(Rocamadour) Jonas Vingegaard brilliantly overcame the last obstacles in the Tour de France to widen his gap at the top of the general classification on Saturday, practically guaranteeing his triumph on the Champs-Élysées.
Posted at 12:18 p.m.
After three weeks of tireless riding, the Jumbo-Visma team leader dipped into his reserves to deliver another flawless performance in the individual time trial in the south of France.
Vingegaard, who is not a specialist in this type of event, could have slowed down since he already had a three-minute lead in the lead before the start of the stage. He was rather bold on a very technical course and gave himself a little scare towards the end when he badly negotiated a turn and had to apply the brakes to avoid the fall.
The Dane then slowed the pace as he approached the finish line. He finished the 20e stage in second place behind Wout van Aert, his teammate.
PHOTO CHRISTIAN HARTMANN, REUTERS
Jonas Vingegaard and his boy on the podium
Van Aert, a versatile cyclist who has scored many victories throughout his prestigious career, has played a key role in supporting Vingegaard in the mountains. His third stage win this month was his ninth overall.
The Belgian, who also took the green jersey awarded to the best sprinter, has shown that he can triumph on all surfaces and that he has the makings of a team leader. He has so far refused to discuss the possibility of him changing teams in order to aspire one day to conquer the Tour de France.
PHOTO ANNE-CHRISTINE POUJOULAT, AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
Wout van Aert won for the third time since the start of the Tour.
“It’s a question that I’ve been asked non-stop for a few days,” said van Aert. I have answered the same thing thousands of times. At the moment, it’s simply incredible to be able to win the Tour de France with this team, to have won the honors of three stages and to have taken the green jersey. Right now I don’t want to think about the future. »
Van Aert completed the distance with an impressive average speed of 50.9 km/h. The 41.7 km course linking Lacapelle-Marival to Rocamadour was the longest time trial since 2014.
At the dawn of the final stage on Sunday, it’s a safe bet that the cyclists will parade in a formal manner – except, perhaps, for the last sprint on the Champs-Élysées. Vingegaard will then become the first Danish cyclist to win the Grande Boucle since 1996, unless he falls or encounters a last-minute unforeseen event.
This individual time trial was the last part of the fight between Vingegaard and the two-time reigning Tour de France champion, Tadej Pogacar.
Vingegaard took the lead during the mountain stages. He grabbed the yellow jersey in the French Alps, following a spectacular performance at the Col du Granon, and followed it up with a tour de force the following week – culminating in the final stage in the Pyrenees , at the seaside resort of Hautacam.
Pogacar finished the time trial in third place, 27 seconds behind van Aert.
Vingegaard will start the last stage, which will take place over 116 km towards Paris, with a cushion of three minutes and 34 seconds ahead of Pogacar.
Geraint Thomas, the 2018 Tour de France champion, sits third in the cumulative standings more than eight minutes behind Vingegaard.
For his part, Quebecer Hugo Houle cemented his place in the top 25after completing 88e of the time trial, at 6:40 from van Aert. The cyclist from Sainte-Perpétue, who won his first career stage at the Tour de France earlier this week, is at 24e rung.
His compatriots Antoine Duchesne, Guillaume Boivin and Michael Woods finished the stage at 97e109e and 128e ranks, respectively. The Ontarian is now 36e in the overall standings, ahead of Duchesne (63e) and Boivin (119e).