Five kilometers from Saint-Étienne, Guillaume Boivin went to find Antoine Duchesne in the middle of the peloton. “I said to him, ‘Hey, big, they are three in front, and Hugo is there…” I had goosebumps! »
Posted at 8:00 p.m.
That meant Duchesne’s team-mate Stefan Küng couldn’t challenge for victory after spending the day in the breakaway.
“In my head, I cheered not bad more for [Hugo] only for Küng, but that must not be said! “Laughed Duchesne, Friday afternoon, after Houle’s historic third place in the 13e stage of the Tour de France.
Houle simply met stronger than him in the person of former world champion Mads Pedersen. In the eyes of Duchesne, it took little for his friend to realize the dream he shared with his brother, who died in an accident nearly 10 years ago.
I know Pierrik must have been up there watching it all the way. His dream is to go for a victory for him. But I think third place shouldn’t be far from his heart. It is extremely deserved.
Antoine Duchesne
Seventeenth in the stage, five minutes from the winner, Boivin relished by proxy the performance of his teammate from Israel-Premier Tech (IPT).
“Hugo is in extraordinary shape. I am very proud and happy for him. It’s really a great day for Israel-Premier Tech, for Hugo and for Quebec too. We haven’t seen that often. »
Boivin himself finished ninth in the great classic Paris-Roubaix last year. In 2013, David Veilleux won the first stage of the Critérium du Dauphiné, where he wore the yellow jersey for three days. This feat earned him an invitation to the Tour de France, a first for a native of Quebec.
This year, there are three Quebec cyclists on the 109e Tower, a historic peak. If Houle made the fleur-de-lysées colors shine on Friday, which earned him the congratulations of Prime Minister François Legault on social networks, his two friends contributed in their own way to this number.
During the post-race review in the bus of IPT, an Israeli-Quebec formation, Houle took the floor to underline the contribution of his teammates, in particular of “G”, nickname of Boivin.
“It was Guillaume who controlled the breakaways for the first 27 kilometers where it was all flat,” said Houle. He had to keep the group together so I could make a difference on the first climb. He does the work that you don’t see all the time. It’s also teamwork so that I can take the breakaway. »
Duchesne, he convinced his friend to save himself in the Alps in order to be able to express himself in the stages for “adventurers” like that of Friday.
“Hugo tends to hang on and always force a bit. He has trouble getting up. I told him: “The next two mountain stages, you know you’re not going to win them. Even in a breakaway, you will always meet a climber stronger than you. Even if you are able to finish 30e, we do not care. Get up, don’t waste energy.” »
Duchesne and Boivin underlined how much the presence of Houle in this high caliber group was meritorious.
PHOTO CHRISTIAN HARTMANN, REUTERS
Hugo Houle (left) at the front of the breakaway group during the 13e stage between Le Bourg d’Oisans and Saint-Etienne, Friday
“It was going very fast, it was hard, there were a lot of people who wanted to be in front,” said Duchesne. It was a breakaway of machines. »
“When these guys are in front, it means that they fought extremely hard to be in the breakaway, added Boivin. You had to be very strong to be there. »
Sporting director Steve Bauer, who followed Houle in the IPT car, “never thought” that his protege could join him as the only Canadian stage winner in the Tour (1988).
I was definitely going for the win, that’s why we’re here. I was doing everything I could to give him a chance to win. And he was racing to win, there’s no doubt about it. But when you’re accompanied by the best in the world… It’s bike racing, nothing is handed to you on a silver platter. He had excellent luck today and rode a fabulous race to finish third. He can be very proud of it.
Steve Bauer, Sporting Director of Israel-Premier Tech
As he stated to The Press in Copenhagen before the start of the Tour, Bauer is convinced that Houle has the potential to win a stage this year.
“He’s in top form and it was only a matter of time before he slipped into a really strong breakaway. It’s all about who you end up with in the breakaway. »
According to the sporting director, Houle should help his teammates on Saturday and play his card again on Sunday, between Rodez and Carcassonne. The Quebecer would also have ticked a Pyrenean stage.
A “taste”
Houle thrilled her parents on Friday. Residents of Drummondville, they first learned that their son had taken the breakaway before jumping into their car for a medical appointment in Montreal. On the road, they noticed that the gap with the peloton did not increase much… They followed the end of the stage in the clinic on a digital tablet which discharged dangerously… “We managed to see the whole end, even when he congratulated [Mads] Pedersen, said his mother, Diane Allard. We were all pissed off. Couldn’t ask for better. Hugo is so disciplined. He puts all his energy into doing so. Hugo found time to call his parents shortly after arrival. “He said he wasn’t that tired. It means that the form has improved a lot. When Hugo has something in his head, he has it in his head. He will achieve it, his goal. It wasn’t for today. Today was just a taste…”