Michael Matthews (Orica-BikeExchange) joined the elite group of stage winners in all three grand tours when he claimed a maiden Tour de France stage win on stage 10 after a beautiful display of teamwork from Orica-BikeExchange. After splendid work from teammates Luke Durbridge and Daryl Impey in a royal 15-rider breakaway, he beat Peter Sagan (Tinkoff) and Edvald Boasson Hagen (Dimension Data) in the 6-rider sprint for the win while Chris Froome (Sky) finished safely to retain the yellow jersey.

 

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Michael Matthews: I was close to quitting on the rest day

Australian Michael Matthews sprinted to victory on stage ten of the Tour de France today capping off some outstanding work by ORICA-BikeExchange teammates Luke Durbridge and Daryl Impey.

 

The ORICA-BikeExchange trio rode a perfect race, infiltrating the breakaway early in the stage before excellent work by Durbridge and Impey in the closing 30 kilometres set Matthews up in an ideal position for the win.

 

The 2016 Paris-Nice stage winner executed a fast and precise sprint carrying the desire for his first Tour de France stage victory all the way to the line and first place.

 

Matthews was full of praise for his teammates after their selfless work helped the Australian rider banish some painful memories of the Tour.

 

“It’s unbelievable,” said Matthews. “The emotion at the moment is just sinking in. I’ve just won a stage of the Tour de France after two really bad years in this race.

 

“I was really close to giving up on this race, I just thought this race is not for me and I’d focus on other races, but today my dreams came true.

 

“It was never the plan to get into the breakaway. We were hoping to have a bunch sprint in the finish after the hard climb coming into the final. We have such a strong group of guys here and the way we work as a team is that everyone gives everything for their teammates. Whoever's up on that day we give that rider 110 per cent.

 

“As you could see Daryl (Impey) and Luke (Durbridge) gave their all for me today and were both amazing all the way to the end. There are no words.

 

"These last few days I was almost going to give up on this race. With breaking four ribs last year, and the year before crashing and taking all the skin off my body, leading into the race and, this year, already crashing two times in the race.

 

"It just hasn't worked out for me. I was almost going to pull the pin on the race, but I spent the rest day yesterday with my wife, and we just sat down and said, 'we've got to keep pushing and eventually it will come true,' and today it did.

 

"My teammates did a really special job today. In the break on the climb with Sagan and Nibali, I was unsure what would happen in the race, then I heard over the radio that Luke Durbridge and Daryl Impey were coming across, and then on I knew it was game on.

 

“They believed in me and gave me everything they had. Durbridge lined it out in the crosswinds, rode a perfect race for me, split the race into pieces and took out some guys who'd have been strong in the final. Then Impey took over and attacked I don't know how many times, and he even came over and did the lead-out too. I couldn't have asked for more from my teammates. They would have been disappointed if I hadn't won but today I did. I'm delighted.

 

"Sagan and I go up against each other quite often. In Suisse, he got better of me twice. I knew in the final he was the man to beat, he was for sure the strongest in the break, pulling all day and never sitting on. He gave everything for the break to stay away, so I knew he had good legs and was up for it. I knew he was the guy to follow and was hoping I had the legs; in Suisse, I didn't.

 

“It's really nice to get one over on him. He's got a few over me – especially with the world champion's jersey – and it's nice to get one back.

 

“Sagain is the strongest man of the moment. So when you have three guys in the break, you have to play your card and do what you can in these conditions. I knew I had good legs so I told my teammates that we had to push Sagan into a corner. They did it perfectly. It's a great emotion. We tried so hard to win a stage in this Tour.

 

"This was my biggest goal of the season, a stage of the Tour de France, and I've succeeded in that now. It's not the end of the Tour; we have a lot more goals, to go for more stages, and we have really strong team for it.

 

“Then I'll focus on the classics. I already did this year but I had my crash in Milan-San Remo and it made it impossible to shine in the classics. Then in the Amstel Gold Race it did not work. Now I hope to win one of the two Canadian classics at the end of the season.”

 

Durbridge himself proudly added:

 

“When you close out like that you could call it a technical masterpiece. We are pretty happy with that.

 

“We've tried in the stages for a while now. It took full commitment from everyone from kilometre zero to the finish. It doesn’t always come together like that but when it does it's pretty special.

 

”We had Matthews - he has obviously done a little less than Sagan and Van Avermaet and Boasson Hagen and saved the legs a bit. He still has to have the legs to do it, but I think Sagan helped us out there a bit and split the group. Then we had three in the front seven."

 

To complete the perfect day 2015 Clasica Ciclista San Sebastian winner Adam Yates finished the stage in the bunch, safely amongst the race favourites, to retain his best young rider white jersey and second on the general classification ahead of stage 11.

 

“The first climb was pretty full gas as always,” he said. “It's always difficult to start a stage uphill. But we have a great team. Four of guys were at the front of the race at Port d'Envalira.

 

”We couldn't get the success we wanted in the first week but now we have it with Michael Matthews. He's pretty quick. When he has an opportunity to win, he usually makes the best of it. He's won everywhere. He was won a lot of bike races. He just hadn't won at the Tour de France yet.

 

”Today we knew if we'd get over the first climb, we could try and win the stage. None of the other teams had so many riders at the front. It went all down to the team's plan.”

 

Sport director Matt White was pleased with the win and the concentrated performance from the team.

 

“The boys rode incredibly well today,” said White. “It was a very elite group of riders in that breakaway including world champions and a Grand Tour winner and it was hard for us because we had three guys in there and everyone was looking to us to control it.

 

“Our level of concentration was very high and Luke, Daryl and Michael all played their roles to perfection.

 

“Luke set a really hard tempo going onto the two short climbs before the end which was very important before Daryl forced the hands of the other riders the final few kilometres.

 

“Michael finished it off very well and proved that he was the fastest the guy in the sprint and we are all very happy with the stage win.”

 

Daryl Impey told Eurosport:

 

"The start was as expected; we wanted to get things going and get guys in the move and we had Luke Durbridge, Michael Matthews and myself in there. We all rode together very well. With 25km to go we knew we had such a good advantage and we committed with Luke at the start of the last climb. It was just about putting pressure on the rest of the guys in the final and try to get him there as fresh as possible in the end.

 

"Peter Sagan tried a few times and I tried, it was just about trying to soften him up. In the final, I just kept the pressure on Peter and I knew that Michael was just behind him and would have the chance to get the jump. I went to one side and tried to increase the speed coming into the last 400 metres but I think Michael had great legs at the final and I think that softening up Peter at the end made a difference.

 

"Today we showed as a unit we ride really well together. It wasn't a disappointing start to the Tour but we didn't get a win and this was the stage we really targeted. We bounced back really well after the rest day and it is nice to get a monkey off our back now."

 

Peter Sagan: A strong break? Then why didn’t they work?

In the break for the second stage in a row, UCI World Champion Peter Sagan showed just how serious he is about the green jersey contest and his push for stage wins. Taking full points at the intermediate sprint, the Slovakian kept pulling hard throughout the stage and despite having to do much of the work in the final, still had enough in the legs to sprint to second,  just missing out on a second stage win. With his points gained, Sagan regains the Maillot Vert and leads the contest by 38 points.

 

After a day to rest, recuperate and come back to the race refreshed, stage 10 saw the Tinkoff team’s first stage without Alberto Contador amongst them. There was a spirited start to the day however, with Sagan testing his legs several times on the mountain, showing just how strong he can climb, before making the day's breakaway and staying up front as the group swelled. With the first climb out of the way, the break stayed ahead as the kilometres ticked down, as did the number of riders in the break – shrinking to nine. Sagan was out on the front to take the points in the intermediate sprint, and taking the full twenty, the UCI World Champion was the virtual Maillot Vert on the road.

Sagan led over the final climb, the third category Côte de Saint-Ferréol, and there was all to play for with just six riders remaining at the front. He was left to do the work and chasing the attacks on the run in, but despite this Sagan still looked strong and came into the sprint in second wheel. He had some work to do with riders coming past as the sprint opened up but still clawed them back to take second on the line. Taking a further 25 points on the line, Sagan confirmed his green jersey, leading the contest by 38 points.

 

The difficulty of being one of the strongest riders in the peloton is that so few people will work with you, as Sagan explained from the finish.

 

“I used a lot of energy during the stage because the breakaway was like, OK, nobody wants to go full, and a lot of guys don't want to work. I was trying to keep turning with everybody then I attacked in the crosswinds in the last 20-25km. I then did a lot of attacking in the climb but couldn't get away. The guy from Orica was attacking in the last 3km - I always chased him and all the work was on me in the final. I took second and I'm happy for Michael as he took his first stage at the Tour de France, and I took more points for the green jersey.

 

“It's always possible to win but they let me close all the gaps. Matthews had the best position before the sprint while I had lost a lot of energy before the sprint. It didn't go very well at the end but it could have been worse as well.

 

"Orica had three riders at the front, and the work was more them than on me. The advantage is that they had to work, it has also helped to keep the group together. On the climb I wanted to split the small group, but the Orica guy was attacking, and in the final everyone was expecting the sprint.

"They anticipated the sprint and I was forced to chase. I attacked three times and there were also three attacks I had to close down. But Matthews was very strong and had the advantage of being surrounded by two teammates. So it's true, I am often second but the balance of the day is positive. I have a stage win, I wore the yellow jersey and it was a great experience. I am very happy to have the Green Jersey. "

 

"I do not grieve for this second place. I take a lot of points for the green jersey and so this to me is a positive day.

 

"I'm happy with green. On the road, I scored a lot of points and that's what I want to remember. There will be sprints, but also stages for the climbers. I'm trying to maintain my lead for the green jersey and look at it day by day.

 

“I wasted too much energy to be still fresh enough for the sprint. I was a little surprised in the sprint and but I could still be second. I can live with that. There's more to life than winning bike races.

 

"I'm very happy about the green jersey. Stage victory I have, the yellow jersey on me this Tour de France is a very nice experience, and now the green jersey again and I want to keep it.

 

"A nice group? I don't know – there were a lot of riders who didn't work well with us. I'm very happy I split this group in the last 20km – after that we worked very well.”

 

Sport Director, Sean Yates, saw how difficult the finish would be with Sagan having worked so hard throughout the stage.

 

“We would have liked to won, but even though Peter was pretty much superman, he was against some strong riders in the breakaway today.  It was a tough start to the stage, bodies everywhere and only strong guys present at the front. Peter just kept attacking and eventually they let him go even though he was a marked man. But we knew it wouldn't be easy as it was a strong break of 15 out front. Obviously Matthews is no slouch in a fast finish, and neither were the other riders up there - they were all big names at the Tour de France.”

 

In spite of finishing second today, Yates was pleased with how Sagan had performed – especially working so hard in the points contest for the past two stages.

 

“Peter has pulled out a big lead in the green jersey competition now. A stage win would have been the cherry on top, and it wasn't for a lack of trying but some days it just goes against you. He really made a spectacle today. All the other guys were fine - once it had steadied down it was a pretty steady stage.”

 

The road to Montpelier is traditionally a sprinters’ stage, and stage 11 is no different. The 162.5km route crosses two fourth category climbs in the first 60km, but this is nothing that will trouble the fast men – especially with 100km to regroup and come together for the finish. A flat run-in means this will almost certainly end in a bunch sprint. With the number of chances for the sprinters running out, Yates expected the teams without a win yet to be pushing hard.

 

“Tomorrow's another day where we should have a sprint - the sprint teams that haven't won a stage yet will be keen to try so I don't expect a break to go the distance.”

 

Edvald Boasson Hagen: I struggled in Sagan’s wheel

Dimension Data saw it as an important stage to get riders into the break and so Boasson Hagen and Steve Cummings did just that. A total of 15 riders made the break of the day, with some of the highest profile riders represented in the move from a variety of teams.

 

Over the top of the final climb, Boasson Hagen sped things up a bit before Impey then put in 2 stinging attacks but both were impressively covered by the World Champion, Sagan. Eventually the riders rolled onto the finishing straight and it was van Avermaet who made the first move. Boasson Hagen followed and then the others did too. It was a scrappy sprint and unfortunately the Norwegian champion had to check his sprint twice as Matthews surged ahead with clear road in front of him to take the win.

 

Sagan just got his front wheel ahead of Boasson Hagen’s before the line which saw the World Champion take back the lead in the green jersey competition.

 

"It was a hard stage, I was feeling OK. I managed to get over the mountain, it was really a hard one. I was in the front group but I didn't manage to win the sprint. That's life,” Boasson Hagen said.

 

"It's a bit sour when the opportunity to win is there. It was a tough day, I felt good and had I good legs, but the others were better,” he added to Cyclingnews and Velopro.net.

 

“I tried to go on the descent. It worked fine in 2011, but I saw that Sagan was stuck on my wheel. After that, I decided to wait for the sprint.

 

"I stayed on their wheels to save power. There was a lot of tactical play at the end, and Sagan had to drive on the front the most. He was strong, I stayed in his wheel and struggled quite heavily there.

 

"It's good that I was there. The plan was that I would be in the break. It slipped away at the end, but I have anyway had a very good Tour de France, and there is much left. I was not too far away.

 

"I just tried to save as much as possible before attempting to win the sprint but I did not succeed.It was hard even though I remained in the wheels for a long time. I a doing a good Tour de France with the team so I'm happy. "

 

 

Team Principal Douglas Ryder added:
 

“Today’s stage was a super hard stage after the rest day. With a 22km climb in the beginning, it was really tough for the guys. If you look at Steve and Eddy who made the break and you see how tired they were, it shows how hard it was. Then riding in the rain and the cold, in the front, it was not an easy day for them.

 

“When the group split it was amazing to have Eddy in the front and it would have been amazing to have Steve in the front as well but Steve has done a lot already this Tour. With Eddy against 3 Orica riders, I still think it was a good option for us but getting blocked in the sprint twice and not being able to open up properly was a bit of a disappointment for him but a podium is fantastic. A year ago we would have been elated with a podium, and we still are but having won 4 stages already we just keep thinking we want to win. A podium though, it is still amazing. ”

 

Greg Van Avermaet: Sagan was really impressive

Greg Van Avermaet and Damiano Caruso spent the majority of stage 10 of the Tour de France in the breakaway, with Van Avermaet sprinting to fourth place in a close finale in Revel.

 

The return to racing after the first rest day saw the peloton tackle a tough climb from the get go, before the day’s breakaway finally formed on the descent to build an eventual gap of more than nine minutes.

 

As the winds picked up in the final 30 kilometers, the 15-rider breakaway split into three groups. Van Avermaet launched the first attack to the the line to be edged out by stage winner Michael Matthews (ORICA BikeExchange). The peloton rolled across the line more than nine minutes later.

 

Caruso and Van Avermaet’s efforts see BMC Racing Team resume the lead in the Team Classification, and Caruso move into 21st place in the General Classification.

 

Greg Van Avermaet said:

 

“I wanted to surprise them and go from far as most of the time it’s my strongest point, but a few guys came over me. It’s been pretty good. It was a dream for me to ride with the Yellow Jersey and have a stage win. Now I’ve recovered well after the rest day and I’m pretty happy with my legs today so I was happy that I could fight again for the victory.

 

“It was a hard day on the climb and I knew if a big break goes then it would go to the finish, and that’s why I tried to stay as long as possible. I climbed with the peloton, did a good descent and then bridged with Sylvain Chavanel to the breakaway. But I think Sagan was really strong so it was hard to beat him.

 

"I wanted to surprise the others a bit in the sprint by coming from the back. I knew it would be hard to beat Matthews and Sagan in a flat sprint. I gave it a go and had a good sprint but Matthews still came past in the end. I played and lost.

 

"I'd have preferred a slightly uphill; sprint, but it is what it is. I’ve also been in the thick of the action for several days during the Tour and so I’m slightly less fresh in the finale than Matthews.

 

"I was there to try something on the final climb but I was seriously stretched and when I wanted to go, my legs were full of lactic acid.

 

"Peter Sagan was actually the strongest in the race today. When we got away with seven riders in the move, he pulled hard. Everyone sat on him but a bloc. Matthews had teammates with him and that helped him save himself in the break and then be strong at the end.

 

"I tried to survive in this breakaway. It was not so easy because there was a lot of wind. You could not miss the right moves. Sagan was really impressive. He responded to every attack, he made the last climb difficult. He was undoubtedly the strongest today. Matthews had teammates, this is what allowed him to keep everything together. Then, in terms of speed, Matthews was the fastest.

 

"I tried to surprise. I know my strong point is the long sprints so I tried to go from afar. But from the start it seemed very hard to beat Matthews and Sagan. I had good sensations. I have recovered from my first week. They were just faster.”

 

Damiano Caruso added:

 

“Today was a good day for us because Greg and I did a good job in the breakaway. It was also good for the team as well, as we took the lead of the Team Classification again.

 

“At the end it was a really fast and hard day because the first climb was really hard and then in the descent we formed the breakaway and we kept going to the finish. It was really hard at the end with the wind and rain and the breakaway split into two parts. Greg was in the first part which was good because he is faster than me.

 

”My condition is good and I think we’re in for some really hard days, but I think I’m ready to help our leaders, Richie Porte and Tejay van Garderen.”

 

Richie Porte said:

 

“To be honest I’m just happy to get back into the swing of things and be racing again after the rest day. There’s a flat stage tomorrow and then we’ll be back on the climbs.”

 

Tejay van Garderen said:

 

“It was a rude start back into the race with a 23 kilometer climb right off the bat and then you add the rain to it. But it was good. It was nice to have the day of rest and I feel good, ready to tackle the second week.”

 

 

Samuel Dumoulin: It was great just be part of that strong group

Samuel Dumoulin finished fifth.

 

"I had a crazy day,” he said. “I was suffering on the category 1 climb at the start. Approaching the summit I saw that I was still in contact with the best. It was a bit chaotic. It was foggy and I was thirsty.
 

”I then returned to Romain gave me a bottle and said, 'Go ahead, attack, attack'. Gradually , I returned to the group of Sagan. I thought, 'Now there is no choice, you are in the Tour.’

 

"When I saw who was in front, I did not hold back. I worked. There were guys who did not do too much. "

“When Sagan accelerated 25km from the finish, I told myself that if I resisted, it could be something good. I dug deep. I thought ‘if you hang on, you can go all the way'. Then with three riders from Orica, I did less but I was afraid to take it too easy and miss a split. It was better to stay active.

 

“I knew the last climb. When Impey attacked I was on the verge of cracking but I hung on.  At the finish, I gave my maximum but given the level of the guys, it was complicated. I finished 5th. It was an incredible pleasure.

 

"It's not a disappointment when you look at the quality of the field and the riders with whom I was –– the Matthews, the world champion Sagan, Boasson Hagen, Van Avermaet and I was there with them. It was a very fast end to the stage, very hard with riders like Nibali and Rui Costa. I was there in the finale, I sensed Sagan split attempt. And then the guys were real strong. I gave it all I had but I couldn't do any better. I was happy to be there. In the end I told myself to enjoy it because these are rare moments. I had great legs but I'm not going to cry. It was a great breakaway and I was part of it. It's already great."

 

"Given their palmares, I did not make me too much illusion. I thought about anticipating but it was hard to do better. Certainly it hurt but I was trying to enjoy it. I thought it could be the last time it happened. There is no victory in the end but I think I have shown the jersey. "

 

”At 35 years of age, I have even more freshness. To be at this level is new to me. I felt from the beginning of the Tour that I had good legs. I was doing some sprints but it was complicated. It had to work out for me but to be with riders of this caliber in a stage like today... It was really a great time. It may never happen again.”

 

Gorka Izagirre: It’s awful, the legs were so good

Should an unbiased, not-so-expert spectator have just looked at the finish of stage ten in the 2016 Tour de France - 197km starting at Escaldes-Engordany (Andorra) and finishing in Revel -, he or she would have judged that the bunch just cruised for the whole day. And that wouldn't have been further from reality: all riders got back to work in a very harsh way today, as all ingredients collided. There was intense racing on the Port d'Envalira (Cat-1), crested at over 2400m above sea level. Rain and stress due to the pace by IAM and Direct Energie, halfway through the course. And even some sections of crosswinds before the run-in to the the Côte de St-Ferréol (Cat-3) and the finish. The Movistar Team still covered Nairo Quintana all day long, so the Colombian could keep his fourth place overall, 23" behind Chris Froome (SKY).

 

Ahead of them was a fifteen-rider breakaway with lots of power. Gorka Izagirre was close to playing a predominant role in it, as Sagan (TNK) created the first selection with 25km to go. The Basque rider was left behind the seven-man winning group by just a few meters - other big names, like Rui Costa (LAM) and Vincenzo Nibali (AST), were already trailing by far more - and was forced to sprint for 9th place across the line, which he got three minutes after Michael Matthews (OBE) came victorious across the line. 

 

"We lost all chances into that little climb. The wind was picking up, I was behind the group by just a couple of meters... I just lost sight for a moment, it was bad luck. It's awful; legs were so good today. I'm disappointed, but this is what you get."

 

The Tour de France convoy will tackle on Wednesday what could be the flattest route before Paris, a 162.5km sprinters fest between Carcassonne and Montpellier before the Mont Ventoux looms on Thursday.

 

Rui Costa: The mountains jersey could be a goal

Rui Costa finished 11th.

 

“Unkowingly, I’ve made an achievement in this Tour,” he wrote in his diary. “I was the rider who passed the highest point of this Tour, the Port d'Envalira (Andorra), in first position and the organization will give me a prize tomorrow. I wanted to give everything. I put in my head that I had to attack on the first climb. I followed all attempts and could be with them in the front. After Soldeu, I attacked strongly and went alone. I reached the top and thereby scored points for the mountains classification, where I am in 4th place. 

 

“I was there all day until Peter Sagan decided to attack. The wind was blowing from the side and that was not easy in this small group of powerful riders. 

 

“The objective, as you know, is to fight for the stage victory but now I won’t rule the mountains jersey out since I am well ranked. I will try and I will give my best. We will see how my legs are the next days.”

 

Sylvain Chavanel: I messed it up

Direct Energie had Sylvain Chavanel in the break and then tried to bring it back for a sprint with Bryan Coquard.

 

"I joined later on with Greg van Avermaet. To be in the breakaway was the goal ,” Chavanel told L’Equipe. "I wanted this scenario (with Coquard behind) so I didn’t have to work but I messed it up. I was not working and it irritated my opponents.  Anyway, usually it's me who works so it’s fair that I do it differently from time to time.

 

“I do not have too much regret because I could not have done much better. It was very complicated with all these great champions and great sprinters with a nice burst of speed. Even if I managed to be there, I would not have won the stage."

 

"I had Antoine Duchesne with me on the first climb and we came back on the descent. Then we waited for the teams not represented in the breakaway teams to take things in hand ,” Coquard told L’Equipe. "But only IAM started to work. They were not chasing. Everybody was scared of the last climb 8 km from the finish. The big teams probably thought their sprinter would be unable to survive.
 

Chris Froome: I was keeping an eye on Quintana on the descent

Chris Froome and Team Sky held onto the yellow jersey after a relatively straightforward tenth stage at the Tour de France.

 

The Brit retained his 16-second advantage at the top of the standings as a motivated breakaway battled it out for victory into Revel.

 

Mikel Landa put himself up the road during a tough opening to the stage, monitoring the move and eventually coming home 13th after the group of escapees blew apart in the closing stages.

 

Froome enjoyed the support of his teammates across the 197km test, with Team Sky hitting the front to set the pace when required, including on the opening ascent of the first category Port d'Envalira - the highest point of the race.

 

The stage culminated in a six-up sprint for the win, with Michael Matthews (Orica-BikeExchange) leading home Peter Sagan (Tinkoff) and Edvald Boasson Hagen (Dimension Data).

 

After Landa came home in a secondary group 3:14 back, the peloton then rolled in a relaxed 9:39 down, led in by Luke Rowe and Geraint Thomas.

 

Froome was happy to come through the day without issue, explaining: "There was talk of a little bit of crosswinds heading into the last 30km and you could see the whole peloton getting nervous behind, but the guys did a great job keeping me up front just in case things were to kick off and we were right there, ready for it if it did happen.

 

"This is the dream. This is what it's all about to be in yellow. It's a pretty special feeling. I'm going to soak it up and enjoy it while I'm here.

 

"Tomorrow we're hoping for another similar day to today. Just another day we can tick off and get through hopefully without too much happening. Ventoux is the next big thing we've got our sights on now. It's going to be such a big stage and then to back it up there's the first time trial the day afterwards - that will be in the back of the mind too.

 

"I had a real rest day yesterday. It was a pretty strange start. Obviously for us it was a lot of work to do early on to make sure we were happy with the break that went.

 

"One stage we had Valverde attacking so we had to neutralise that. Once we were at the top it was descending in that midst and not being able to see what was going on. I imagine it was a little like how it must have felt in the Giro a couple of years ago, when Quintana slipped off the front – so I was trying to keep an eye on him. Then it was a good day to keep off. I could ride with not much to worry about.

 

"It was good to get through the day. I'm looking forward to Ventoux on Thursday and the time trial on Friday; those are the next big targets, the next big days for us.

 

"Today we didn't know how it would pan out – it could have been full-on all day. It's difficult to plan for these kind of days, especially after a rest day – you never know how the legs will respond. It was nice to recover yesterday, catch up on sleep, and get something back for these next few days.

 

"If you look at the GC battle the top 10 are separated by around a minute pretty much. The days at Ventoux and the time trial, the gaps will open up and be significant.

 

“It was never a consideration to let the jersey go, even though Adam Yates is very close on GC. Especially the way the team is riding, we're happy to have the jersey on our shoulders and the responsibility of the race.”

 

Vincenzo Nibali: My condition is growing so I’ll try again

”It’s a pity about the gap that they created with 25 m to go. Otherwise I could try maybe on the hills near the finish," commented Vincenzo Nibali. "Sagan attacked many times from the very first km of the initial climb. I’ve followed him and we fought so much to keep some advantage on the peloton.

 

“Then at the top of the mountain 10 more riders joined our escape and I thought it could be a good opportunity.

 

“With 25 km to go Sagan surprised me by attacking. I was on Cummings wheel and he made the gap because his teammate Boasson Hagen was on Sagan’s wheel.

 

“I immediately asked for an help from the other attackers but it seemed to me that nobody had enough energy to close the gap so I attacked by myself and I was really close to making it but in that moment Sagan attacked again and I couldn’t make it.

 

“Anyway, as promised, my condition is growing and I’ll try again.”

 

Jasper Stuyven: Maybe I will be strong enough to be in that kind of break next year

When a stage begins with a long, arduous climb, and everyone wants to be in the breakaway, the return to racing after the rest day was nothing less than cruel. It was war on the category-one Port d'Envalira climb (22kms at 5.5%) that pitched upwards at the start of stage 10 Tuesday, a painful start for all.

 

Under the relentless attacks the peloton split and over the top and on the ensuing descent a strong 15-rider move formed.

 

"We were hoping that a break would go easily, or fast, but that clearly did not happen," explained Stuyven. "We were full gas from the bottom of the climb to the top. I think the break only got away in the downhill, or after the steep part in the downhill.

 

"I tried to stay with the peloton, and then maybe also go with those guys. I think all those guys in the front are fast guys that can climb a little bit better than me, not a lot, but I am missing that little bit to be there. Maybe one more year I need to get stronger and can also do it, or maybe after the Tour already."

 

Stuyven had earmarked stage 10 as a possible chance to join a breakaway, but the fireworks began immediately, and the peloton exploded into groups that only rejoined after the descent on the long, flat parcours that followed.

 

"This was a day that I had marked, but I also knew it was going to be really hard [to make the breakaway] and depend on how they raced in the beginning," added Stuyven. "At one moment I was hoping that we would catch back to the peloton when the break still only had 50 seconds because then I wanted to try and jump across. We came close, but not close enough.

 

"Yeah It was a pity that we didn't have someone in the break because it could have been a good chance. Then after, we just kept Bauke [Mollema] safe in the front because it was also a little bit nervous in the wind. At one point I think a few guys got dropped, but we were there to keep Bauke safe and protected to the finish."

 

There was little consenus in the peloton to chase, and it soon became apparent the breakaway would be the only race on the road for stage 10. Michael Matthews (Orica-BikeExchange) won an exciting sprint amongst seven survivors, while behind the peloton settled into a tranquil pace and finished almost 10 minutes later.

 

Sick Sebastian Langeveld abandons the Tour de France.

Sebastian Langeveld had to abandon Le Tour de France today. Why? He explains:

 

“This morning I was fine. After breakfast I felt my stomach a bit. On the way to the start I was riding with Johnny Weltz (director). I said, we have to stop because I have to throw up. From there you know it’s going to be a struggle. On the bus I was trying to get some nutrition in but the stomach was so upset.

 

“To have a bad day, today was probably the worst day. Like 25 kilometers uphill. That’s a struggle to get to the line. I think five kilometers before the top I was so far behind there was no way to make it.

 

“It’s really painful. I worked really hard for this. Altitude camp. I did everything I could to be in 100 percent condition for the Tour. And then it’s all over in a couple of hours.”

 

Katusha: The other sprint teams reacted way too late

After a well-deserved rest day, the peloton of 193 went right back to racing in the 103rd Tour de France for Tuesday’s stage 10. An ambitious breakaway with plenty of fire-power took honors on the stage, while Team KATUSHA carefully evaluated options and goals for the French tour.

 

”On the first climb early in the stage we had riders present in all the groups with Zakarin active in a group over the top. It was very foggy on the downhill, actually very hard to see. From this group on the descent jumped Matthews, Nibali and Sagan to Costa. On the downhill there was so much attacking, and at the end this group of 15 formed a breakaway. Zakarin was originally part of this group but on the downhill with visibility at almost zero, it was not for him. He had a major crash in May and this made him nervous as he gets his form back for racing,” explained team director José Azevedo.

 

The 197 km road stage began with the climb to the Port d’Envalira in Andorra, then returned to France for the remainder of the day. After many attempts, a break of 15 went clear with many strong riders, including former yellow jerseys Greg Van Avermaet (BMC) and world champion Peter Sagan of Tinkoff. 

 

”We waited for more riders to join us at the front and when the gap grew to 5 minutes we started pulling, but those 15 riders in the front were strong and we didn’t have any collaboration in the peloton. We held the gap by ourselves for 30km, but we knew we could not do the entire job ourselves. Later first IAM Cycling, and then  Direct Energie, started to work but it was too late – earlier when we were riding they did not want to ride with us. You can’t have this kind of hesitation; you have to react immediately because the group up front is too big. I think if we had two more teams with us, we could have had a chance to catch the group, but in the end we didn’t have help and we knew it was a waste of effort from us. We have other ambitions, so there was no reason to waste our team on a doomed effort today. We have a good sprinter in Alexander and a fifth place on GC from Purito. Those are the things we are concentrating on,” said team director Azevedo.

 

Warren Barguil: Team Sky told me that they would not let me go

Warren Barguil and the rest of his team finished in the main bunch. Barguil remains in 15th place in the general classification.

 

Warren Barguil said: “It was a hectic start to the race and everybody tried to be in the early break. At one point I was in the front group but then Team Sky closed the gap directly and told me they would not let me go in the break. The rest of the day was less hectic after that big fight. It was mostly a controlled race and the guys did a great job in protecting me against the tailwind.”

 

Coach Aike Visbeek added: “It was a hard start of the stage. At the top of the mountain we had Warren and Tom [Dumoulin] left in the first group. They tried several times to get away but it did not work and especially for Warren who was not given any space. We didn’t have enough people to cover the break therefore, we missed it. In the end, there were several sprinter teams represented in the break and it looked meaningless to chase. We will now focus on the next important days.”

 

Tom Dumoulin: The mountains jersey is not a goal

Tom Dumoulin scored points on the first climb.

 

"I was there anyway and could take them easily,” he told NOS. "A lot happened in the first few kilometers. There were many attacks and it was a very hard climb. We were awat with a group of 15 and were just caught at the top. I could just pick up the points for the mountains jersey and when the game started again, I was not there.

 

"The mountains jersey is not a goal for me. If it is a fierce fight and Pinot will put his entire team on the front to bring me back so he can have it. But if I can take the points for free, I will do so.”

 

Sam Bennett shows improvement at the Tour de France

For Sam Bennett yesterday’s rest day was important recovery. Medical check-ups have been made and shown that he has a broken finger. Nonetheless, he feels well again and is ready for the upcoming stages.

 

“Yesterday the rest day was a welcome diversion to the hard racing. Breakfast in peace, an easy training ride, massage, media events and cooking in our kitchen truck from BORA. Nevertheless, after the last 9 stages I feel very good and I’m excited for my mission in the next days.,” said Patrick Konrad.

 

Emanuel Buchmann had some troubles on the first climb, but after this hectic phase, the groups came back together on the descent. The climbers of BORA – ARGON 18 Emanuel Buchmann and Patrick Konrad finished in the main bunch with all the favourites. The former still lost one place in the GC because Caruso gained some time in the breakaway.

 

“With the legs after the rest day and the 24k long climb from the start it was a really a hard day. Nobody could save energy today. Also the downhill was very dangerous because of the fog. It’s nice to have  completed the first mountains, but I know in the next days there will come more to challenge us,” said Paul Voss

 

“I have never raced a tour with a rest day, so this is new to my body. My legs were not very good.Iit was a really hard start in Andorra. Today my radio didn’t work, so I didn’t know who was in the first group and how big the gap was. Of course there was an opportunity for a bunch sprint, they tried with 50k to go to bring back the break, but with 30k to go it was clear that they were gone,” said Shane Archbold.

 

Sick Thibaut Pinot sets sights on Mont Ventoux

Thibaut Pinot retained the mountains jersey.

 

“I got a bit of a cold,” he said. “We have to make a medical check tonight. In the climb to Port d'Envalira, I tried a few times. We marked each other quite a lot. The only time I didn't go with the move, it was the decisive one to get the points at the top but it was more important for me to mark Majka. Our next appointment is at the Mont Ventoux.

 

"On the day after a rest day it is always complicated to start with a climb like that. I tried to score points but unfortunately there was a tailwind on this very fast climb and it was not easy to make the right breakaway. Especially because Majka and I marked each other. I couldn’t get away so I preferred to leave the points to others and not take risks. "

 

"I will not say I was in great shape but it was a difficult day for many riders. We will wait and see later, I finished quietly in the bunch. "

 

"Now we will focus on July 14 on the Mont Ventoux with the polka dot jersey. It can be very nice. I hope I will have a good feeling that day. "

 

Vegard Breen saves Dan McLay on tough day in the mountains

Fortuneo-Vital Concept knew that today's stage would be difficult, especially for sprinter Dan McLay.  Vegard Breen stayed with and they joined the pack at the bottom of the descent.

 

Vegard Breen said:

 

"I felt good, I was hoping to be in the break. I was well placed but my director called me because Dan McLay was dropped. I had to wait. We know the climb very well. We had come to train there together before the Tour. I brought Dan back to the gruppetto before the top oand then returned to the peloton on the descent. Even when we were both behind, I was not worried about Dan. I knew we would get there. 

 

“I'm ready for a new week. Tomorrow I will do everything to help Dan in the sprint. Personally, I want to do good time trial on Friday and why not be in a new breakaway in the third week.”

 

McLay said:

 

"It was a stage that was a little weird for me today. On the climb, it was cold and I felt blocked on my bike but when I looked at my numbers I saw that I was not at my maximum. Vegard Breen was a strong support on the climb. It was very difficult but I hung on to be at the start of the stage tomorrow. When I got to the flat, I felt much better. I hope to do a good sprint again tomorrow. "

 

Wilco Kelderman recovers: Maybe I need to lose more time to be in the break

LottoNL-Jumbo failed to make the break in stage 10 of the Tour de France to Revel. The escape succeeded, with Australian Michael Matthews (Orica-Bike Exchange) winning the stage ahead of Peter Sagan (Tinkoff) and Edvald Boasson Hagen (Dimension Data).

 

The break formed on the Port d'Envalira pass. Peter Sagan forced it on the descent and a group of 16 men moved clear.

 

"It was impossible today,” Sports Director Merijn Zeeman said. “It was war on the climb. Kelderman and Bennett spent some time in the front, but they couldn’t get in the first group over the climb. We were not good enough today. "

 

Bert-Jan Lindeman regretted the miss.

 

"I was not good enough for the breakaway,” he said. “Starting with a climb is very hard. If you don’t have a good day then you're done.

 

“Normally, I come out of a rest day OK, but this time it was harder. If you are not in the breakaway then it is quite frustrating, but now we will focus on the next stages and we’ll fight to be in the escape."

 

Wilco Kelderman rode his own pace on the first climb.

 

"The start was not really good, but I knew that everything would come together,” he said. “I’m working on recovering after my crash.”

 

He fell in the eighth stage and suffered some abrasions.

 

"It cost me a lot of energy, but I feel it getting better every day. My wounds have to recover well and then I want to be in top shape for the Alps.

 

"The first day after a rest day is always to wait and see. Now it does not make sense to be in the break. I'm still too close. Maybe I need to lose some more time.”

 

"I am optimistic about his recovery,” Zeeman added. “I assume he will be fit enough for the Alps."

  

Tomorrow, the sprinters have another chance to prove themselves. The 11th stage will start in Carcassonne and finish in Montpellier.

 

"It is almost flat and there are a lot of open parts,” Zeeman said. “With the wind that is predicted, it may be a tough day. We will do everything to put Dylan Groenewegen in good position. "