Thomas De Gendt (Lotto Soudal) took the biggest win of his career in the shortened Mont Ventoux stage at the Tour de France but what will be remembered is the huge scandal that happened further down the climb. While on the attack, Richie Porte (BMC) and Chris Froome (Sky) rode into a TV motorcycle that had been stopped by spectators and as Froome’s bike was broken, he lost 1.40 to Bauke Mollema (Trek) who was the best GC rider. Adam Yates (Orica-BikeExchange) stayed in the peloton and originally looked like he would take the overall lead with a 9-second advantage over Mollema but as the jury decided to give Porte and Froome the same as Mollema, the Brit retains the yellow jersey with a 47-second advantage over Yates.

 

We have gathered several reactions.

 

Thomas De Gendt: I only attacked because I was afraid of the time cut

Thomas Gendt won the stage to the Mont Ventoux today, the first victory for Lotto Soudal at this year’s Tour de France.

 

Just before the foot of the Mont Ventoux André Greipel accelerated. He stayed ahead of the others for a short while. The German champion had already done a lot of work during the day for his teammate Thomas De Gendt. Once the climb really started De Gendt set the pace, one by one the others got dropped. De Gendt turned out to be one of the strongest riders, together with Dani Navarro and Serge Pauwels. They entered the final kilometre together. The two Belgians left Navarro behind with a few hundred metres to go, then De Gendt beat his fellow countryman at the finish.

 

It is his second stage win in a Grand Tour. In 2012 he won the mountain stage to the Stelvio at the Giro d’Italia. De Gendt was also awarded the combativity prize today and he has the polka dot jersey on his shoulders again. De Gendt, who conquered the maximum points at the finish and on two smaller climbs during the stage, now has nine points more than Thibaut Pinot.

 

Thomas De Gendt said: 

 

“I had the feeling that I have to go in the breakaway today. We knew it was a day either three guys would go in the break and they would take them back with 20km to go, or there's a big break and my feelings said to go. My feeling was right. I dedicate this to Stig Broeckx. We think about him every day, and we hope that his situation gets better in the next days, weeks or months. We fight for Stig.

 

“It was a good front group, the cooperation ran smoothly. I had a strong teammate by my side. During the season I work a lot for André, but today he did so much for me. It was an honour to have a great cyclist like him supporting me.

 

“On the Ventoux I remained in front with only two others quite soon. I had decided to keep my own pace. I got distanced, but I didn’t panic and stayed in my rhythm. I managed to get back in front.

 

”At the end it was difficult to know how far it was till the finish because of the many spectators along the side of the road. I was surprised when we entered the last kilometre. Serge and I feared that Navarro would still get back, but he didn’t.

 

“In the finale, Serge Pauwels and I talked about Dani Navarro as Serge didn't see him coming across but he made it back only in the last kilometer so we could still sprint for the victory.

 

“At the bottom of the climb, André Greipel attacked because the plan was to make the others work. Navarro also had a team-mate with him. During the stage, he brought me bottles, gave me advice and he did most of the pulling. Normally I do that for him. It says how much of a great guy he is. He works also for a smaller rider.

 

“I was actually scared not to make the time cut. I feared getting dropped in the wind and be in the last group. To avoid being trapped, I attacked. Pauwels did too. Each time I win, it's because I'm scared.

 

“I just prefer to win on such a mountain. I don’t win often but when I do, I usually do it in a beautiful stage. It's not because of that extra motivation, but I am just always scared when it starts with wind and the chaos. I don’t want to miss the time cut

 

"Sometimes you have to change your mind and my gut told me I had to attack. And I played it smart, not doing too much work which I quite often do. I had André Greipel in support and what he has done for me was great.  That surely shows what kind of team we are, that we work for each other and he is a great rider. I really rode a little in his shadow. "

 

"I just kept my pace and closed the gap again. I knew I should keep my pace steady. In the finals I just played all or nothing. "

 

"Suddenly the finish was there. Normally we have marks in the last two kilometers on a climb, but it turned out that we only had that in the last 500 meters. So I thought that we still had 1.5km to go. Suddenly I saw the sign of 200 meters.

 

“I am really happy with this victory. It’s difficult to choose between this win and the one on the Stelvio. The Tour is a bigger race, but that Giro stage was the first big victory in my career and it also got me third on GC.

 

“How does this compare to your Giro d'Italia stage win on the Stelvio? I think I put them on equal. Both were nice victories. This is of course the Tour, but the Stelvio was more emotional for me. That's my biggest memory. I think I put them on the same level.

 

“Up until now we hadn’t won yet with the team at this Tour. Maybe another stage win will follow now, there are still a few chances for André.

 

”At the finish the KOM points were doubled and I own the polka dot jersey again. I still think it is very difficult for someone other than a GC rider to take the jersey home. I only have a small lead. I am keen on joining more breakaways and then we’ll see where it ends.

 

“Tonight we will definitely have a drink, but modestly, because we are all thinking of Stig Broeckx. We all were a bracelet with the text ‘Fight for Stig’ and we keep on fighting, with him and his family. We talk about Stig a lot and he’s always on our minds. I dedicate this victory to him.

 

"I don't know what happened behind, I just saw it on TV. There were a lot of people in the last kilometre. They should think of doing something about it. I got pushed, Serge got pushed, we almost crashed. There wasn't even room for one moto.

 

“For my career it's the biggest victory. Now only a stage victory at the Vuelta is missing so I might skip the other Grand Tour to achieve this goal of winning a stage at each of them.”

 

Serge Pauwels: De Gend was the strongest

Team Dimension Data for Qhubeka were prepared to go for it on Bastille Day though, with Serge Pauwels and Daniel Teklehaimanot part of the very early attacks. Their motivation paid off as the 2 African Team riders formed part of what would be the 13 rider break of the day.

 

With such a large advantage it was clear that the breakaway would decide the stage and the African Team were in a great position having Pauwels and Teklehaimanot represented in the front group. As soon as they hit the crowd pack Ventoux, De Gendt forced the early pace and only Pauwels and Daniel Navarro (Cofidis) could follow.

 

Pauwels then took up the reigns and De Gendt was dropped, only to return to Pauwels and Navarro with 5km to go. He counter attacked almost immediately and this time Pauwels responded while Navarro was dropped. The two Belgians kept testing each other right to the top of the climb but they could not shake one another. It came down to De Gendt powering over the King of the Mountain line first and then holding his effort to the new finish line some 300 meters later. Pauwels came home in a heartbreaking but terrific 2nd place.

 

Daniel Teklehaimanot also had a good final climb and did well to stay ahead of the yellow jersey group to finish 7th on the stage, giving the African Team two riders in the top 10.

 

"I was beaten by a better rider,” Pauwels told Sporza. “I do not think I've made ​​mistakes during the race, but Thomas just proved to be the strongest.

 

"Team manager Roger Hammond gave me confidence this morning. He told me that all my values, all my wattages were similar to last year. He said that I just had to have faith, and I said to myself ‘you just have to go.’”

 

"I wanted to drop Thomas because I know he's dangerous in such a finish. So I tried it, but the wind in the forest was really to my disadvantage. He fell behind once but I had not much support from Navarro afterwards. He only took the lead a few times and I often had to ride in the wind which is of course not ideal. I could not keep the gap and De Gendt thus managed to come back. " 

 

"I do not think I've made ​​mistakes. Thomas just proved himself strong. He got back and won the stage with his final sprint. I think I was beaten by a better rider. Je's a nice guy, a friend of mine and a strong rider who deserved to win here. I would have loved to be on the podium, especially on the Mont Ventoux, a myth, but second I fine.

 

"I am a rider because of these stages, when you can ride on such a climb between so many people. When people ask me why I'm a rider, it is because of this, the mountain stages at the Tour. That’s my motivation. I knew that my family, my wife and my daughter (Odile) were at the finish and that helped me.Of course I would have liked to win, but I can live with this second place. I will now just have to recover, but I want to try it again in the Alps.”

 

Sports director Jean-Pierre Heynderickx said:
 

“If we look back at today’s stage it was a good team effort because we had 2 guys in a break of 13. On the last climb Serge was very strong. He was in the front and he dropped De Gendt once, but he came back. In the last 2km it just wasn’t steep enough to drop him again. If you look back, he came second on a monumental climb, the Ventoux and this is a very good result but it still feels bad when you come so close to the victory and then just miss it.”

 

Emotional Stef Clement: A chance like this only comes once in a career

Stef Clement took a fantastic 4th place when he crossed the line at Chalet Reynard just behind stage winner Thomas De Gendt (Lotto-Soudal):

 

“A chance like this only comes once in a career.”

 

Moved to tears, the IAM Cycling road captain commented about his day while he was still riding the trainer to cool down after the exhausting day. 

 

“I had not planned to go in the break.  I was interested in guarding some reserves for Friday’s time trial.  But finally I was in the right place, and so I went for it.  We worked well together.  And on the climb, I rode at my own pace.  Losing a mountain stage by so few seconds is actually really annoying.  Personally, I paid for the efforts we made on Tuesday when we were working behind the break.

 

"This is a shock. This was a unique opportunity to be able to win on the Ventoux, which you never get again.

 

"I know I don’t have the speed to follow the attacks. I hoped to come back but in the last two kilometers, it was mainly a matter of ensuring that you did not hit a spectator. Then it becomes difficult to get back.

 

Manager Rik Verbrugghe said: 

 

“We try every day to be always aggressive and to make an impression on this Tour de France. Today, Stef Clement had a good race.  It doesn’t take much to see just what he managed to accomplish. And IAM Cycling will continue to try its luck since winning out of a breakaway is the only way we’ll be able to accomplish our goal of taking a stage victory.”

 

Sylvain Chavanel: The climb was too steep for me

"Ventoux is never easy,” Sylvain Chavanel told Velopro.net after his fifth place. “There was still a lot of wind today. There were many people in the breakaway. There were a lot of sprinters but some were stronger than me. I tried to give my maximum but the slopes were too steep for me.”

 

"I tried to find my rhythm because I do not like attacks. This is what suits me but about 9-10% is too complicated. I am heavier than some of them.

 

"I was already fifth on Ventoux in the Dauphiné. I repeat this performance. I'm satisfied with my race. The bottom of the Ventoux was beautiful with all those people.

 

Sep Vanmarcke: I will never be in the top 10 on the Ventoux again
Team LottoNL Jumbo finished with two men in the top 10 of the Tour de France’s stage 12 up Mont Ventoux today. Bert-Jan Lindeman placed sixth and Sep Vanmarcke eighth behind winner Thomas de Gendt (Lotto-Soudal). De Gendt managed to shake off his fellow escapees and finished two seconds ahead of Serge Pauwels (Dimension Data).

 

Due to high 100kph winds, the organiser ended the stage six kilometres down from Mont Ventoux’s famous peak at Chalet Reynard.

 

Early in the stage, 13 men managed to break away from the peloton. Lindeman and Vanmarcke made the move.

 

"We were motivated to get in the break,” Sports Director Merijn Zeeman said. “We pointed out couple of riders to go along. And with such a long flat start, Vanmarcke and Lindeman were ideal."

 

Despite the gap quickly shooting to more than a quarter of an hour, it was not certain that the leaders were going to battle for a stage win.

 

“We were not sure because there was a lot of wind. There was a lot of speed in the peloton,” Zeeman added. “With two men in the top 10, though, we should be happy today. That’s a good result for us."

 

Lindeman managed to get up with Pauwels, De Gendt and Navarro. 

 

"I was hoping I could follow, and that after the beginning, they’d slow down. The pace was just a bit too high, though. After a few attacks, I dropped away, unfortunately,” said Lindeman.

 

"It's a missed opportunity, but my legs were no better today. On the flat, I had a good feeling, but on the climb, it became very tough.

 

“It was nice to ride clear on Mont Ventoux, but it was still disappointing because it was a chance to show something beautiful."

 

"This was very nice because I never thought I could be eighth on Mont Ventoux,” Vanmarcke said. “It will not happen again soon.

 

He kept pushing when dropped.

 

"I went full-speed to ensure that I could finish in front of the GC guys and finish in the top 10.

 

“The intention today was mainly to get Lindeman in the escape, but I jumped in also. We still had the plan to force some echelons, but the peloton came closer, so it was better that we stayed together with more men."

 

Bauke Mollema: Why did Quintana get 7 seconds as a present?

The shortened stage 12 on Mount Ventoux ended with a freak crash with one kilometer remaining that involved a TV motorbike and the leading trio of GC contenders Bauke Mollema, Richie Porte (BMC) and Chris Froome (Sky).  While Mollema was able to remount and continue to the finish, both Porte and Froome had mechanical issues delaying them further. An eight-man group, the rest of the GC rivals, sailed by Froome – running without a bike at one point – and Porte; only Mollema managed to stay ahead, finishing in 10th place on the stage after the breakaway, but also losing valuable seconds to the crash.

 

"It happened so fast," explained Mollema. "There was one kilometer to go or less, and suddenly we were all on the ground. I don't know what happened; I quickly took my bike and didn't think about anything, but going as fast as possible to the finish.

 

"We all crashed, then it was chaos. There was a motorbike in the middle of the road. I don’t know why or what he was doing there. But we all crashed, and in my opinion this cannot happen in the last kilometre.

 

"There were just 800 meters to go or so; it was not the time to think about [neutralizing the race]. I just went full gas to the line and then after we can see what will happen with the results. I did not see what happened to Froome.

 

"It was crazy there were a lot of people there. I didn't see, in one second I was on the ground. I had no problems in the crash, no injuries; I think I landed on top of Porte and my bike on Froome. I just thought: I have to get out of here as quickly as possible! I pulled my bike out of the mess, and my chain was off. Some spectators pushed me a bit to get started again on the uphill, and I put my chain back on."

 

After lengthy deliberations the race jury decided to award Froome and Porte the same finishing time as Mollema, keeping Froome in the yellow jersey.  Nairo Quintana (Movistar), who finished a handful of seconds behind the rest of the GC contenders at the finish, was also granted the same time as the group.

 

Mollema said: "Froome and Porte are lucky, I think, that I was on my bike so quickly and that I went full gas till the finish. They get my time now, or at least the time we got at that moment… Yeah, it’s special, because normally this isn’t the rule, but they made an exception, and now I’m wondering what they will do the next time that someone else crashes, or what they would have done if I was the only one who fell? I’m curious if they would have done the same?

 

"Later on, I also saw that Quintana also got seven seconds as a present, so even more special. I heard that it is like that because they took the time of the ‘Group Yates’ at 1km from the finish. At that point, he was in that group, so… Yeah, they had to brake too for that motorbike, and that’s probably why they said that Quintana lost contact with that group."

 

It was a tough decision for the race jury in a rare circumstance that invovled a TV motorbike hitting a spectator, coming to a sudden full-stop and causing the yellow jersey to fall in the last kilometer of a mountain summit finish.

 

Trek-Segafredo, unhappy with the jury's decision to award Quintana extra time, filed a complaint, but the verdict held.

 

The crash was an unfortunate ending to a stellar day for the team. Again, the classic specialists fought through the crosswinds ahead of the Mount Ventoux, guiding Mollema safely into the bottom slope of the finishing climb.

 

Leaving the reins to Mollema, the Dutch climber continued the strong team showing, climbing with the GC contenders group until Froome attacked with Porte on his wheel. Displaying perhaps his best form ever, Mollema waited, then bridged up to Froome and Porte with around three kilometers to go.

 

"I felt good all day actually, and the guys were exceptional again. On the final climb the legs were really good, and when Froome went, I was a little bit in the back there. So I let the other guys pull a little. But it was not so fast, and I saw that Froome and Porte were riding away from us and I still had something in the legs, so I just closed the gap. I stayed in Froome's and Porte's wheels to recover a little bit and then after we worked well together. And then, of course, this happened in the last kilometer.

 

"In the last kilometers, there should always be fences, especially on a climb like this with so many people. It's pretty dangerous, and then something like this can happen."

 

Even with the precious seconds lost to the crash, Mollema moved into fourth place overall, 56 seconds behind Froome. With a lot of hard climbs to come, and a decisive time trial tomorrow, the Tour – already with more than its fair share of excitement – has only begun.

 

"It was a strange stage with wind and echelons and then the crash," finished Mollema. "I didn't think I could be that good; it's a good feeling knowing I can compete with the best climbers. That’s nice. And, it's a positive vibe just before the TT.  Now it's important to move on and keep this focus because it’s still a long time to go."

 

"I felt really good today. I noticed it already on the first climbs. At one point I thought there was still two or three kilometer of climbing left, but suddenly we were already at the top. Then I thought that I feel good today! "

 

His teammate Peter Stetina told Eurosport:

 

“I was just riding up behind the favourites group and I had a gendarme basically stiff-arming people out of the way just to keep me upright. Guys like Froomey get in trouble for pushing someone out of the way, but it’s ridiculous. Just before the climb a Portuguese flag got thrown in Markel Irizar’s handlebars when we were going full gas in the crosswinds, and it’s dangerous. It adds another element to the racing, and that’s unfortunate that the fans are dictating the race more than the legs sometimes.

 

“Somehow we’ve gotten this scene where everyone wants to get on TV for a party. You have guys dressed up in Borat costumes showing their ass, and it’s more about themselves than supporting the race sometimes. I don’t understand why you have to act like a buffoon.

 

"It’s energizing when they are there cheering for you, but it can be too much. It’s a fine line."

 

Adam Yates: You don’t want to get the yellow jersey in this way

Adam Yates produced a strong performance for ORICA-BikeExchange on stage 12 of the Tour de France today, retaining the lead of the best young rider category and second overall after chaotic scenes engulfed the finale.

 

Stage 12 had been reduced in length by six kilometres due to dangerously strong winds whipping across the top of Mont Ventoux, bringing the finish down to Chalet Reynard.

 

Despite the change to the final kilometres the ‘Giant of Provence’ remained a tough climb and the race duly came alive on its slopes.

 

Thomas De Gendt (Lotto-Soudal) won the stage from the breakaway as total chaos ensued amongst the favourites group some five minutes behind.

 

Richie Porte (BMC) crashed into an obstructed race motorcycle on a crowded section of road and took Yellow Jersey Christopher Froome (Team-Sky) down with him. The congested number of fans appeared to be the cause of the roadblock.

 

At this point Yates was a few seconds further back and passed the incident unscathed to finish in 11th place.

 

After careful consideration by the race officials the general classification was neutralized before the Porte incident. Therefore Froome remains in the race lead and Yellow with Yates in white, 47seconds down in second place ahead of tomorrow’s individual time trial.

 

Yates agreed with the decision by the race officials saying, "I saw the video already. I think nobody would have wanted to take the jersey like this so I'm happy with the decision. Honestly I'm very happy for the outcome because I wouldn't have wanted to take the jersey like this.

 

“Froome's a way stronger than me and the way he's been riding in the Tour so far, he is the rightful owner of the yellow jersey. It wouldn't have felt right to take the jersey like that.

 

“If I was in Froome’s position and if I’d lost the jersey like that I would want the same decision as him.

 

“It was pretty dangerous in the last kilometre, but the fans make the sport and there is not many sports where they can get so close to the athletes, but saftey does need to improve.

 

“It is what it is. If anyone else was in the same situation, they'd feel the same. Nobody wants to take the jersey like that. You want to take it with your legs on your own strength,"

 

"I'm happy with my feelings. The race was crazy when there were echelons. To have echelons in a stage with such a climb is special.”

 

"I'm happy with the legs. I was with the other favourites like Quintana and Valverde before the situation happened so I'm happy with the sensations.  I felt good but not good enough to follow Froome and Porte.

 

"We have the time trial tomorrow. It's pretty well-known that I'm not brilliant time trialling, so I'll try to lose as little time as possible and see where we are after that."

 

2016 Tour Down Under champion Simon Gerrans was involved in a high-speed crash with 30kilometres to go and unfortunately has been forced to withdraw from the Tour de France after sustaining a broken collarbone.

 

Sport director Matt White praised the solid performance from Yates and echoed the growing concerns for rider safety.

 

“Adam (Yates) was once again riding alongside the big race favourites,” said White. “He even managed to try and bridge the gap to the Froome trio, unfortunately that never came to fruition because of the absurd end to the stage.

 

“The safety of the riders should never be put in jeopardy under any circumstances and we need better measures to make sure that situations like today never happen again.”

 

“Tomorrow will be an extremely important day for us,” continued White. “It will be a lot easier to assess our general classification possibilities after the stage. Adam has already had an incredible Tour so far and there is no pressure on him to approach things any differently than before.”

 

Fabio Aru: If I take my mechanicals into account, it’s good

”I have to say: what a stage again!” commented Fabio Aru after the finish . “The wind was blowing so strong for all the 178km… Moreover I have had a problem with my bike, some paper in the rear derailleur, that obliged me first to take the bike of my team mate Fuglsang, then take my second bike from the team's car and then close to the final take back my original first bike for the uphill finish.

 

“Between the GC contenders there was a real fight on the final climb to Mont Ventoux and I’m satisfied with my performance. I couldn’t see what has happened to Froome and Porte because we were 200 meters behind them.

 

”I'm glad I managed to get back, to change three times the bike in a stage like this was not easy. The team was very good, with Jakob who immediately gave me his bike and Lutsenko who helped me to return.

 

"The important thing is to react when you have problems. You have to be calm and cool, not get excited because it's of no use. You lose precious energy. But when there is harmony in the team everything is easier. "

 

"Today was still very hard, like all stages of this Tour. It was windy, uphill, it was not easy. I found myself behind  the best but if I take all my mechanical problems into account forced, I can be satisfied, yes, it's a good day.

 

“Tomorrow there will be a very important ITT and in the days to come so many mountains to climb, it’s better if I rest as much as possible now.”

 

Rui Costa frustrated to miss break on Ventoux stage

”I had a day of bad luck. A few more attempts to go in the break came to nothing. It was a much wasted effort. I was a little sad but cycling is like that. Today it went wrong but tomorrow comes a new day and with it new hope. The fight continues and I continue to count on your support,” Rui Costa wrote in his diary.

 

Romain Bardet: I hope to be at my best in the final week

"We tried to remain as focused as we could today. I had some disappointment because I had to really fight back at the bottom of the Ventoux. But what I saw on Ventoux were not the best conditions for cycling. There were so many motorbikes, it wasn't safe. You had to brake when you were attacking. We need to have a long conversation about security here. It was unacceptable what happened today. I don't know what will happen with the maillot jaune. I have never seen anything like this at a bike race before. I saw the yellow jersey run, it was like triathlon, Romain Bardet said.

 

"There was a really good battle between the GC guys. I stayed just behind. I wanted to ride my own pace, I knew I couldn't be with the very best. I knew Porte and Froome would get away. I could feel my legs were getting better. I am hoping to be at my best in the last week.

 

"It was a little crazy day with echelons early in the stage. I had to stay focused! I was lucky to have Jan (Bakelants) and a great Alexis Gougeard with me.”
 

“With the wind, I had chosen to stay in the wheels and make my effort at the top. I led Froome and Quintana go because I did not have the legs to follow. Then Porte went and together with Froome he was stronger.

 

"Tomorrow will be an important stage but all stages are important.”

 

Joaquim Rodriguez hopes to strike in the Alps.

”This was a nervous and super stressful stage. Many echelons formed in the wind and it was dangerous. On Ventoux I had good sensations and I was good going uphill while guys like Kreuziger and Martin lost time. What a shame it was what happened at the end. Accidents can happen – I have no comment on that. But I saw photographers willing to take pictures of the incident and it was disturbing. It was a real shame,” said team leader Joaquim Rodriguez.

 

"The wind on the last climb certainly made it tricky, but there were so many people out there. They made a really big problem. I really dont' know what's going on with this Tour. Personally, I don't think it is under control at all.

 

"There were a lot of difficulties in the last couple of kilometers because of the position of people. I was feeling good, but it is disappointing."

 

Joaquim Rodriguez took 15th place at 5:24. After the official jury ruling, Froome stayed in yellow by 47-seconds to Yates, 56-seconds to Bauke Mollema and 61-seconds to Nairo Quintana. Rodriguez moved back into the top ten at 2:11.

 

”This accident with the moto brought the other riders ahead of the group with Froome and Mollema. This has changed the results on the stage because Froome was without a bike for a long time. I saw he was running before he took a Mavic bike but without the same pedals that fit your shoes, it gets complicated. He lost a lot of time. In the previous two days he attacked when no one expected it, and then of course today nobody expected this accident. Strange things happen at this Tour de France. Purito showed he was in good condition. He did a good climb, but the strong head wind made it difficult. Tomorrow is the time trial and with the wind in this region we know it will be difficult, but we hope he can do a good TT. Next week are the Alps and these are the good climbs for him,” said team director José Azevedo.

 

Nairo Quintana: I attacked too early

An unfortunate race incident took the 12th stage of the Tour de France (178km) into havoc on Thursday. The mythical Mont Ventoux, shortened this time to a 10km ascent towards the Chalet Reynard due to unfavorable wind conditions, saw the first attacks by Nairo Quintana (Movistar Team), who later struggled with the pace by Froome (SKY), Porte (BMC) and Mollema (TFS) in the final kilometer, supported by a sensational Alejandro Valverde. However, it all was bound to be overshadowed by a disgraceful happening.

 

In the final kilometer, a pile-up caused by enormous crowds and the race motors acted as obstacle on the road and caused a collision of the three leading GC contenders, also stopping the pursuit group and even Quintana and Valverde. While the two Blues and the other competitors got through as soon as they could, Froome advanced without his bike for around hundred meters before taking a spare bike and later crossing the finish line with his own machine. He did so almost two minutes behind Mollema; a minute and a half behind Yates (OBE), Quintana and Valverde; and way back from Porte himself.

 

A first GC made with instant times put Yates in yellow and Nairo Quintana in 3rd, 14" adrift. The race organisers had a first review of the stage classification made as it set Froome, Mollema and Porte with the Dutchman's time, which got Froome back in the lead, Quintana 4th at 1'01" and Alejandro Valverde, 6th and 1'39". Finally, a second rectification by the jury compensated Quintana and Valverde with seven seconds after the pile-up, taking Quintana up to third at 54" and Valverde, sixth at 1'32". Those were official as this report was closed, and will be shaken again on Friday as a crucial, 39km TT towards Vallon-Pont-d'Arc brings the specialists to the fore.

 

Nairo Quintana said: 

 

"What we saw today was disastrous. We came ahead of Froome and Porte after that problem they suffered and apparently we ended up losing not much time to them, arguably the most important rivals.

 

“To me and in hindsight, it seemed really premature to attack from where I did: there were gusty headwinds, I got caught really soon and wasted some energy which I missed at the end. It was a very demanding day: plenty of wind all stage, lots of horsepower - I came really out of energy into the final climb.

 

"When I reached the pile-up, Mollema, Porte and Froome were already on the ground. I think it was the organisation to blame, with all the motors and the spectators - these are race circumstances, but surely we should improve that. For me, and considering how things fared for me against Froome some days ago, it's fine to be where I stand at the moment. I hope I can defend myself well in the TT."

 

 

"It's an accident of the race but these things happen in sport. They hit the moto and fell, but these things happen in cycling,” Valverde told Eurosport. “We tried to save things as best we could. There's an interesting time trial coming tomorrow. "

 

Richie Porte: It’s bitterly disappointing

Stage 12 of the Tour de France ended in chaos when Richie Porte was involved in a crash caused by a stationery motorbike and uncontrolled crowds in the final kilometer of the stage.

 

Porte, Chris Froome (Team SKY), and Bauke Mollema (Trek-Segafredo) had attacked from the General Classification group and held a 23-second lead when the incident took place.

 

The crash caused Porte to require a wheel change which saw him finish more 45 seconds back on his General Classification rivals. Tejay van Garderen was also caught up behind the crash when the group was forced to slow behind the stationery motorbike.

 

Following the stage finish, the UCI jury awarded Porte and Froome the same time as Mollema (5’05” down on stage winner Thomas De Gendt).

 

The UCI’s decision sees Froome retain the Yellow Jersey and van Garderen and Porte move up to 7th and 11th place respectively.

 

Porte will be examined for any injuries by BMC Racing Team’s medical team and further updates on his condition will be provided when possible.

 

Richie Porte said:

 

“It’s the decision they had to take. It’s already out of control. I agree that you come to the race, you have a good time but you don’t need to be running beside the riders, you don’t need to hitting riders, pushing riders. Things have got to change and I can’t believe there weren’t barriers there.

 

”At the end of the day I’ve trained so hard for this and yeah okay now I get the same time as Mollema, but I also crashed and now I’m sore. Tomorrow’s a crucial stage as well and it remains to be seen how I’ll pull up.

 

”It’s bitterly disappointing but at the end of the day it’s the right decision by the UCI jury. We love the fans and 99 percent of them are brilliant but why do some of them need to take their selfies and run along beside us? There’s passion and there’s stupidity and it’s not such a fine line between them.”

 

Manager Jim Ochowicz added:

 

“It’s a fair decision for all parties. I don’t know how else you could resolve it other than go back to the one kilometer mark and take the time from the riders at that point. But there could have been more time gaps one way or another had they gone to the finish line without the crash. But under the circumstances it’s fair for everybody.”

 

Immediately after the stage Richie Porte said:

 

“The crowd was just all on the road and a motor bike stopped right in front of us and we had nowhere to go. The next minute I went straight over the top of the motorbike. It was just a mess.

 

"Froome was on my wheel and went straight into me. I don’t know what they can do but they need to do something about it because it’s not fair. One minute were 23 seconds in front and then the next thing, for something so silly, everybody was back on us.

 

"The results can’t stand, surely the jury has to look at it and use some sort of discretion. If you can’t control the crowds what can you control? It’s not really the motorbikes, it’s the crowd. They’re just in your face the whole time, pushing riders and at the top there, that was just crazy.”

 

Tejay van Garderen said:

 

“We were coming around a corner and all of a sudden people were just stopped. I was kind of on the back of the group at that moment so I really got tangled up and lost some time. I can’t complain too much, poor Richie [Porte] and [Chris] Froome, they got the worst of it. Me and Quintana also really didn’t fare well from that so I don’t know, hopefully the jury uses some sort of discretion and is able to take the time with the one kilometer to go or something.

 

“I didn’t see much but it was definitely mayhem out there. The crowds get a little out of control and with so many motorbikes, the road is only so big. Normally when you see a big GC guy in trouble the gentlemen thing to do would be to stop and wait and regroup. You saw that a lot in the past but these days people just seem to want to take advantage of it.”

 

Optimistic Daniel Martin: My stages are still to come

More than a dozen riders were keen on going in the break, Iljo Keisse being among the ones who infiltratred in that group. The 33-year-old – a debutant in the biggest cycling race in the world – was a valuable asset of Etixx – Quick-Step on the flat stages so far, setting the pace at the front and protecting the team's leaders in the crosswinds. On Thursday, he enjoyed more freedom and decided to go up front, in the breakaway which at one point saw its advantage grow to 18 minutes, a huge gap that began to drop only in the final 80 kilometers, when some of the GC teams came to the forefront and began to chew into the escape's lead, which dropped to less than eight minutes with 40 kilometers to go.

 

Under the impetus of Etixx – Quick-Step, who drove the peloton hard thanks to the likes of Marcel Kittel and Tony Martin, the pack split in the crosswinds and the elite group was trimmed to just 30 riders.

 

Dan Martin – Etixx – Quick-Step's best placed rider in the Tour de France general classification – was returning to Mont Ventoux after three years, hoping to continue his series of impressive results at this year's edition. Unfortunately, the hot temperatures and the huge tempo pushed at the head of the bunch once the race tackled the tough slopes of this iconic ascent took their toll on Martin, who lost contact midway through the climb and moved down in the overall standings.

 

Even though he is 9th now, his spirit is high with several mountain stages and two individual time trials still to come, the first of which will take place on Friday:

 

"I felt good all day and the guys did a great job. Everybody was fully committed. I was good, but not good enough, and I must say I am gutted for losing some time. I lost a wheel when Sky decided to up the tempo, but I continued to ride hard, even if this meant going into the red. The Tour de France is not over, I'm not too far behind and I vow to fight. I'm the kind of rider who likes more a mountainous day than a big explosion effort, and fortunately such stages are yet to come."

 

"It really is a different exercise to do a climb like this when it is made more difficult by an intense first part with the wind. It was so fast. I just could not follow the wheels. I learn that I am stronger in stages with a succession of mountains.

 

"These are extremely stressful days and when you are a GC leader, you have to be focused all the time. I knew that but it is the first time I have experienced it at this level in a grand tour. I am not used to it and it costs me a lot of energy, probably more than for others.

 

"When I saw that four Sky riders went to the ground, I was a bit behind. We had just come out of a turn and it was like a tornado. Due to fair play we slowed down to let them come back, but I think it was dangerous.”

 

Last word goes to Iljo Keisse, who proved once again what a fantastic and selfless rider he is, by putting himself in the service of Dan Martin, after spending more than 120 kilometers at the front:

 

"It was a pretty hard day. I saw about 20 riders going into the breakaway and then jumped. Six or seven of them were dropped in the echelons and the rest of us continued working together. When the team began pulling in the pack I stayed a little bit behind and on the climb I stopped and waited for Dan. When he joined me, I went full gas for around 1.5 kilometers, until I exploded. It was a hard day, but I am happy I could still do something for him."

 

Thibaut Pinot suffers from bronchitis at the Tour

Thibaut Pinot crossed the finish line in the gruppetto and lost his mountain jersey to Thomas De Gendt. He suffers from bronchitis.

 

"His health is worrying, but the leader of the FDJ team hopes to recover quickly,” FDJ said in a statement.

 

Warren Barguil: I owe this to my team

With 70 kilometres to go, Etixx – Quick Step hit the front to string out an already stretched race and put Warren Barguil and Team Giant-Alpecin on the back foot. A once brief gap opened out gradually as the team attempted to close it. The Frenchman found himself distanced and there were two minutes down before a crash occurred at the front of the main peloton and they took the initiative to rejoin the front with 20km to the finish.

 

Barguil held on for as long as possible and he finished 22nd on the stage and is now 15th in the overall classification, 4’28” behind the leader.

 

Warren Barguil said: “I would like to thank my team a lot today. I banged my left knee as we entered a critical section of the race. I couldn’t really peddle anymore and we lost around 50 places at that moment, so I ended up being caught in the echelons, which is a shame because we had to use all our energy to try and close the gap. In the end, we were lucky that there was a crash in the first peloton, so we could rejoin the front.

 

“On the final climb, I set my own pace but I couldn’t follow the GC group. It would have been good to have barriers in the last 2km for the security of the riders. In terms of my shape, I am feeling better every day and let’s hope I continue to improve for the upcoming days.”

 

Chris Froome: Common sense prevailed

Chris Froome extended his race lead at the Tour de France despite stage 12 descending into chaos on Mont Ventoux.

 

The Team Sky leader had attacked in a show of strength and was riding at the head of the general classification group when the fan-lined climb became too congested and, with no roadside barriers, forced a TV motorbike to come to a halt.

 

Richie Porte (BMC Racing), Froome and Bauke Mollema (Trek-Segafredo) had nowhere to go and ploughed into the back of the stationary motorbike and one another. With Froome's bike damaged in the incident, the yellow jersey was forced to run up the hors-categorie climb as he awaited support in the form of a replacement bike.

 

Despite the initial time loss in the incident seeing Froome slip to a provisional sixth place, the race organisers reviewed the situation and eventually credited Froome with the same time as Mollema at the finish, allowing the Brit to not only retain the yellow jersey, but extend his advantage to 47 seconds.

 

Eventually Froome was able to pull on yellow for a fifth day running, with his Team Sky teammates again putting in a towering performance across the 178-kilometre stage.

 

"Mount Ventoux always throws up something different and today was no exception," said Froome after the stage.

"Obviously it's really unfortunate what happened in the last couple of kilometres, but ultimately I think common sense has prevailed and the commissaires have come to the right decision, so I'd like to thank them for that.

"You always have to expect the unexpected at the Tour and I've said all along that this would be my biggest challenge yet. Now I'm just looking forward to tomorrow's time trial"

 

“The Ventoux is full of surprises. In the last kilometer, a motorbike broke in front of us and made us crash. Another motorbike came from behind and broke my bike. That's how I became a walker. I said to myself 'I have no bike'. And I knew the car with my bike was 5 minutes behind on the road, so I need to run.

 

“I'm very happy with the commissaires' decision. It's the correct one. Thanks to them and to the Tour de France organization.”

 

After Etixx - Quick-Step had pushed hard to split the bunch in the crosswinds on the approach to the climb, Team Sky were forced to overcome a multi-rider pile-up on the descent off the Col des Trois Termes.

Simon Gerrans (Orica-BikeExchange) was leading the group down and crashed, leaving Ian Stannard with nowhere to go. The Brit was able to remount and finish the stage, with the crash also holding up Luke Rowe and Wout Poels.

 

Order was eventually restored with Vasil Kiryienka pacing the lower slopes of Ventoux, which had been shortened by 6km due to winds whipping up in excess of 100 km/h towards the summit.

 

While up ahead Thomas De Gendt (Lotto Soudal) won the stage, Mikel Landa took over before Movistar launched their moves with Alejandro Valverde followed by Nairo Quintana. Poels and Sergio Henao combined superbly to shut down the danger, before Froome launched his own stinging move.

 

With Quintana quickly put into difficultly, Froome, Porte and Mollema had opened out a gap before the collision. In the incredible scenes that followed, Froome ran up the climb before finally being reached by neutral service - with team cars struggling to make their way through the over-crowded climb. Eventually Froome was able to get his own replacement bike, blasting up the final 400 metres to eventually learn he would retain yellow.

 

"You could see that Chris, Richie and Mollema were the strongest riders today, they opened a gap and I think it's right that they hold the gap they held with a little more than a kilometre to go. I think that's right and sensible," manager Dave Brailsford told Cyclingnews.

 

"I think that every time we come to Mont Ventoux, there's a surprise. Everybody saw it, it was an accident. Sometimes accidents happen. I think the jury and the organisation played the fair play card and I think that was just and correct. Nobody tried to do that on purpose. You have to stay calm. Fair play has won out, Chris still has the jersey and I think that's right. Maybe next year he'll do the Paris Marathon…

 

"We're happy to still have the yellow jersey. We'll sleep well and we'll have a go again tomorrow. These were exceptional circumstances and there are times when you need to be flexible and make an exceptional decision. I think that fair play won out."

 

Sports director Nicolas Portal told Eurosport:

 

"There was no room for the motos or the riders to pass with the crowds. Chris's bike was broken in the crash and now we're waiting to see if commissaires decide to do something. I was blocked by the commissaires so I was behind Geraint Thomas when the incident happened. We were too far back. Everybody was blocked, including the Mavic neutral service car. It was a nightmare.”

 

Geraint Thomas said:

 

“Well, the motorbikes were a problem for Froomey, but I didn’t see it. I have just seen something on TV for like 10 seconds. But it’s not ideal. I think Froomey was on a decent day, but from point of view the crowd were really close and stuff. But like I said, I didn’t see what happened up in front.

 

”It’s been normal. It’s been the usual, with the odd person getting too close, but that’s normal. Obviously, what happened today is unprecedented, really.

 

“He has good legs, and he’s a fighter, so if he does lose however much time, it’ll be all guns blazing tomorrow to get that back."

 

Roman Kreuziger limits his losses on the Mont Ventoux

After crossing the line, Roman Kreuziger slipped a few places down the GC to 14th after finishing in 26th place on the day.

 

After yesterday’s stunning stage win with Peter Sagan, Tinkoff’s focus was back to supporting Roman Kreuziger ahead of the day’s final climb up Ventoux. Due to the high winds in the region, the final ascent was reduced by six kilometres, however, the nine still to be tackled help an average gradient of over nine percent gradient, plenty to shake the race up.

 

"The plan was clear for today, just to look after Roman and make sure he was in good shape going into the Ventoux," explained Sport Director Steven De Jongh after the stage. "The guys did a good job and then it was up to Roman on the climb. When the big attacks came he lost contact but set a good pace. It was quite a hectic finish and he was just pushing to lose as little time as possible ahead of tomorrow's time trial."

 

Fourteen riders eventually established themselves at the front of the race and set about building a huge advantage of over 18 minutes, while behind the peloton remained nervous with the constant threat of crosswinds later in the stage. Keeping Kreuziger out of trouble, the team grouped together near the front of the peloton and when the pace was eventually raised, they were ready and Kreuziger made the front group of favourites.

 

The expected attacks came from the overall favourites and gradually Kreuziger started to lose contact, eventually settling into his own rhythm for the final kilometres behind the unfolding chaos ahead. Kreuziger was unaffected by the crash itself and fought on to limit his loses right to the line. Green jersey Peter Sagan crossed the line safely in the grupetto to conserve his jersey into tomorrow's stage.

 

“It hasn't been an easy day,” Sagan said.” There was a lot of wind and splits in the peloton. I wasn't chasing any goal today so I took it easy. I'm surprised by the number of people in the climb! I'm glad the public respects but I'm not sure if the whole peloton has the same feeling. I'm referring to Chris Froome…”

 

Tomorrow's stage presents the first time trial of the race, a 37.5km individual effort from Bourg-Saint-Andeol to Le Caverne de Pont. It will be the first outing for Maciej Bodnar in his new Polish national champion's skinsuit, while Roman will be looking to claw back time over some of those who finished ahead of him today.

 

Bad day for Bora-Argon 18 on Mont Ventoux

 Immediately after the start, the first group attacked, with Paul Voss from BORA - ARGON 18. But today Voss had bad luck. After a puncture he couldn’t get back to the first group. Four other riders closed the gap to him, but this group was not able to get back to the front group.

  

Emanuel Buchmann climbed another place in the GC to 21st. In the young rider classification, he sits in 4th place. After the peloton split in crosswind, BORA – ARGON 18 had to chase hard to bring him back up front. He had to spend a lot of energy in the last two windy stages and was already a little exhausted at the bottom of the final climb. Still he climbed well again and is still on track to enter the top 20 in the GC.

 

“Today’s stage was for us definitely not easy. I was very happy that we managed to come back to the group with the favourites. To close the gap was a hard painful job. Unfortunately, only the teams of Giant-Alpecin und FDJ helped us. Today it was really very hard, in the end we tried to bring Emu to the climb in a good position. For me it was fantastic to ride up the Ventoux with so many spectators. We did a great performance today and can be very proud,” said Patrick Konrad

 

“In my group we had enough space to get through the spectators, but in the end it would be safer to have fencer on the streets. When we were dropped in the split of the peloton, it was very hard to come back again. On the Mont Ventoux it was extremely hard because of the wind, but for me it was much harder before. Today my legs were not the best and the crosswind didn’t help at all,” said Emanuel Buchmann.