Hugo Houle tried his luck in the breakaway on the third stage of the Tour of Poland. Proud of his effort, the cyclist from the Israel – Premier Tech team finished in 35e rank, in a race marked by limited communication between athletes and sports directors.
Three riders took off early in the day. About sixty kilometres later, they were joined by a group of seven, including the Quebecer.
The Ineos Grenadiers team then attacked on the climb of Góra Świętej Anny.
“It allowed a bit of movement and I was well placed thanks to Guillaume Boivin,” Hugo Houle explained to Sportcom. “I decided to follow and we caught the breakaway. The cohesion wasn’t very good, especially because Visma | Lease a Bike had no interest in riding,” added the man who was 23e in the general classification at the start of the day, 1 minute and 28 seconds behind the leader, the Dane Jonas Vingegaard, of the Visma | Lease A Bike team.
“I was well placed in the general classification and that put a bit of pressure on them. All in all, I was happy to be in front. I didn’t have much to lose, so I took my chance! It didn’t work out today, but it was a very good move. My legs are excellent and I was able to take advantage of it.”
The breakaway was caught about 20 kilometers from the finish and Hugo Houle was 35e (+1 minute 4 seconds) to cross the finish line. Boivin, who had helped his compatriot a little earlier, took the 65e rank.
After negotiating the twisty turns of Duszniki-Zdrój well, Belgian Thibau Nys of Litl-Trek overtook Italian Diego Ulissi (UAE Team Emirates) in the final metres to take the win. Nys had also won the opening stage on Monday.
Dutchman Wilco Keldermann (Visma | Lease a Bike) finished third. His teammate Jonas Vingegaard finished ninth and retains the lead in the provisional general classification. The second-place finisher in the Tour de France holds a 19-second lead over Diego Ilussi.
Hugo Houle is now 26e (+2 minutes 32 seconds), the best ranking at Israel – Premier Tech. Guillaume Boivin is at 78e place.
1-2, test
The third stage of the Tour de Pologne was also marked by a test by the organizing committee and the International Cycling Union (UCI). The aim was to reduce communications between cyclists and sports directors, which would make certain situations more risky during races. For example, when several teams are fighting for the same position in the peloton, depending on what was noticed by the sports directors.
Thus, only two riders per team were given a radio and an earpiece to communicate with their sports director on Wednesday. This will also be the case on Thursday during the fourth stage, while on Friday, no one will be equipped with one.
“I was one of those with a radio, so it’s harder to tell the difference,” shared Hugo Houle. “Personally, I always review my course studiously. That way, I’m never in trouble, even if I have a problem with my radio. I always know where I’m going and where I have to position myself, so for me, the radio doesn’t have a big strategic impact.”
Earbuds are already banned in some events on the calendar, such as the World Championships and the Olympic Games. This was quickly demonstrated in Paris when Belgian Remco Evenepoel, the eventual winner of the road race, suffered a flat tire 3.8 kilometers from the finish. Without a radio, he requested another bike and did not know how much of a lead he had over his closest pursuer.
“It may be harder to know when someone is attacking, it can take a long time to know who is in front and the reaction times of the teams may be less efficient. In general, there is less tension in the peloton. We will see later this week if it works without radio and if it is beneficial for safety.”
The sprinters will meet at the finish of the fourth stage on Thursday in Prudnik.