At 500 meters, he took out the cross he has worn around his neck since the death of his brother. At 100 meters, he allowed himself to raise his arms for the first time. Then he turned to see the commissioner’s red car.
Posted at 11:05 a.m.
Updated at 5:38 p.m.
It was all true: Hugo Houle was about to win a stage in the Tour de France.
Right index finger pointing skyward, his face decomposed, he crossed the line at Foix. Three hours later, the first Quebec winner in the history of the Tour was still in a state of shock.
PHOTO CHRISTIAN HARTMANN, REUTERS
Hugo Houle on his arrival at the end of the stage
“When I closed my eyes at night, before going to bed, I had a crazy dream,” he said on the phone, his voice a little hoarse, Tuesday evening, local time.
“That’s exactly how I dreamed of winning, in the most beautiful way, arriving solo. I find it difficult to realize what I have done, but I am very, very happy. »
A minute and a half after his victory, his very first as a professional, Houle fell into the arms of Michael Woods, his compatriot, friend and teammate, who had just finished third in this 16e historic stage for Canadian cycling, between Carcassonne and Foix. “This one’s for my brother,” Houle reiterated amid hugs.
In this first Pyrenean stage, the Israeli-Premier Tech duo fled with 27 other riders 147 km from the finish. Obviously, everything would be at stake in the two large first category passes located at the end of the event, the Port de Lers (11.4 km at 7%) and the formidable Mur de Péguère (9.3 km at 7, 9%).
PHOTO GONZALO FUENTES, FRANCE-PRESSE AGENCY
Michael Woods and Hugo Houle
Slightly behind at the top of Port de Lers, Houle closed the 26-second gap alone separating him from the reduced group of eight leaders, including Woods and the excellent climbers Damiano Caruso (Bahrain), Michael Storer (Groupama-FDJ) and Matteo Jorgenson (Movistar).
40 km from the finish, still on the descent, Woods let Houle take a small lead, shouting in his earpiece to continue on his way.
“It was really instinctive,” said the Ottawa cyclist. The other runners started looking at each other. Quickly, Hugo took 10, 15 seconds. It was ideal not only for him, but also for me because I could stay behind and save my legs for the final. »
“It hurt so much…”
In the Mur de Péguère, Houle consolidated the gap, annihilating the pursuit attempts of Tony Gallopin (Trek), Jorgenson and Valentin Madouas, who was riding for his teammate Storer. Woods was well wedged into their wheel, biding his moment.
The Sainte-Perpétue native’s lead peaked at 49 seconds. “There, I really had to give everything. I knew everyone was in pain from this heat. On such steep slopes, it’s hard to go really faster. I watched each kilometer scroll on my counter. It hurt so much at that time that it was more like: save your skin…”
His biggest concern: food and hydration. Stuck behind the pursuers, the team car could not refuel. A healer posted on the climb “saved” him with two gels and two cans. Further on, the neutral recovery motorbike allowed him to refuel.
It was the key. If I didn’t eat, it was over. I managed to regain two gels. I held on, but it was a little limited nutritionally.
Hugo Houle
At the top, Houle had a cushion of 34 seconds with 27.2km to go, all downhill. “I said to myself: it’s good, it can do it. There was still a long way to go. It was a descent where you had to pedal with slightly more technical ends down. I was in a lot of pain. »
The young American Jorgenson tested the limits of grip on the descent, crashing in a corner 13 km from the wire. “I wasn’t really surprised because he took a lot of risks, testified Woods, who was following him. I had left him five meters because I knew that there is a lot of oil on the roads here. I fell in the Pyrenees last year. It was the right decision. »
From there, Houle’s victory was hardly in doubt, with Woods even giving a thumbs up to the moto-camera after Jorgenson returned. The Canadian was surprised on the line by Madouas, whom he had not seen return.
With 2km to go, Houle started to relax a little when the slate signaled to him that his lead had increased to one minute.
At the invitation of Steve Bauer, sporting director of Israel-Premier Tech who was in the car behind, he allowed himself to savor his success in the last kilometer. Bauer was the only Canadian stage winner on the Tour until then, in 1988, the year he wore the yellow jersey twice.
“I especially thought of my brother,” said Houle. It was for him that I wanted to go and smack it, this victory. I thought about all the sacrifices for 10 years. I had succeeded. I didn’t really believe it. It’s crazy ! »
Houle discovered the Tour by following it on television with his younger brother Pierrik at the family residence in Sainte-Perpétue, in the Nicolet-Yamaska region. “I never imagined myself being there one day. »
PHOTO CHRISTIAN HARTMANN, REUTERS
Hugo Houle
On December 21, 2012, Hugo was returning from his first professional camp in Europe with the formation AG2R La Mondiale when Pierrik was cut down to death by a drunk driver while he was jogging in the evening. He was 19 years old.
From that day on, Hugo promised himself to win a stage in honor of his brother, for whom he wears a cross given to him by entrepreneur Louis Garneau.
“That’s what helped me stay motivated day after day to train and get through this ordeal,” said Houle. Since then, I have always carried my cross and had a thought for him before each of my departures so that he protects me. We take a lot of risks.
“I’m not an over-believer, but I enjoy believing that he is with me, that he supports me, that he protects me. It makes me a little safer and more confident since he left. »
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Third in Saint-Étienne on Friday, Houle had promised himself to try his luck again. At 31 and after 10 seasons mostly serving as a servant and lieutenant, he didn’t miss her when she performed.
“When I started at AG2R, I was completely alone in the WorldTour peloton for several years, he recalled. I was a simple team member who was at the bottom of the ladder. Today I managed to win a stage. Today is 10 years of enormous sacrifices, of work. What made my career was my discipline and my perseverance. Today was my day where I was able to shine. I’m really happy to have succeeded. »
With more than 1,000 messages and notifications on his overheated phone, the hero of the day apologized for “not being able to reply to everyone”.
“It’s a big wave of love. It’s nice to see that. If I bring emotions to life and inspire the next generation, it’s mission accomplished. »
And even a little more.
Ranking of the 16e stage
- Hugo Houle (CAN/ISR) the 178.5 km in 4 h 23:47
- Valentin Madouas (FRA/GFJ) at 1:10
- Michael Woods (CAN/ISR) 1:10
- Matteo Jorgenson (USA/MOV) 1:12
- Michael Storer (AUS/GFJ) 1:25
- Alexander Vlasov (RUS/BOR) 1:40
- Dylan Teuns (BEL/BAH) 1:40
- Simon Geschke (GER/COF) 2:11
- Mathieu Burgaudeau (FRA/TOT) 5:04
- Damiano Caruso (ITA/BAH) 5:04
- Mikkel Honoré (DEN/QST) 5:45
- Neilson Powless (USA/EF1) 5:45
- Wout van Aert (BEL/JUM) 5:54
- Brandon McNulty (USA/UAE) 5:54
- Jonas Vingegaard (DEN/JUM) 5:54
- Tadej Pogacar (SLO/UAE) 5:54
- Geraint Thomas (GBR/INE) 5:54
- David Gaudu (FRA/GFJ) 5:54
- Nairo Quintana (COL/ARK) 5:54
- Daniel Martinez (COL/INE) 5:57