Chris Froome (Sky) surprised the entire cycling world by claiming the most unusual solo victory of his career in stage 8 of the Tour de France and ride himself into yellow. Just as it looked like another ceasefire between the key contenders, the Brit attack just after the final KOM sprint and then powered down the descent to put 13 seconds into a select group of favourites at the finish in Bagneres-de-Luchon. Daniel Martin (Etixx-QuickStep) beat Joaquim Rodriguez (Katusha) in the sprint for second while Alberto Contador (Tinkoff) lost 1.41.

 

We have gathered several reactions.

 

Chris Froome: It was a spur of the moment reaction

Chris Froome claimed a sensational solo victory on stage eight to move into the yellow jersey at the Tour de France.

 

The Team Sky rider launched an audacious attack over the top of the Col de Peyresourde and quickly opened up a gap to his rivals on the rapid descent into Bagneres-de-Luchon.

 

Pedalling hard in an aerodynamic position on his top tube, Froome was able to surge across the line 13 seconds ahead of an elite chasing pack to move into the lead of the race.

 

Now holding a 16-second advantage over compatriot Adam Yates (Orica-BikeExchange), Froome benefitted from the tireless work of his Team Sky teammates over four brutal Pyrenean climbs.

 

After controlling the tempo for much of the day, the real action began towards the summit of the Peyresourde, with Froome and Sergio Henao among the big names to up the pace and attack one another.

 

Froome caught all his rivals by surprise as he threw caution to the wind and attacked over the top. On the winning move he explained: " It wasn't planned. It was just a bit of fun really. I thought I'd give it a try - I had one or two goes on the climb and nothing was really sticking.

 

"I thought over the top let me just give it a go and see what I can do on the descent - I'll see if I can catch someone out. It was real old school bike racing! Maybe a spent a little bit too much (energy). Let's see, tomorrow is going to be a really hard day. 16 seconds is not a huge margin but I'll take every second I can at this point.

 

"It's just a really good feeling. The guys rode all day today so I felt like I owed something to them to really give it my all for the stage."

 

Part two of the Tour's trip into the Pyrenees, Team Sky set about controlling the 184km stage with a concerted team effort. Ian Stannard and Luke Rowe worked hard early during a rapid first hour. It took a long time for the break to form and it was Wout Poels who was tasked with following moves on the early slopes of the Col du Tourmalet.

 

The yellow jersey was expected to change hands in the heat and so it proved, with overnight leader Greg van Avermaet (BMC Racing) slipping back. After Vasil Kiryienka had pulled off Team Sky continued with a core of six riders on the front, gradually pulling back the advantage of a strong three-man move out front.

 

Mikel Landa put in a mammoth stint over two climbs before handing over to Mikel Nieve and Geraint Thomas on the Col de Val Louron-Azet. The peloton slimmed down to barely 25 riders on the final climb, and with 18km to go Henao began a chain reaction with a huge upping of the pace.

 

Froome, Nairo Quintana, Alejandro Valverde (both Movistar) and Roman Bardet (Ag2r-La Mondiale) all took turns to accelerate, but over the first category climb it was Froome who led and, not satisfied just to take maximum points, proceeded to drive home his advantage.

 

"It really was just a spur of the moment reaction going over the top," Froome added.

 

"I felt like a kid again out there, just trying to race my bike as fast as I could. I didn't take a massive gap but I'm in yellow this evening. It's a huge surprise and it's an amazing feeling.

 

"Looking ahead we do have some really hard mountain-top finishes to come and I imagine those are going to be a lot more selective.
 

"We do mess around in training racing each other downhill, so that comes in handy. Henao is still up there on GC. He’s doing really well and he’s another card for us to play. If he can go up the road and take a stage, he can go into yellow.

 

"I'm not sure I'd call that a marginal gain. Call it what you want. I felt like a kid again out there, riding my bike again as fast as I could.

 

"I've done quite a lot of training camps with Kwiatkowski and when you spend time together, it's something you end up doing. You race each other on descents and I guess that it paid off today a little.

 

”I took a few risks but not too much. It was cool. Adrenaline was rushing. Bike racing is just fun. I never won a race like that but that's the kind of challenge we give each other at training. I just reproduced it today at racing.

 

”I had a 54 gear on rather than 53 as usual. I didn't know the descent but I had watched a video of it.

 

"It was such a hard stage, with barely time for a natural break. It really was one of the hardest stages I’ve done in along time. My teammates just buried themselves for me today, from start to finish, so I thought I needed to make the most of this."

 

"I gave it a go on the climb and that didn’t really work. I could see the guys on my wheel pretty quickly, so I told myself to give it one more go over the top of the climb to see if I could pull away over the top of the descent. I’m really glad I took that risk. It was a spur of the moment reaction and thought that everyone would be on the limit and so I gave it a little squeeze to see what happened. I didn't take a massive gap but I'm in yellow this evening and it's a big surprise, but it's an amazing feeling to be back in yellow again.

 

"I've no doubt that people out there have already calculated my VAM going down the last decent and saying it’s off the charts.

 

"I mean, I can't be happier to be back in yellow again. It's an amazing feeling and to do it in the way I did today, I've never won a stage like that before and it really did feel like I was taking the stage on and enjoying it."

 

Froome was seen pushing a Colombian fan on the final climb.

 

"Nothing against the Colombian fans, I think they’re fantastic and bring a great atmosphere to the race. But this guy in particular was running right next to my handlebars that had a flag that was flying behind him. It was just getting dangerous, so I pushed him away, I lashed out and pushed him away,” he said.

 

"It’s fantastic having so many fans out on the oute but please, please, I urge the fans: don’t try and run with the riders. It’s get really dangerous for the guys behind."

 

Froome surprises teammates, Brailsford ready to surprise again

"I did not expect it," Sky teammate Wout Poels told NOS. "I don’t think it had been discussed in advance. And it was not really an easy descent to stay away on. So chapeau. In the training camp I saw him riding like this. I'm not a fan. It brings some risk with it, but it worked today. And he knows what he does. I hope I would not have to ride so fast myself."

 

"It was just such a hard day. We were racing all day and the break didn’t go until the Tourmalet, which made it even harder,” Geraint Thomas told Eurosport. “It was a really solid day. [Froome] just took advantage of that. He could tell everyone was on their limit, so why not have a go? Then once he gets that gap they hesitated a bit, no matter how committed Quintana is, they’re always going to look at each other behind and he’s always going to gain that little bit. So it was great.

 

"He takes bigger risks than I do in training. I’m not surprised. He’s a bit of a nutcase when it comes to that.

 

"The plan was just to control. We didn’t want a break to go too far. But all of the sudden with the heat and the hard day their legs just sort of went and we came a lot closer to them than we wanted.

 

"Movistar kept pushing the pace and we kept slowing it down a little bit. We were kind of just controlling today. That’s all we wanted to do. But like I say, it was just do full-on and so hard, and he took advantage of that.

 

"It’s going to be really tough. It’s all about feet up now and getting some food in us and try and recover as best as possible, because tomorrow is even tougher than today."

 

Manager Dave Brailsford told Eurosport:

 

"When people think you’re predictable or conservative, then you’ve always got the element of surprise and we thought we’d use that this year and we have the riders to do it. I think it’ll keep people guessing. We do a lot more than people think in terms of imaginative tactics.

 

"In a race like this you have to take every second you can, there’s always the risk of going deep today and the effect tomorrow. Froome has something incredible about him, when he sees an opportunity he takes it and he never ceases to amaze us, and he showed why he has won two Tours already.

 

"Everyone finds an excuse not to ride, BMC don’t want to ride, others don’t want to ride, but we’ve come here to win the Tour and we’re happy to ride. If you want to come and win the Tour then come on guys, use your team. Yes it’s a long race but at some point someone has to step up.”

 

Sports director Nicolas Portal told Eurosport:

 

"I think the level of the bunch is so high now, the GC contenders, with the teammates, with the staff, there are less gaps between teams. Once you get an opportunity you need to take it. Last year was a perfect example, we took the first mountain stage and it was very hard. Then you recall, the last week Chris was a bit sick, and we just managed. Quintana almost came back on the yellow. So you know, when the team is strong around, maybe it wasn't the plan to go full gas but we had this plan in case, if the race is hard, and it's what we did, actually, the race was full on. Chris is feeling good, so we just took it.

 

"We never saw him in the race doing this. We can see more and more riders doing that. It looked a little dangerous when they sit on the frame, you can see the balance is not the best. You can see on TV the bike is really moving. But, also the aero position is really good, so they feel straight away when they do that they gain speed and momentum. Then when they lose momentum they need to start pedaling in this position. It looks a bit ugly, but when something works, that's how it is."

 

Dan Martin: Froome did my plan

From the chasing group, which crossed the line 13 seconds later, Daniel Martin patiently waited for the final 200 meters to kick off his sprint, thanks to which he finished runner-up on the stage, the most testing of the opening week, with a total of 4 350 meters of climbing. The result he got Saturday, on a day which saw many GC riders lose a significant amount of time, helped the 29-year-old Irishman jump five places in the overall rankings, as he now sits in 4th position, trailing the new leader of the race for just 17 seconds.

 

Etixx – Quick-Step was close on nabbing its second stage victory at the 103rd Tour de France, missing out on it for just a handful of seconds in Bagnères-de-Luchon, but despite not getting the win which he was looking for, Martin kept his optimism and confidence, which are at an even higher level now after the solid and impressive ride he put in the Pyrenees:

 

"There's no easy day at the Tour de France and we saw that again today. I knew I had good legs at the start, I was feeling good after yesterday and was really comfortable.

 

"Julian gave everything to help me on the first climb, so chapeau to him. I remained calm at all times and was well-positioned on a day which saw everybody test each other. When Chris attacked and took a handful of seconds, we chased but couldn't bring him back. What it matters is that I am in fine form, a reward of the hard training I've done on the climbs before the Tour. I am happy with the way things are going for me in the GC, and hopefully a win is just around the corner."

 

"Second again," he told Cyclingnews "Chris kind of did my plan but the way the group was I thought that it was silly to attack but he took advantage of the race situation, the environment of the Tour de France and fair play to him for being the daring one to actually do it.

 

"Everyone looked behind. When he attacked everyone looked behind instead of looking for the race. It's a very negative racing environment but he's the one who attacked - but then again it would have been a different sprint had it been for the victory.

 

"Nairo didn't really want to make an effort towards chasing Chris but it's up to him as he and Chris are the favourites. It's all brinkmanship and it's early days.

 

"Normally that descent is headwind but I don't think that there was too much wind today and that helped him. I think there were a fair few motorbikes hanging around as well."

 

Tony Martin shows his class in the Pyrenees

The hard route, blazing start, scorching heat and melting tarmac didn't scare Tony Martin, who surged clear from the pack on the iconic Col du Tourmalet, leaving in pursuit of Rafal Majka (Tinkoff) and Thibaut Pinot (FDJ), the two leaders at that moment.

 

Martin – who went in the escape for the second day in a row – showed that his condition and motivation are high, and even though he was distanced before the top of Tourmalet, it didn't took him too much to gain ground and rejoin the leading duo before Horquette d'Ancizan. The trio wasn't allowed by the bunch to take more than three minutes, but even so managed to remain up the road until Col de Val Louron-Azet, a climb which made its Tour de France debut in 1997.

 

"By far, this was the most punishing day since the start of the race, a brutal combo of difficult climbs and hot temperatures. On the Tourmalet, when Pinot and Majka went, I jumped after them and used my time trial skills to make contact. As we were approaching the top, they dropped me, but I made sure of rejoining them in the valley. Tactically, it was perfect for the team to have a man at the front, only downside being that the peloton didn't give us too much room. Once I was caught, I tried to help Dan, but couldn't do it because I was empty and really suffering. Considering everything, I am satisfied and I am keen on trying again in the following stages", said Tony Martin, the German powerhouse who is also eyeing the first individual time trial of the Tour de France, scheduled next week.

 

Joaquim Rodriguez: Froome surprised us

A second day in the Pyrenees provided plenty of exciting racing action and a re-shuffling of the general classification with Team KATUSHA’s Joaquim Rodriguez moving from fifth into third overall. It was a late attack from two-time Tour winner Chris Froome that set the wheels in motion for the new results, and “Purito” is happy with the day’s outcome.

 

”It’s nice to be third now, but what a fast stage again and very hard. Everything went well for me, but hats off for Froome. He surprised us; we really did not expect this and we just came too late. It was a good move from him. But it’s not over. Now I hope to recover as tomorrow is again a heavy day,” said team leader Joaquim Rodriguez.

 

”This stage was fast again and that’s why it took so long for the favorites to attack. It was also hard. I’m not 100% happy for myself, but I’m happy I could work for the team and that Purito is good,” said team rider Jurgen Van den Broeck. Jurgen arrived in the group behind Rodriguez and saw his overall position go to 2-minutes for 17th place.

 

"I am not focused on being the best Belgian. It was a tough day. For you saw it might have looked boring, but it was just very hard. On the bike it was not boring. Even though it didn’t split much, it was fast. We rode fast all day which makes it particularly grueling. Then you also know that no attack will come, except perhaps in the final.

 

"It was really tough. The heat, the high speed. I did not feel quite right, at least not compared to the other days. I felt all day that I could handle the pace, but not the attacks in the end. You know they will come, just not when. I'm not completely satisfied with my day. It is good news that captain Rodriguez was there. That's good, but we already knew that he was in shape. "

 

“I did not know that Froome had attacked on the descent. He had been waiting in the front group.

 

Michael Mørkøv first rider to abandon the Tour

Stage 8 was the first in Tour history to have all starters still in the race, but that changed midway when KATUSHA rider Michael Mørkøv was forced to abandon. After his crash in stage 1, Mørkøv continued to fight on each stage, but the difficulty of today’s climbs as well as the fast pace of the stage saw him falling further behind and unable to arrive at the finish within the time limit.

 

”I’m really sad. I was fighting for a week now to be back and of value for the team. I’m really sorry for the team, and it’s going to be very painful for me to see the team carry on without being able to help them. But we’re lucky because I know the team is full of strong guys. I will cheer them on from home. My injuries were better every day and in general I felt OK, but I think I need to accept that I had some very hard days. Because of that I was quite fatigued so today was just the stage that didn’t go like it needed to go. I’m also sad for anybody who cheered for me in the last days which pushed me to where I went today. It was an emotional moment to step off the bike. I would have been very happy to carry on,” said a brave and courageous Michael Mørkøv.

 

Romain Bardet: The more we climb, the better I feel

"My teammates worked hard to bring me water, food and ice. There was a hard fight and Chris Froome and his team were impressive,” said Romain Bardet who was fourth
 

“I am really satisfied with that first real mountain stage. The race is on. My feelings improved all day long. There is a long way to Paris, another hard stage tomorrow. 

 

“It’s my 4th Tour de France. I am experienced. I did my best to prepare for this race but I have some distance to the events.

 

"Yes, it was a good day, very difficult with the heat. We really suffered but fortunately I had three team-mates to bring me drinks and ice and food. Today, the enemy was the heat. I'm glad with my start to the Tour.

 

”My Tour has started. The more it went up, the better I felt. I really like this kind of hard stages, with a lot of climbs.

 

”There's still a long way to go, tomorrow is a finish at the top. There is still a lot of work to do. The differences are still minimal. Froome deserved to win. 

 

”But I'm coming to the Tour with a lot of experience, and quite laid back. I did everything I can to do the best possible Tour without any negative pressure. If it does not work, it does not matter. It's only sport, there are worse things in life.”

 

"We feared that stage and it started full gas on the Tourmalet. Romain played his role, surrounded by an efficient team. I am optimistic,” said manager Vincent Lavenu.

 

Rafal Majka: The mountains jersey is not a goal

The Col du Tourmalet – the first of today’s climbs – showed the riders of the Tour de France that they had truly arrived in the big mountains. While the going was tough and the pace high, Rafal Majka showed that his strong ride in the Giro d’Italia had prepared him well for the mountains of the Tour, as he picked up points in the climbers contest to claim the Maillot à Pois.

 

In the early stages of the day, there were still chances for the fast men to pick up points in the green jersey contest, meaning Peter Sagan was keen to head up the road on what was to be a hard day in the saddle, as Sport Director, Sean Yates, explained.

 

“It was a very tough day, a really fast start with breakaway attempts before the first sprint and then the break went only a few kilometres before the sprint, so after over 60km of racing. Peter picked up the points in the peloton behind so that was good for the green jersey.”

With the start of the Col du Tourmalet 50km from the start of the stage, it took some time for the attacks to come, and the blistering pace in the first hour made it hard to escape. A few came and went, but were quickly pulled back in, and it wasn’t until near the foot of the first climb of the day that an attack went – and stuck. Having taken the Souvenir Jacques Goddet on the Tourmalet last year, Rafal Majka knew the climb well and joined the break in an attempt to take the prize two years in a row. Even with the break disintegrating around him, Majka surged up the road, taking a second and later a third rider with him. In spite of putting in a strong ride and matching his rivals on the climb for speed and attacking prowess, the Polish national road champion was just beaten to the top.

 

Talking about his time in the break, Majka was pleased to spend most of his day in the escape.

 

“In the end I could see there were only two guys in front, and I asked the DS if I should go. I think it’s better that I went – I don’t feel so good right now and being off the front there’s less pressure than being in the peloton. My condition is still coming and maybe after the rest day I’ll be stronger.”

After a hard day in the break, taking points on three of the four climbs, Majka was still building form after his strong Giro campaign.

 

“My form’s getting better but still it’s tough on the road. I went in the breakaway and I’d hoped to stay out until the end, but behind us the peloton was going really fast and they caught us. I stayed for one more climb but I was really tired. I wanted to help Alberto but wasn’t able to.”

 

Pushing ahead to try and take the points on the Col de Val Louron-Azet, Majka found his way blocked by Team Sky, preventing him from gaining the maximum points. In spite of this, having spent much of the day on the front of the break however, Majka had amassed enough points in the climbers’ competition to take the virtual Maillot à Pois. With only a descent and the Col de Peyresourde to come, this was where the race was going to hot up.

 

From the finish, Majka was pleased to be leading the King of the Mountains race, but after a hard season so far knew it would be tough to defend it.

 

“I’m glad to be in the polka dot jersey but it’s only one point between me and the second place. I’ll have the jersey for a day maybe – I’ve already done the Giro this year so it’s tough.

 

“Only after I passed the finishing line, I got to know that I had the polka dot jersey. I rode away at the foot of the Tourmalet because I didn't know how the climb was and I preferred to be at the front to be able to help Alberto Contador and Roman Kreuziger later on.

 

“I'm getting better and better after I rode the Giro but I'm still quite far from my best shape. It wasn't easy. I'm very happy that I'll have the polka dot jersey for a day at least. I won it in 2014 but it's not a goal. The goal is to make the final podium with Alberto.”

 

Alberto Contador: Kreuziger can do his own race

Fighting valiantly, Alberto Contador was distanced slightly on the ascent, but on the major climbs of the day when his rivals were being dropped, Contador was still there - so with a fast descent to the finish after the summit, there were opportunities to pull back any gaps. After an attack came on the summit, Roman Kreuziger pushed on to keep the escape and the bunch in touch, finishing the stage in 5th position, with Contador crossing the line shortly afterwards in 17th position.

 

It was a tough day all round – and the fast, driving pace in the peloton suggested to sports director Yates that some of the teams had their intentions for the stage.

 

“On the Tourmalet, Rafa jumped away with a few others, but Sky rode a solid tempo behind and kept the gap around 2'30" so we knew they were setting something up. They were caught on the penultimate climb, and with the catch coming early we knew to expecting a hard last climb. In the end Alberto lost time but Roman was there and Rafa came away with the Polka Dot jersey.”

 

Starting the day, Contador knew how much of a challenge the Pyrenees would be, even for uninjured riders. With much of the race still to come, the Tinkoff leader would review his performance with the team and look ahead to the days to come.

 

“It was a very hard and demanding stage with a strong pace and I was aware it would be complicated. It was what it was and we now have to analyse the situation and see how we move forward.

 

"The stage was very hard for me, very demanding. I was hoping not to lose too much time today, but that's the way it is. I did the best I could. We are going to talk with the rest of the team for the future because Roman Kreuziger is better placed than I am.

 

“It's terrible to have crashed like this twice in the first week and to have lost so much time after working so hard to be here. It's cycling, danger is everywhere. Believe me, I did the best I could.

 

"I knew that it would be really quick and that it would be complicated to get through the day without any losses. It was a really fast day right from the start. It was a really tough day and really challenging for me. Today, I did all that I could.

 

"My body needs to rest. It is a pain after so many months of preparing for this race, and to arrive with good sensations, but we started the race on a bad footing. Cycling is like this and this time it has affected me.

 

"Yesterday and today we took the decision that Kreuziger would dispute the general classification also.

 

"Quitting is not an option that I have thought about. I do not like to remember that I have had to abandon the Tour. If we are here it is to try and do something, but we will see. My body needs rest and this Sunday I expect a really hard day.

 

"Tomorrow is going to be very complicated day. It will be as tiring as today’s stage. Tomorrow I have to try to make it through the day as best as I can and analyse everything during the rest day.

 

"I am a person with a greal moral. There is a big gap to the first (3'12 '') but I have to analyze the situation.”

 

Continuing, Yates said there were many positives to take from the day.

 

“From Alberto's point of view it was more time lost which isn't what we wanted, but otherwise we did all we could - we fought for the breakaway, Peter picked up some more points and we have Rafa in the KoM jersey. Tomorrow is another super tough day and there are a lot of KoM points on offer. Rafa is starting to feel better and he isn't a threat to GC so he shouldn't be one to chase down, so we'll see what we can do there.”

 

Majka supplemented his Sport Director’s comments.

 

“Of course it’s going to be difficult – Alberto is still suffering after his crash so we’ll see how he improves – hopefully he’ll get better as the Tour goes on.”

 

Sports director Steven De Jongh told Eurosport:

 

“First of all we had Rafa up there to try and go for the stage win, but with Pinot up there it was a difficult situation and they never got a lot of time. Already yesterday after the stage Alberto felt very tired. It cost a lot of energy to recover from his two crashes, and he said to Roman that he can go for his own race because Roman needs a contract and Alberto says if I feel very bad you can go for your own race.

 

“Majkawas feeling good at the bottom, and so when they started to attack at the bottom he had a go, but the situation there was not optimal for us.

 

“Yesterday Comtador was, of course, more or less happy that he didn’t lose time, but he also felt his body, and the two hard crashes the first and second stage, they ask a lot of energy. We see some other riders already getting dropped all day after being crashed, and Alberto was still there. I think that is already a little miracle. But today he lost time, of course, and now it’s just recover and recover, and we’ll see. We have to get back together and we wait for the Alps."

 

Fabio Aru: Tomorrow there will be room to try

“What a stage,” commented Fabio Aru immediately after the finish. “We did an incredible rhythm and it hasn’t been easy at all and I have to thank all my team mates for the help they gave me today. Up and down, long climbs and altitude and then the speed we did on Peyeresourde and on the final descent to the finish line… an important experience.

 

“I saw Froome take a small gap at the top of the last climb and it seemed he wanted to be first for the Mountain Prize. Then he continued so fast in the descent and I was on the Movistar guys wheels. He was able to keep a small gap but enough to take the stage victory. I tried at 1.2 km to the finish because I saw much indecision. It didn’t go as I would have desired but I’m satisfied with today’s performance.

 

"Today was a really hard stage. There was not a single second of rest. The pace was really high but tomorrow will be even more difficult. Froome made a huge number. He attacked after the summit and has steadily increased the gap. It was quite unexpected, really beautiful attack. I tried to attack in the final kilometer but Quintana made the effort to catch me immediately.

 

”Now more hard stages are coming and tomorrow there will be room for trying."

 

Adam Yates reiterates that the GC is not a goal

An incredible ride by 23-year old Adam Yates on stage eight of the Tour de Francetoday, saw the ORICA-BikeExchange rider hold onto his lead in the best young rider category and second place on the general classification.

 

The epic mountain stage included the legendary Col du Tourmalet and the Col de Peyresourde unfolded over 184 kilometres with the fantastic Yates following every attack at every key moment.

 

Christopher Froome (Team-Sky) won the stage and moved into the race lead with Yates finishing in 7th place thirteen seconds behind Froome and remaining in second place overall.

 

“It was full gas from start to finish today,” said Yates at the end of the stage. “The team did a great job of looking after me until the first climb started and from then on there were no easy moments.

 

“There weren’t any opportunities to have a rest and recover a little because it was so full on.

 

“I am pretty tired now but we have another big day in the mountains coming up tomorrow so we will see what we can do.

 

“Yesterday I had some pretty bad luck with the crash under the arch but it didn't affect me physically. I'm ok. Today I just tried to hang on. It was a full gas day from start to finish. I was at the limit on the last climb.

 

”I'm just happy to retain the white jersey. It would have been nice to have the yellow but Chris Froome will be on the top step in Paris, so it's no shame to be behind him on GC. There's nothing more I could do today.

 

”I came to the Tour looking for stages and everything else is a bonus. GC was never an objective. If I have a bad day in the mountains, no stress. I have no pressure from the team to keep this jersey.

 

"I’m ok. I had pretty bad luck yesterday, a few stitches, cuts and bruises but I got lucky. Today was tough but I got through ok. I didn’t really know what was going on, I was just hanging on for grim death. It was a tough day from the start so I’m happy to just get through. We’ll see how it goes but hopefully I can keep the white jersey. It’s hard to stay if I’ll hold onto it for the duration, I came here for stages not GC, but we’ll see what happens next couple of weeks.

 

"It was close but this is the Tour de France – the biggest race in the world, so even to climb on the podium for the white jersey is a great achievement. When Froomey attacked there was not much I could do anyway; I was at the back of the group, so congrats to him.

 

"At the top of the climb there wasn’t much going through my mind when he went, I just knew it was hard. I came here with the objective of stages and so anything in the GC is actually a bonus. We live to fight another day and we’ll see what happens."

 

Yates leads Louis Meintjes (Lampre-Merida) by eighteen seconds in the best young rider category going into tomorrow’s stage nine.

 

Sport director Matt White was content with the how the team handled the first big mountain test of this years Tour de France.

 

“Today was the first big challenging stage in the Pyrenees,” said White. “It was the first real test today and I liked what I saw from Adam (Yates) who worked hard and showed the kind of condition he is in.

 

“All the guys rode well in the beginning on what was a fast start to the stage and then as we hit the climbs Adam really performed very well against the best climbers and grand tour riders in the world.”

 

“We are still chasing stage wins, that has always been our objective for this year’s Tour de France,” said White. “Of course it’s nice to have Adam in the White jersey but we will continue to approach the race day by day.

 

“Tomorrow’s stage is a different kind of hard to today, it could very well be a day for the breakaway. The climbing starts right at the beginning, but there are more valleys whereas today was simply relentless.”

 

Nairo Quintana: It was my own mistake

A powerful descent by Chris Froome (SKY) from the Col de Peyresourde awarded him victory in Bagnères-de-Luchon and the race lead in the 2016 Tour de France, after a tremendously hard day, of impressive pace and high temperatures, from Pau and into the Pyrenees (184km). The Movistar Team worked from the very beginning, together with their rivals from the British squad, to not give a minute of rest and keep the pace high, until Nairo Quintana got into a difficult situation in the last downhill. The Colombian climber ended up conceding twenty-three seconds to his biggest rival: 13" over the finish, 10" as a result of the first-place bonus.

 

Vigilance by Erviti and Jesús Herrada in the early breaks - 51km were covered during the first hour of racing; the break didn't form until the foot of the Tourmalet (HC) - started to show the attitude by the Blues today. It was continued by Nelson Oliveira, really strong to set a suffering pace both in the final stretch of the Tourmalet and in the beginning of the Col de Val Louron (Cat-1). And following a long stint at the front by Mikel Landa (SKY), Ion Izagirre took again on the 'third man' role he's more than deserved alongside the team leaders, picking up the pressure on the penultimate climb and still staying with Quintana and Alejandro Valverde until the foot of the last ascent.

 

After some early moves from Henao (SKY), Froome and even Quintana himself, the Colombian's rivals often followed by a splendid Valverde in his team-mate's defense, the unexpected action from Froome caught Quintana unprepared, the Boyacá-born cycling again requiring help from Valverde to limit losses on a final descent which shouldn't be decisive over the three weeks of racing. The Movistar Team will have a chance to bounce back at home on Sunday, with 184.5km starting in Vielha and five tough climbs en route to Andorra: Bonaigua (Cat-1), Cantó (Cat-1), Comella (Cat-2), Beixalis (Cat-1) and Ordino / Arcalís (HC; 10km at 7.2%).

 

Nairo Quintana said: 

 

"We climbed well all stage and the team was superb all day; my team-mates worked their hearts out and stuck to the original plan until the very last climb.

 

“Entering the descent of the Peyresourde, I took a bottle of water to refresh myself; Froome profited from that move to take a chance into the downhill and open a gap. I hesitated for a couple of seconds and he was gone.

 

”I just thought it would be a fast descent. Alejandro went flat out to chase that move, but it wasn't enough. Those are seconds I hope won't decide the race; the team-mates were perfect, but in the end, it was a mistake from myself."

 

 

“The whole team worked very well today, we followed our plan. These are only the first mountain stages and tomorrow will probably be even more difficult than today. There is still a long way.”

 

Alejandro Valverde: We always end up doing all the work

Alejandro Valverde said: 

 

"I attacked on the final slopes of the Peyresourde, just like I was told, and later on lost a bit of distance because I was struggling after such a strong move. When I dropped back, Nairo was still there with Froome; I didn't see his move, I just saw Froome away seconds later, and when I realized that was the situation, I went to the front of the group as fast as I could, even before the first turn of the descent, and went downhill with all I had left in the tank.

 

“The other GC contenders started to work when it was too late; everyone wants to win the Tour, but in the end, we always end up working alone. Froome took a beautiful victory - hats off to him.

 

"We expected that, we knew it would be a tricky stage. We had a pretty intense pace toward the end of the stage, but it wasn't fast enough, unfortunately.There are lots of mountains to come, the team is feeling good. Nairo can be very strong but we have to wait and see.

 

"I was with Nairo toward the end, and tried to stay with him the best I could. But Froome was just so fast, and he risked everything in the turns. That's the reality. Froome raced well."

 

Bauke Mollema and Frank Schleck optimistic after big day in the Pyrenees

The Tour de France tackled its first high mountains in stage eight Saturday. As expected, the critical attacks came near the top of the Col de Peyresourde, the final climb of the 184-kilometer race, shattering the 31-rider group, all that remained of the peloton after a day of mountain ascents. 

 

With each acceleration, Bauke Mollema held his ground, and by the top the select climbing group numbered only 14 men. Then, unexpectedly, Team Sky's Chris Froome pulled away on the descent.

Froome's sneak attack caught everyone off guard, and he ripped apart the technical downhill to grab the win and the yellow jersey.

 

Behind 13 riders gave a heated pursuit but could not come closer than 13 seconds. Mollema arrived with the elite group for ninth place on the stage, moving him into 10th place overall (+23 seconds).

 

"It was a good day. Hard day. Really warm. I think I drank 10 liters, but I felt quite good, especially on the last climb," said Mollema. "In the last climb you know there will be some attacks, but I could resist pretty well, and I could hang on with the best GC guys, so I am happy with that. When Froome went, I thought it was someone else who attacked. I didn't expect he would attack in the descent. It could be that he has trained there, but he was strong. A great victory.”

 

It was a day only for climbers with the iconic Col du Tourmalet the entrée on a menu of mountains.  Peter Stetina, Haimar Zubeldia, and Fränk Schleck successfully tackled thehors catégorie climb, keeping Mollema safe and sound with three more tough ascents still to come.

 

The team's four mountain goats navigated over the next climb before the pace and gradient increased on the penultimate uphill.

 

The attrition was fast and furious as Sky turned the screws at the front, whittling down the peloton to 31 riders. Zubeldia and Stetina, their jobs done, left the rest to Schleck, who continued with Mollema onto the final climb of the day, the Col de Peyresourde.

 

"I was happy, I did my job, the maximum for Bauke and he stayed out of trouble and is good in the overall, " said Schleck. "In the end, I was able to stay in a good group. I mean, it seems that everyone is impressed, but I was hoping to come back (to the top level); I have done this before, and I know how it works. I'm okay. Feelings are good!"

 

Sky persisted its ungodly pace up the seven-kilometer Peyresourde until accelerations blew the group apart two kilometers from the top and the final 14-rider selection formed.

 

While Mollema climbed with the top guns, Schleck settled in with an elite second group not far behind and finished in 22nd place.

 

"I counted every second," answered Schleck about the relentless climbs. "From the start on it was just the feeling that you wished you were not there, that you would wake up any moment. It was a very, very hard race.  It was a long, hot day, but it turned out to be a good day for us."

 

"The team was great," agreed Mollema. "Peter and Haimar did a lot for me in the first climbs, and Fränk was there on the last climb, and he kept me in good position going into it. It's motivating to have the guys working for me, and then to have the legs to finish it off - it was a good day for us.

 

"I'm good. I was with the best GC riders. It was a good day, several rivals have again lost time, so that's nice. The whole day was very hard. You know that there will be attacks. It was not a super hard climb but the heat and pace made it tricky. "

 

Segafredo CEO Massimo Zanetti was a guest in the team car during stage 8:.

 

"It was really fun in the team car today. It is not my first time; I was also a guest in the car at the Giro. But it is really an experience! I was hoping to stay alive on the descents more than anything, and not hit any of the spectators!" he smiled.

 

"The team did a great job; Mollema was really strong. I could not believe it when Froome attacked! His descent was impressive. But our team was very good – molto bene, molto bello (very well, very nice)."

 

Greg Van Avermaey: I knew it was over

BMC Racing Team’s General classification duo, Richie Porte and Tejay van Garderen, had a solid first hit out in the mountains on stage 8 of the Tour de France to finish 10th and 12th respectively.

 

It all came down to the final climb where Chris Froome (Team SKY) attacked on the descent and held on to the take the solo win and overall lead. Porte and van Garderen pulled from behind to cross the line 13 seconds behind Froome.

 

After three days with the leader’s yellow jersey Greg Van Avermaet conceded his lead as he predicted prior to the stage start. Van Garderen has moved up to eighth place on the General Classification, 23 seconds behind Froome, and Richie Porte in 18th place, 2’08” behind. BMC Racing Team continues to lead the Team Classification, 1'34" in front of Team SKY.

 

Greg Van Avermaet said:

 

“It was a really hard day. I was hoping the break would go away before the Tourmalet but it didn’t happen and it was one of those days when you’re going to go full gas all day. I had a bike change on the Tourmalet so I was dropped a little bit there. I just tried to find a good tempo but I knew the race was over because when the really good climbers go, it’s impossible to keep them at five minutes. It was a good day and I’m happy that I could ride another day in yellow today.

 

“It’s a special feeling to be in the yellow jersey. I think for my type of rider it’s pretty hard to get yellow at all so to have it for three days is really nice. A lot of people were supporting me so it was really special every day.

 

"I had hoped that an early break would ride away and that the peloton would slow down but that was not the case. It was a fight from kilometer zero and then after 60 kilometers it was the Tourmalet climb. From there it went very fast. Once the race was determined by Sky, I just had to set my own pace. If they go full gas uphill, I certainly can’t follow, and I did not want to force too much. I wanted my own pace and knew that the yellow jersey was gone.

 

“It is not fun for someone like me to do so many climbs. But it was beautiful in the yellow jersey. I knew this would be my last day, you still try to enjoy it. On Sunday I will be back in my usual jersey. I especially want to try to get through the many mountain stages. There are not many opportunities for me in this Tour, that's why I'm so glad that I seized my chance so early. Maybe there is a chance in Bern, I will try to be good.”

 

Richie Porte: Van Garderen and I can do something together

Richie Porte said:

 

“Froome just got the gap and Quintana didn’t want to chase. Tejay and I were told on the radio to pull together and try and bring Froome back as much as we could. But even by that stage he was out of sight and out of mind. I had a good day. It’s a shame we didn’t finish on the top, that would have been a little more interesting, but it was a good day.

 

"He made a gap and Quintana would not chase. There you go. We started to ride at some point, but it was already too late. If he has trained for this? Perhaps. People doubt his descending qualities. Well, today he got the better of Valverde who is one of the best descenders. I think he will try to take time whenever he can. For our part, we remain on track. Tejay and I were there, in a selective group. "

 

“On the back of the last two days, tomorrow is possibly going to be the hardest stage of the Tour. If Tejay and I are up there, and Froome or Quintana are isolated, we’ll see what we can do. Tejay and I are both still up there and it was a pretty select group who was sprinting today. Damiano Caruso has been incredible. He’s always there, he’s dependable, he’s really becoming a crucial part of our team. He’s just fantastic to have there.”

 

Tejay: Man, he caught us all by surprise

Tejay van Garderen said:

 

"Sky was riding tempo, and I think it was Valverde who started opening up the attacks. Nairo was just kind of bang, bang. It looked like it altogether over the top, but then Froome put in one last sneak attack right at the top there, and I was thinking, ‘Oh, well that’s a long way to go downhill if we roll. That’s kind of a bold move. But you can never underestimate Froome. If you give him an inch he’ll take a mile.

 

”All day it kind of looked like he was happy to sit and wait for tomorrow’s hard stage. He looked pretty defensive today, but, man, he caught us all by surprise there.

 

"I saw Caruso was really strong. The whole team was working really well together. There were guys like Mickey Schar, who was surviving over the Tourmalet. You know, that’s pretty impressive. I think me and Richie are going to be right up there in all of the mountains to come. We’re going to have a really good domestique there with Caruso to help us.

 

Lous Meintjes: I didn’t focus on the white jersey

Louis Meintjes passed the exam of the very demanding Pyrenean stage successfully. The climber from LAMPRE-MERIDA reached the finish in 13th position, in the top riders group.

Meintjes is 13th in the general classification at 34" and he's 2nd in the white jersey standing at 18".

"I think it was a good day for me, I'm quite satisfied with my performance,” Meintjes said. “Of course it was a hard stage, Team Sky’s pace on the climbs was selective, but I had good feelings, my Merida Reacto bike supported me perfectly and I always managed to avoid going too close to the limits. It was very hot, but I find myself quite well in these conditions.

”I was satisfied when I realized that I succeeded in reaching the summit of the Peyresourde in the front group but the efforts were not over, since Froome attacked and our group chased him at full speed. I had to give my best to follow that pace and to sprint at the finish.

“I did not think too much about the youth classification, my main target was to be in the front group. However I did notice that only Yates was the only contender for the white jersey in my group. I don't want to make plans, I just want to give my best day by day.”

 

Rui Costa: My day will come

”That day was difficult. Today I again tried to join the break. There were more than 60km of attacking and counter-attacking to enter the front group. Again, it was much effort with no success. After that start out we still had 4,200 meters of climb to overcome when we started the Tourmalet. But I'm in the fight until the end and my day will come. I believe in itand I will be alert to opportunities,” Rui Costa wrote in his diary-

 

“As I have explained, since I already have some lost time in GC on the day I suffered in the heat, it does not matter to ride hard all the way to the finish. The important thing is to save energy to try in the following days. This will be the only strategy until the end of the Tour: Try to get in the break. If I can’t, I will stay quiet until the finish, already thinking about the next chance. I know the goal that the team and I have outlined: to win a stage.”

Emanuel Buchmann very optimistic after first big test in the mountains
BORA - ARGON 18's riders tried to make it into the break once again. But Paul Voss, Bartosz Huzarski, Jan Barta, Cesare Benedetti and Patrick Konrad could not make it like many other riders. Just before the start of the climb up the Tourmalet, Patrick Konrad had a puncture. Therefore, he had to start the climb at the very end of the peloton. Paus Voss scored 5 points in the only sprint today.

 

After the Tourmalet only Emanuel Buchmann and Bartosz Huzarski were left in the group of favourites. Jan Bárta and Patrick Konrad were about 3 minutes back in the yellow jersey group. The grupetto with Sam Bennett was already more than 15 minutes behind at this stage of the race. But Bennett had no problems and finished together with the sprinters inside the time limit.

 

After the second KOM the main group was down to about 35 riders and Huzarksi had been dropped. All BORA - ARGON 18 eyes were focussed on Emanuel Buchmann. Buchmann also had no problems on the third climb of the day and started the final one next to all favourites. 3k, from the last KOM he could not follow the best any more, but he finished the stage in a group with Contador just 1:14 down on stage winner Froome in 15th place.

 

In the GC Buchmann moved up to 23rd place, in the young rider classification he is now in 5th place.

 

“Today I felt even better than yesterday. I’m very confident now and hope this improvement will remain in the upcoming stages. The whole stage was very fast, a group could never break away, except the 3 riders on the Tourmalet, but they also could not build a proper gap. In the end it was an elimination race. I couldn’t hang on to the best, but I’m very satisfied with my performance today,” said Emanuel Buchmann.

 

"The performance of Emu was really a strong one today. He get closer to our goal, the top 20, day by day. Now it will be crucial how he, but also all his rivals, can recover until tomorrow, because the stage today was extremely hard,” said Ralph Denk, team manager.

 

Warren Barguil: I suffered in the heat

During the race Warren Barguil and Laurens ten Dam were well placed in that select group and the latter did a good job supporting him deep into the stage. On the final climb the Col de Peyresourde, there was only around 20 riders left and the general classification contenders started to attack each other. Barguil wasn’t able to keep up with the pace as he set his own tempo. Barguil finished in a chasing group in 16th place, 1’40” further back.

 

In the general classification, Barguil is now 14th, 1’50” behind the new leader Froome.

 

Warren Barguil said: “It wasn’t easy today. It was the first time that I suffered from the heat and I found it a bit difficult. Recently I haven’t been racing under such warm temperatures and today the weather conditions were just a bit too hot for me. It was tough today, my legs weren’t feeling great, but overall I was okay. Towards the finish, I lost 1’40” and this is a significant gap. In the descent, there was a lack of organisation to close the gap to the leaders.”

 

Marc Reef added: “It was really hot and hard day. If you are looking to our performances from our climbers, I think this is a good step in the right direction if you compare to stage 4. Laurens put Warren in a good position towards the last climb and he supported him in the best possible way. Therefore we are improving as a team.

 

“Warren had some difficult moments in the main GC group when there were only 20 riders left. He lost a little of time, but I think he will continue to improve over three weeks and anything is possible. We are looking forward to the upcoming stages.”

 

Stomach problems forces Tom Dumolin to visit camper on tough day in the Pyrenees

"My legs felt a bit better than the last few days, but I think I ate too much sugar. My stomach began to protest,” Tom Dumoulin tweeted. “At the bottom of Peyresourde I went in blind panic into a camper for a #1. Couldn't hold it anymore haha! Last 25 km alone from then...

 

“I will spare you the details but let's just say you could see it was necessary hahaha! Merci beaucoup to the family of the camper! If someone can find these people that would be amazing! I'd like to send them a signed jersey for their help!”

 

IAM shelve GC ambitions for Mathias Frank, turn attention to stage wins

“A stage win is now the priority,” explained Rik Verbrugghe, the sports manager for IAM Cycling, at the end of the 8th stage of the Tour de France which was won by Chris Froome, who has now taken possession of the yellow jersey.

 

“The race went off with a bang.  The Sky team led with great style throughout the stage. They were a cut above the rest. We tried to place Pantano well with a hope of having a sprint finish with maybe 20 guys at the end, but that’s not how it turned out.  Now we have to review our strategy.  Mathias Frank had a jour sans. Last year he finished in 8th place, but now we have to think of other things.  This stage is perhaps a blessing in disguise for us with regards to the rest of the Tour de France.”

 

“I never felt comfortable,” Mathias Frank said.  “On the Tourmalet, we raced à bloc.  I really gave it everything to stay with the group of favorites.  And then on the next climb, I just didn’t have the legs to follow. Now I will clear my head and recover. I want to think about other things. And if I am able to, I will aim to win a stage.”

 

Jarlinson Pantano rode well to finish in in 18th place, 1’41 behind Chris Froome, the winner of the day. 

 

“This is a stage that I liked the look of on paper.  I really wanted to do well.  I hung on as long as possible, but on the last climb, I had to raise the white flag.  I will continue to fight, and if an opportunity arises, then I will certainly grab it.”


 

Disappointed Pierre Rolland: At least I still have both legs and both arms

Despite the best efforts, Cannondale’s ambitions were dealt a bit of a blow today. Team leader Pierre Rolland suffered a front flat tire that caused him to crash into a wall with his left side.

 

Following stage eight, he said: "It's disappointing. My situation was almost perfect and now I have lost, I don't know, 1:30 to the front guys. But I still have two legs and two arms. The Tour continues for me.

 

"At the bottom of the last climb, I felt my front wheel was a little strange. I felt that with the heat, my front tire was a little strange on the descent. In fact I think I just had a slow puncture. On the descent my bike was impossible to control: a puncture of the front wheel with 60-65km / h on a descent. It was like Beloki one year. I was lucky I did not go down, but I really hit a wall. I think we have to have x-rays tonight and stitch ,y hand because I have a really big wound

 

"With the heat, I was not feeling great but I was there. I have never had an early Tour de France so perfect. I am sorry. But I still have my two arms and two legs and the Tour continues for me. It is essential.

 

” I was not on a good day. I suffered from the Tourmalet. I had no great feelings but hey, I limited the losses. 2 kilometers from the top of the last climb, I just cracked with Contador, Kelderman, Barguil. It was not a group of noones. I was a bit behind.

 

”Tomorrow I have to be 100% recovered despite the care that will be needed tonight. I keep morale and I have to benefit from all the work Cannondale - Drapac has done so far. I know that they remain confident so I have to keep the confidence. "

 

Wilco Kelderman fed up by unfortunate crash

Wilco Kelderman crashed during the eighth stage of the Tour de France today. His tube came loose from his wheel on the descent of the Col de Val Louron-Azet and he slipped away. He and George Bennett were able to return in the front before the Col de Peyresourde, but Kelderman lost 1 minute and 45 seconds afterwards.

 

Chris Froome (Team Sky) won the stage and grabbed the yellow jersey.

 

The tough stage through the Pyrenees to Bagnères-de-Luchon ran quite smoothly for Team LottoNL-Jumbo. Kelderman and Bennett were able to maintain their positions among the overall favourites ahead of the final climb.

 

“Today, it was my turn for the first time,” Bennett said. “I didn’t enjoy the first week of the Tour de France, because it wasn’t quite my terrain, so I was looking forward to today. I’m happy with how it went and I’m happy with my form.”

 

The tables turned on the penultimate descent of the stage, when Kelderman crashed.

 

“We’re riding on very small climbing wheels,” Bennett continued. “It looked like Wilco’s wheels were so hot that his tube loosened. The glue was totally melted and I burned my hands on it when I grabbed the wheel.”

 

“It was hot today and you have to brake on a lot during the descents,” Kelderman said. “The glue on your tyre gets very hot and there’s a chance that it gets loose. I’m fed up that it happened to me. Everything went very well until that moment. I didn’t lose too much time, but I have a lot of abrasions. This is very annoying.”

 

“The last thing we want is a crash,” Sports Director Merijn Zeeman added. “This is a big setback.

 

“Before Wilco’s crash, everything seemed to go very well. George Bennett was with him and helped him a lot. We were already thinking about the final climb. This is frustrating.”

 

Thibaut Pinot: The mountains jersey could become a goal

“I rode away up the Tourmalet because I wanted to fight,” Thibaut Pinot said. “I haven't had enough freedom to gain time and it didn't work out but there'll be other occasions. I can do it again tomorrow.

 

”The Tour is only starting now, with great climbs coming up. That's normally where I start enjoying cycling. The polka dot jersey can become a new goal. We'll discuss it with the team.

 

”It was a gamble because I was three minutes behind overall and I knew they were not going to give me time. But I will try again tomorrow.

 

"At first, I did it to have fun because I do not have had much of that since the start of this Tour. I am pleased with what I did on the Tourmalet. I'll try to go for a stage.”

 

"He lost the Tour, the Top 5 is over,” his coach Julien Pinot told L’Equipe. "We will reconsider the ambitions.”

 

Eduardo Sepulveda: Tomorrow I will know what I can do in this race

Eduardo Sepúlveda remained with the best until the top of the third climb and finished 32th at 4'12 ''.

 

“Honestly, I was on the limit,” he said. “I held on as long as possible, but at the top of the third climb, I had to let the Sky train go. I found myself alone for 40 kilometers where I had to work. I found some resources on the last climb, I ended up giving the maximum. Although I did not go for the stage win, I had to give everything.

 

”It's not bad but I want to be better. Tomorrow's stage will be a good indicator for the future. I do not have a lot of experience, so I do not know how I will react to the sequence of mountain stages. Tomorrow night I will see clearer what I am capable of in the second and third week. In any case, the motivation is there.

 

Thomas De Gendt: I knew it would be difficult to keep the jersey

Thomas De Gendt was the first rider to attack, but just like he had predicted many were keen on getting into a breakaway today. After three days he is no longer leader of the KOM classification, Rafal Majka is the new owner of the polka dot jersey.

 

“It was going really fast in the beginning,” he said. “In the first hour we covered 51 kilometres, with a head wind. Before the stage I already feared many riders would be interested in getting into the break today and indeed there were many attacks and nobody could really create a gap until some strong climbers attacked at the bottom of the Tourmalet. I had done several attempts and I tried to catch my breath back in between, but at the bottom of the Tourmalet I had no power left.

 

“It’s a pity I couldn’t escape the peloton but at the end the GC riders fought for the stage win. It would have been difficult to keep the jersey. It were three beautiful days. I prefer to win a stage though and I hope to get a chance to try to achieve that goal on one of the following stages.”

 

Mark Cavendish makes the time cut after desperate late chase

With 4 big categorised climbs during today’s 184km route, and the Col du Tourmalet being the first of the four, it was clear today would be a stage for the climbing purists and GC contenders. Team Dimension Data for Qhubeka were active in the first 60km of the stage, just before the Tourmalet, as the African Team tried to make it into the early break of the day.

 

There would be no real early break of the day though, despite Serge Pauwels and Bernard Eisel’s best efforts, everything was always brought back.

 

Team Dimension Data for Qhubeka had very little to gain from the stage and so the goal was for all riders to expend the least amount of energy as possible, but make it to the finish within the team cut. For a large part of the 2nd half of the stage, Mark Cavendish and Bernhard Eisel were fighting a lone battle right at the back of the race. The last climb of the day was the Col de Peyresourde, Cavendish, the green jersey wearer, and Eisel were a little more than 30 minutes behind the front of the race at the start of the climb. The experienced duo, through real grit, determination and coupled with exceptional descending skill, were able to make it across a 4 minute gap in the final 20km to the 50 rider grupetto ahead of them.

 

Coming home with the large group meant Cavendish and Eisel made the time cut and the Manxman retained the lead in the green jersey points competition. All the other Team Dimension Data for Qhubeka riders also made it safely to finish and will start tomorrow’s tough 9th stage.

 

Head of Performance Rolf Aldag said:
 

“It was a very difficult day, full gas from the start and it just never slowed down. I have not seen one smiling rider the whole day, maybe Chris Froome was because he won, but otherwise not one the whole day. Obviously the team did an incredible job in the first week and now in these mountain stages we pay the price a little bit. Natnael Berhane and Daniel Teklehaimanot were so committed in riding the flats in the early stages that now they lack a little bit of power. Still, we are proud we brought everyone home and defended the green jersey. Tomorrow is another day but not necessarily any easier.”