It was a bold move that nearly paid off. But in the end, 700 m proved the difference between glory and collapse. Just ask Mathieu van der Poel on Stage 9 of the Tour de France. 100 per cent of the shots you don’t take, amirite?
The Alpecin-Deceuninck rider launched an audacious two-man breakaway with teammate Jonas Rickaert from the opening km, holding a shrinking advantage deep into the stage. But with the peloton charging hard into Châteauroux, the pair were caught in the final minute of racing.
“I had hoped that it would at least lead to something, not to being taken back with the finish line in sight…,” Van der Poel said to NOS, absolutely wrecked.
What a finale, though. What was supposed to be a boring, textbook sprint stage turned into a captivating ride that had many cycling fans (myself included) yelling at the screen.
The decision to attack early raised eyebrows. But Van der Poel said it was a mix of friendship, tactics and sentiment.
“Jonas had a dream to one day be on the Tour podium, for the combativity award. I was going to help him with that today,” he said. “We also wanted to make the game a bit harder, because we weren’t riding for Kaden. Then a difficult race is also better for him.”
The final 1.7-km stretch into Châteauroux proved decisive, with its viaducts and gradual rises.
“We are still very close ourselves, but that last lane is killing us,” van der Poel said.
Despite once holding a lead of more than five minutes, he said winning never really seemed realistic.
“Not really. At one point it seemed to look good again, but Jonas was on the limit. For me, the best was gone, and you know that the peloton also comes very hard at the end.”
Behind them, there was chaos in the bunch.
“We were hoping for that. After yesterday we thought that only Lidl–Trek could do the work, so we thought we had a good chance. But in the end help came,” Van der Poel said. “In the end, we don’t buy much with it, except that we have made Jonas’ dream come true. It took some effort…”
Cycling, like other endurance sports, is often about the winners and the losers. And sure, Van der Poel wasn’t a loser — but the sight of his salt-caked speedsuit getting caught just metres from the line was the stuff of legend. His domestique stepping onto the Tour de France podium, fulfilling a lifelong dream, was something money can’t buy.
Monday is Bastille Day — so get your tricolours out and start quoting Robespierre, or…
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