‘I tried everything’ – Jasper Stuyven’s attack falls short in Tour de France gravel stage

The most combative rider award that Jasper Stuyven ended up with on stage 9 of the Tour de France clearly wasn’t much of a consolation, the disappointment thick in the Lidl-Trek rider’s voice during the post stage interviews. That first win at the French Grand Tour for a moment had seemed within reach, but was snapped from his grasp once again.

Stuyven has made it into the top ten of a Tour de France stage 25 times, four times stepping up to the podium with his best result being a second place on stage 7 in 2021, the year he won Milan-San Remo. That time he was out front with eventual winner Matej Mohorič, but ended up being dropped on Signal d’Uchon, but in this year’s gravel heavy stage Stuyven was the one who tried to drop all his rivals instead. 

Out front with the break, Stuyven cannily waited until a rival attack attempt was reeled back in before quickly countering at just over 11km to go. He established a small gap despite the scrambling behind to try and prevent the powerful European gravel champion get away.