General Classification after stage 14
- 1. Chris Froome (Team Sky) 63:46:40”
- 2. Bauke Mollema (Trek) +1:47”
- 3. Adam Yates (Orica) +2:45”
- 4. Nairo Quintana (Movistar) +2:59”
- 5. Alejandro Valverde (Movistar) +3:17”
- 6. Tejay van Garderen (BMC Racing) +3:19”
- 7. Romain Bardet (AG2R) +4:04”
- 8. Richie Porte (BMC Racing) +4:27”
- 9. Daniel Martin (Etixx-Quick-Step) +5:03”
- 10. Fabio Aru (Astana) +5:16”
General Classification: Today’s bunch finish means the overall standings remain unaltered. Chris Froome maintains his lead of 1min 47sec over Bauke Mollema, while Adam Yates is back in third with a deficit of 2min 45sec. After a fairly long and boring stage today, the riders have a freakishly difficult mountain stage ahead of them in the Alps tomorrow. You can keep tabs on it here.
Stage 14 official result
- 1. Mark Cavendish (Dimension) 5hr 43min 49sec
- 2. Alexander Kristoff (Katusha) ST
- 3. Peter Sagan (Tinkoff)
- 4. John Degenkolb (Giant)
- 5. Marcel Kittel (Etixx-Quick-Step)
- 6. Andre Greipel (Lotto)
- 7. Bryan Coquard (Direct Energie)
- 8. Davide Cimolai (Lampre)
- 9. Christophe Laporte (Cofidis)
- 10. Samuel Dumoulin (AG2R)
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Stage 14 top five
1. Mark Cavendish
2. Alexander Kristoff
3. Peter Sagan
4. John Degenkolb
5. Marcel Kittel
CAVENDISH s'envole à nouveau ! / wins! #TDF2016 pic.twitter.com/5cN1WWircH
— Le Tour de France (@LeTour) July 16, 2016
Cavendish wins ahead of Alexander Kristoff, with Peter Sagan in third. The Manx Missile wins his fourth stage of this year’s Tour. Marcel Kittel took up the sprint with about 200 metres to go, but Cavendish was on his wheel and passed on his left side, before cutting in to his right slightly in a move that clearly angered the German. I couldn’t see anything wrong with it - he was well beaten and Cavendish didn’t appear to cause much, if any, interference.
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CAVENDISH WINS THE STAGE!!
Mark Cavendish wins his 30th stage of the Tour de France. Marcel Kittel went first, but Cavendish went on his wheel and passed him with about 180 metres to go. There was no catching him after that.
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500 metres to go: Everyone wants to be on the right hand side of the road and Cavendish’s men have got him there.
Two kilometres to go: A couple of riders get barged off the road, as Mark Cavendish’s team-mates continue shovelling coal into the furnace. Daniel McLay is on Cavendish’s wheel.
3.5 kilometres to go:Roy and Elmiger exchange a handshake moments before being caught and consumed by the pack. It’s been a heroic effort by the pair.
Six kilometres to go: The peloton hits 50 kilometres an hour, which is no mean feat considering those in it are riding into a strong headwind. Mark Cavendish and his Dimension Data team-mates are lined up on the left-hand side of the road. Further up the road, Messrs Roy and Elmiger pass under the five-kilometre to go mark with the gap down to just 10 seconds ...
Seven kilometres to go: Martin Elmiger andJeremy Roy maintain an impressive lead of 31 seconds with seven kilometres to go. They couldn’t ... could they? I’m say there’s no chance.
10 kilometres to go: Jeremy Roy (FDJ), Cesare Benedetti (Bora) and Martin Elmiger (IAM) pass under the big red and white arch that signifies 10 kilometres to go with a lead of 32 seconds over the chasing hounds. The effort proves too much for Benedetti, who sits up and prepares to be devoured.
12 kilometres to go: Things are looking a little tense at the front of the peloton as the breakaway group of four riders is reduced to three after dropping the American Cannondale rider Alex Howes. The gap is 36 seconds, so there’s no need for panic.
13 kilometres to go: The four men in the breakaway continue to ponder the futility of it all as they extend their lead to 40 seconds. At the front of the bunch, the riders of Dimension Data and Lotto Soudal continue to put in the hard yards.
18 kilometres to go: The riders pass through a small village, where some young ne’er do well stands at the side of the road waving a flare, sending thick plumes of smoke into the air for the riders to inhale. From the peloton, a water-bottle is hurled his way but unfortunately doesn’t hit him.
We’re into the final 20 kilometres: Fourteen seconds is the gap, as the bunch continue to let the lads in the breakaway enjoy their 15 minutes three-and-a-half hours of fame. Dimension Data are very much towards the front of the chasing pack, as they prepare to lead out Mark Cavendish. Across from them, Andre Greipel’s Lotto-Soudal team-mates are prominent.
23 kilometres to go: Still riding into a headwind, Jeremy Roy (FDJ), Cesare Benedetti (Bora), Martin Elmiger (IAM) and Alex Howes (Cannondale) can practically feel the breath of their pursuers on their necks, They still lead by more than 10 seconds, but it’s only a matter of when, rather than if, the bunch decide to reel them in.
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25 kilometres to go: As the cameras linger on the Barrage De Jons over the Rhone and the Eurosport commentators pass the time bickering over what does and does not constitute a dam, the gap between the breakaway group and the bunch is down to just 16 seconds.
28 kilometres to go: The gap is down to 24 seconds and dropping fast as things speed up at the head of the bunch.
The gap goes back out to 51 seconds: With just over 31 kilometres to go, the teams of some of the sprinters are beginning to organise themselves at the front of the bunch. This ought to be a very exciting finish to what has been an extremely dull stage.
The gap is down to 46 seconds: With just over 35 kilometres, the bunch is closing in on our four leaders, as we see LottoNL–Jumbo rider George Bennett drop back to the team car to pick up some bidons, energy bars and gels for his team-mates. It’s also being reported that Matti Breschel has been evacuated from the course and is en route to hospital after injuring his right leg in a crash. We wish him well. Details of his crash are sketchy, but it seems there were three riders involved.
An email from Kevin Christian: “No real surprise the breakaway fought out the intermediate sprint,” he says. “Benedettti just picked up 1500 euros for the Bora kitty. Not to be sniffed at. And it probably broke up the monotony for them for a few minutes.”
The wind is changing direction: Eurosport have informed us that the wind is changing direction, which will effect the final three kilometres of the race, after a tight right turn. The final sprint won’t be into a headwind, as had been predicted, but it seems unlikely that the crosswind will make too much difference on such a short stretch. There’s just over 42 kilometres to go and the gap between the leaders and the chasing posse is now less than one minute.
Rod Stewart has come back swinging haymakers: “Ignoring the mockery, surely my question is still relevant: are they putting extra barriers up for the Alpine climbs?” he asks.
I don’t know, Rod - but I doubt it. They generally have barriers on the final two kilometres, which is normally adequate. Special circumstances, specifically the high winds resulting in the last six kilometres of the climb up Ventoux being cut, meant that huge numbers of fans who were already up there, were forced to descend from their lofty perch to see any of the action. This resulted in ridiculous levels of crowd congestion.
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Another abandonment ...
Cannondale rider Matti Breschel has quit the race following a crash. The field is now 185 strong. Four of those 185 have put a gap of 1min 10sec between themselves and the other 181.
That intermediate sprint result in full
1. Cesare Benedetti 20
2. Alex Howes 17
3. Jérémy Roy 15
4. Martin Elmiger 13
....................................
5. Peter Sagan 11
6. Marcel Kittel 10
7. Mark Cavendish 9
8. Bryan Coquard 8
9. Max Richeze 7
10. Fabio Sabatini 6
11. Lars Bak 5
12. Navardauskas 4
13. Tony Martin 3
14. Petr Vakoc 2
15. Natnael Berhane 1
An email from Paul Griffin: “It’s out of order for Rendel Harris to mock Rod Stewart’s name and uncalled for to lampoon him for wearing lamé,” he says. “For all we know, he wears it well.”
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Less than 60 kilometres to go: The gap between the breakaway and the group is 2min 04sec. A sprint finish seems inevitable. Mark Cavendish is at odds of just over 2-1 to win the stage, while Marcel Kittel is 3-1. Birthday boy Andre Greipel is 13-2 and without a stage win in this year’s Tour. Worth a cheeky punt, maybe?
Cesare Benedetti wins the intermediate sprint. Surprisingly ... and possibly out of boredom, the breakaway riders actually contested the intermediate sprint, with Cesare Bendetti first past the post. He was followed by Alex Howes, Jeremy Roy and Martin Elmiger.
An emil from Rendel Harris: “With reference to the wee lamé-clad Scot’s enquiry at 15.04 about the Alpe d’Huez,” he says, winding up for his killer blow. “The organisers probably don’t have to worry too much about the crowds there as they’re, well, not riding up it this year.” Boom!
More on Nairo Quin-tow-na: Cycling News have revealed that the Colombian defended his controversial actions on Mont Ventoux, where he was seen to take a tow from a passing moto, by saying he grabbed the spare wheel sticking up from the back of the passing bike to avoid an accident.
“There was a moto and I went over to the right and then the moto went up on the right of me, I grabbed it because it hit me,” he explained this morning. “Afterwards, I let go of it and moved away.” To be fair, Chris Froome appeared to accept his explanation, although Trek’s directeur sportif Alain Gallopin was less impressed.
67 kilometres to go: The gap between the four breakaway riders and the bunch is down to 2min 18sec. A quick recap on the four escapees: Jeremy Roy (FDJ), Cesare Benedetti (Bora), Martin Elmiger (IAM) and Alex Howes (Cannondale).
An email from Rod Stewart (not that one): Well, it might be that one, but it seems unlikely. “Since you’ve got nothing to do can you find out if the organisers are doing anything about the crowds at Alpe d’Duez, especially at Dutch Corner,” he says. “They’ve got a few days to source extra barriers so there’s no excuse for a repeat of the Mont Ventoux shenanigans.”
Tim Craddock is back once again and has a drawn up a three-point manifesto to help Tour boss Christian Prudhomme secure a little more respect for Chris Froome from French cycling fans and the French media. Here it is ...
- 1) Condemn a little more stupid behaviour by spectators (a bit of a cultural thing this - the French do not like to condemn people “enjoying themselves” in wreaking havoc, as our media love to do with British spectators);
- 2) Not make it look as if somehow Froome was being granted a favour after the 100m on foot. In other words be a bit more vehement in saying it was not his fault, and that he fully deserved the treatment he got from the judges.
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3) In general remind the French media that, unless proved to be cheating at some point, Froome deserves more respect.
The perks of being a cycling journalist on Tour
Will Fotheringham is monitoring today’s non-proceedings in France for the Guardian ...
Today's press gift. What am i going to call him? pic.twitter.com/fUg6j3EJYm
— William Fotheringham (@willfoth) July 16, 2016
76 kilometres to go: Matthias Frank’s abandonment through illness leaves 186 riders in the race. The record number of finishers is 170, back in 2010, so we could be on course to break that this year. That said, there are several gruelling Alpine stages to come where we could lose plenty more.
We have another abandonment
IAM Cycling’s Swiss rider Matthias Frank has quit the Tour at the feed zone after being dropped off the back of the bunch, apparently suffering from gastro-enteritis. With the cyclists pedalling into a headwind, the clamour to avoid riding downwind of poor Matthias was probably the main source of excitement in the peloton today. Get well soon, sir. Today can’t have been too much fun for you.
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@bglendenning With respect sir, could we spend some time on this long stage coining a better term than Quintana-gate? Eg the Tow-lombian?
— Andy Mac (@AndyP_Mac) July 16, 2016
Tim Craddock is back: “Well that was a bit of a slapdown,” he says. “Yes - maybe many of the readers are armchair cranks.. And there is a lot of hate. But Christian Prudhomme - the main Tour organiser- who was over in the UK for the Yorkshire stages, kept going on about British fair play. He must know that relentless questioning of Froome’s ability must seep into the minds of the commissaires and that it also has an effect on the overall image of the Tour.”
Well that’s as maybe, Tim ... but you can’t prevent people from questioning Chris Froome or any other cyclist’s ability, because it’s something they’re perfectly entitled to do. What exactly is it you propose Prudhomme should do to stop people from questioning his ability?
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88 kilometres to go: And on Eurosport the commentary is all about lavender fields and a French town called Orange where no oranges could be seen. Yes, it’s transition day. The gap between the escape party and the bunch is 3min 18sec.
Quintana-gate: “Bearing in mind the height of that bike wheel and the impossibility of avoiding it on either side due to the crowds, Quintana might well have been just protecting his face,” writes Adam Hirst. “I wouldn’t worry too much about what was happening at that point, it was all going a bit crazy.”
Hmmm ... I’m not sure I buy your theory there, Adam, but Mr Quintana might be interested in hearing it just in case he does get called before the race beaks to explain himself. It’s not ridiculously implausible.
What if one of today's 4 baroudeurs could win the stage ? But finally, what is a baroudeur ? Explanations #TDF2016https://t.co/crCIwptV6V
— Le Tour de France (@LeTour) July 16, 2016
94 kilometres to go: And nothing continues to happen at great, tedious length. Our breakaway group, who attacked after 28 kilometres, comprises Jeremy Roy (FDJ), Cesare Benedetti (Bora), Martin Elmiger (IAM) and Alex Howes (Cannondale). They have a lead of 3min 12sec on the bunch, who will be expecting to reel them in before a likely sprint finish in Villars-les-Dombes.
Nairo Quintana’s tow up Ventoux: I’ve yet to see a shred of evidence that Nairo Quintana has been punished in any way whatsoever after video evidence emerged of him taking an illegal tow up Mont Ventoux on Thursday. I assumed he’d be thrown out of the race yesterday, or at least get penalised in some way, but nothing seems to have happened at all.
While Tim Craddock and I were on our respective high horses: Cesare Benedetti bagged himself the last available King of the Mountains point on offer today by being first man over the Cote De Hauterives. The gap between the four-man breakaway and the bunch is 4min 04 sec and we have just over 100 kilometres to go.
An email from Tim Craddock: “Can’t something be done to halt this relentless French anti-Froome campaign,” he says. “Don’t know if you ever look at the readers’ comments in the French press - but it’s either drugs, a motor on his bike, his boring predictability or his ‘lack of charisma’. Talk about bad losers. It really is the worse of French chauvinism and just goes on and on, detracting from the enjoyment of the Tour. The organisers are well aware of the importance of fair play but those around them need to point out how awful this atmosphere is.”
Tim, I rarely bother with reader comments under articles in the British press, so certainly don’t peruse those of their French counterparts. There’s a lot of hate out there, but I wouldn’t bother getting too wound up by what armchair cyclists posting anonymously on the internet have to say. Besides, there’s no rule in cycling or life, written or unwritten, that decrees people have to like Chris Froome.
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An interesting interview with Carlton Kirby: The Eurosport commentator gives a good insight into life on Tour in this chat with Road Cycling UK. On the subject of calling dreary transition stages like today’s, he has this to say: “There’s no doubt about it, the most difficult thing to do is cover nothing,” he says. “The Vuelta a Espana used to be the worst of the Grand Tours because they’d have transitions day of 250km across a desert.
“It was almost featureless and the riders would not engage in it at all. They’d often stop too – Euskaltel-Euskadi were one of the most common for that, they’d roll to the front, let everyone know it wasn’t an attack and then ride up the road to briefly chat to family!
“Those are definitely the days when you earn your corn. It’s quite nice at the Tour de France that we have a roadbook and a history book of everything we’re going through. It’s a case of trying to keep everybody amused.”
4' pour l'échappée à 108km du but / The break has 4' with 108km to go #TDF2016https://t.co/F5fPKPR9vi
— Le Tour de France (@LeTour) July 16, 2016
The breakaway crosses the Cote du Fours-a-Chaux, the second of three Category 4 climbs on today’s stage. With none of the four riders in the escape party in contention for the King of the Mountains and just one point on offer at each one, it is of precisely zero consequence as far as the polka dot jersey is concerned. Alex Howes is first over the top, which is 470 metres above sea level.
Happy birthday to Andre Greipel: Eurosport commentator Carlton Kirby has just revealed it’s Looto Soudal rider Andre Greipel’s 34th birthday today. The German is without a stage win in this year’s Tour and will be hoping to secure one as a nice present to himself this afternoon.
117.2 kilometres to go: Every revolution of the pedals brings us a second or two closer to what ought to be a thrilling finish as the gap separating the four leaders from the peloton comes down to 3min 52sec.
Just saw this video of @MarkCavendish taking the mick out of a Danish interviewer time after time after time TdF2016 pic.twitter.com/gQ0Wqt2TXb
— Andy Thornley (@scouser_andy) July 15, 2016
127 kilometres to go: The sprinters’ teams lead the peloton, with a gap of 4min 12sec to the breakaway group. They’re still pedalling into a strong head wind, which is keeping the average speed down. If you’re out and about enjoying your Saturday, while keeping tabs on these updates on your mobile device, you can probably stick it in your pocket for a three hours and pay a little bit more attention to your friends, family or whoever it else it is you’re enjoying your leisure time with. Just this once, I won’t mind - I’m already struggling to find new and interesting ways to describe the nothing that is going on.
132 kilometres to go: The average speed has been around 32 kilometres per hour for the first two hours of what could be a very long afternoon. Our breakaway group of Jeremy Roy (FDJ), Cesare Benedetti (Bora), Martin Elmiger (IAM) and Alex Howes (Cannondale) are keeping the gap between themselves and the bunch at 4min 32sec and nothing whatsoever of interest is happening!
Elmiger, regular readers may remember, is no stranger to breakaways, having gone on a memorable two-man escape with Jack Bauer during stage 15 two years ago. The pair set off from the gun and spent 222 kilometres together, only to get swarmed less than 100 metres from the finish line in Nimes in an incredible finish.
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@bglendenning no need to travel to southern France for sore legs & cross winds they're readily available in The Fens https://t.co/jj26fILnYU
— christian cummins (@chrisccummins) July 16, 2016
With a little over 70 kilometres gone: The peloton are cycling into a headwind which is forecast to last all day. “I think it’s going to be a bit boring in the first part,” said Marcel Kittel before the stage and his prediction was completely accurate. Assuming the breakaway gets caught, the finish is unliekly to be dull, with Kittel, Mark Cavendish, Andre Greipel and the other fast men duking it out on the long, straight run to the finish line.
The peloton is rolling along at 40 kilometres per hour: The gap to the four leaders is 4min 30sec on what is very much a transition stage before heading into and up the Alps tomorrow, when they will tackle the Category 1 Col du Berthiand, Category 2 Col du Sappel, Category 3 Col de Pisseloup and Col de la Rochette and the Category 1 Grand Colombiere, which must be negotiated twice from two different approaches.
“Cyclists in the area are used to climbing the Grand Colombier, a fearsome —and feared— mountain pass in the Jura Massif from its four sides,” says race director Christian Prudhomme. “The Tour peloton will face a similar challenge when it tackles the summit from two different sides in the same stage. A tricky descent awaits before the finish in Culoz.”
After 50 kilometres: The breakaway quartet led the peloton by 4min 25sec at the 50-kilometre mark. With over 150 kilometres to go, the big General Classification hitters and likely stage winners won’t be even remotely concerned by that gap.
"I believe I can fly" - very likely crossed @alafpolak's mind today in #TDF2016. Fortunately, he was left unscathed. pic.twitter.com/VK2CkSVG4Z
— Etixx - Quick-Step (@Etixx_QuickStep) July 15, 2016
After 43 kilometres: Our breakaway group of Roy, Benedetti, Elmiger and Howes have increased their lead on the peloton to 4min 35sec.
An interesting read from Richard Williams
You can get Richard’s views on the farcical conclusion to Stage 12 below and if you’re wondering why he’s smirking in his byline picture, it’s because he’s remembered that he’ll soon be trousering a sizeable chunk of cash from me for winning a bet. In the velodrome at London 2012, I bet him a regrettable sum that, despite announcing her retirement, Victoria Pendleton would compete at Rio. Unless they introduce horse racing, that seems very unlikely to happen.
Racing is under way on Stage 14
Due to a head wind in the Rhone valley, today’s race began 15 minutes ahead of schedule, but not before the 187 riders had observed a minute’s silence for the victims of the tragedy in Nice on the evening of Bastille Day.
The peloton rolled along for almost 30 kilometres, with polka-dot jersey Thomas De Gendt taking another King of the Mountains point for being first over the Colte de Puy-Saint-Martin, before FDJ rider Jeremy Roy launched an attack. He was followed by Cesare Benedetti (Bora), Martin Elmiger (IAM) and Alex Howes (Cannondale) and the four riders have opened a gap of 3min 50sec on the pack after 38 kilomtres. Elmiger is the highest placed rider of the quartet, but is 1hr 31min 38sec off the lead. He’ll do well to claw all that back this afternoon.
Orica's takes on yesterday's time trial
British rider Adam Yates is riding the Le Tour of his life and despite not being a specialist, completed what was arguably the best time trial of his life yesterday. Despite dropping to third overall on General Classification, Yates strengthened his position and his team got it all on camera to provide of their fascinating insights into what goes on behind the scenes at the Tour. ““Everyone knows I’m not great at time trialling,” said Yates. “I lost some time, but considering how small I am and how good I am at time trialling, I’m happy.”
Three more withdrawals yesterday
The number of withdrawals and abandonments from this year’s race has risen to what remains a fairly paltry 11, with Orica rider Simon Gerrans and FDJ big-hitter Thibaut Pinot deciding not to start, while Trek-Segafredo rider Edward Theuns abandoned following a nasty crash during the time-trial. The Belgian fractured his T12 vertebrae and will require surgery to correct the break. We wish him well.
Gerrans, from Australia, pulled out of the race with a broken collarbone, but hopes to be fit in time for the Olympics and having worn the polka-dot jersey for three days before losing it on stage 12, Pinot abandoned because of illness. The 26-year-old Frenchman finished 28 minutes down on Thursday’s Mont Ventoux stage, suffering from bonchitis. A surprisingly high total of 187 riders remain in this year’s race.
Jersey wearers after stage 13
- Yellow jersey: Chris Froome (Sky)
- Green jersey: Peter Sagan (Tinkoff)
- Polka-dot jersey: Thomas De Gendt (Lotto Soudal)
- White jersey: Adam Yates (Orica-Bike Exchange)
General Classification after stage 13
Chris Froome (Sky) 58hr 02min 51sec
Bauke Mollema (Trek-Seg) +1.47
Adam Yates (Orica) +2.45
Nairo Quintana (Movistar) +2.59
Alejandro Valverde (Movistar) +3.17
Tejay Van Garderen (BMC) +3.19
Romain Bardet (AG2R) +4.04
Richie Porte (BMC) +4.27
Dan Martin (Etixx) +5.o3
Fabio Aru (Astana) +5.16
Stage 14: Montélimar to Villars-les-Dombes (208.5km)
From our stage-by-stage guide: Largely flat, with a finale around the outskirts of Lyon. On paper a bunch sprint, but much will depend on which sprinters have emerged from the Pyrenees and Ventoux in decent shape and what team-mates they can muster. It should be a battle royal between Kittel, Greipel and Cavendish; given the mountains to come and in Cav’s case the lure of Rio, it could be the last time they fight out a finish in this Tour.
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