Despite Mads Pedersen being dropped on one of the climbs during the Tour de Frances opening stage, he caught back on and went for the sprint for third. However, the big favourite for the overall, Tadej Pogačar apparently spoiled his chances at a podium. Wout van Aert won the spring, with Pogi in fourth. Pedersen would come in 7th after the UAE Team Emirates rider apparently switched him in the finale.
“He rode into my shoe and ruined it, the little rascal,” Pedersen joked to Danish newspaper Ekstra Bladet. “So we need to clear up… who is going to pay for a new shoe?”
But the Dane didn’t seem too bothered, and recognized its part of racing.
“It happens. We just ran into each other,” he said.
DSM-Firmenich-Post NL duo Frank van den Broek and Romain Bardet would outsmart the sprinter’s teams, managing to stay clear by five seconds in a dramatic finish Lidl-Trek worked hard to catch the escape, with help from EF-Education, but ultimately they came up short. For Pedersen, there were no regrets
“We couldn’t have done it any differently than we did. And it’s a fine yellow jersey today. I’ll take that I handled the heat well, and my form is where it needs to be, he said. “I might be able to compete for points and the green jersey. So I allow myself to raise my expectations.”
Sunday is another lumpy stage, and Pedersen is looking to the first sprint stage on Monday.
“Giulio Ciccone just needs to stay with the first group home, and then he has to handle it from there. Me, Ryan Gibbons, and Jasper just need to focus on tomorrow, so as soon as there is a gruppetto, we will join it and relax,” he said.
Bardet will wear yellow on Sunday, with Frank van den Broek in green. Van den Broek also leads the young rider’s competition.
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