizers of the ASO, the stage was the second fastest in tour history. The drivers also achieved an average speed of 50.01 kilometers per hour due to the racing situation around van der Poel at the top and tailwind – only in 1999 the fourth stage between Laval and Blois was faster with 50.36. The ASO confirmed this on the DPA request.

“Every year I am scared of how fast this is,” said Bauhaus. The three-time tour winner Pogacar said: “I didn’t look at the statistics, but it felt very quickly.”

Pogacar further at the top

Nothing changed in the overall ranking. Gelb carrier Pogacar continues at the top of the classification with a lead of 54 seconds on the Belgian double Olympic champion Remco Evenepoel and 1:11 minutes on the Frenchman Kevin Vauquelin.

The German hope bearer Florian Lipowitz takes eighth place three minutes behind the Slovenian exceptional driver Pogacar, who now has to do without his noble helper Joao Almeida. The Portuguese got off the bike because of the consequences of a fall and break. “There are still two weeks to go. Losing a driver is a small disadvantage for us. But I am still very confident,” said Pogacar.

Zimmermann falls violently

The German road bike master Georg Zimmermann also caught it violently. The Augsburger fell heavily about 117 kilometers before the finish, suffering from grazes on the forearm and thighs, as TV images showed. After a brief examination by the race doctor, Zimmermann initially got back on the bike and was then supplied with the medical support vehicle while driving.

Zimmermann kept back, came back into the field and also fell off. He was back in the main field 44 kilometers before the stage final. His team titled the “X” platform: “The hero of the day.”

Climbing area on the national holiday

On the national holiday, the tour organizers offer cycling fans a first demanding climbing show in the central massif. 4450 vertical meters are imminent. Among other things, seven climbs in the second category are on the program. Never before had there been so many climbs of this moderate category in one day.