Geraint Thomas, noble helpers of defending champion Chris Froome in the British Sky Team that wins the second mountain stage of the Tour de France and slips into the Yellow Jersey. For Froome, the eleventh part of the piece is perfect.
Geraint Thomas is excited about the second Tour de France stage victory of his professional career
With an impressive demonstration of power Team Sky has the competition on the 11. Stage of the Tour de France in shock and his Co-captain Geraint Thomas in the Yellow Jersey hoisted. The Cycling team of defending champion Chris Froome parried the attacks of the main rivals, so that Thomas was able to secure the day’s victory ahead of co-favourite Tom Dumoulin from Team Sunweb and Froome. The powerful Sky team substantiated the claim the sixth Tour Triumph in seven years.
Two Sky riders at the top of the standings
Thomas took over after 108,5 kilometers to the ski resort of La Rosière, the Yellow Jersey from Belgian Greg Van Avermaet (BMC Racing Team), as expected, far back and fell. “To win on the mountain is something Special. I did not expect to. I just followed my instinct,” said Thomas of the TV channel “Eurosport”: “I had to go on to the victory. It would have been stupid to do it.”
The 32-year-old Briton had briefly tightened before the end of the stage, once again, the pace and 300 meters before the finish overtook the until then leading Spaniard Mikel Nieve (mitchelton-Scott). The top riders in the overall standings with a lead of 1:25 minutes on his team-mates Froome and 1:44 minutes on the Dutchman Dumoulin in the final of the Alps-part piece on Thursday with three climbs of the highest category. The stage ends with the legendary and spectacular ascent to L’alpe d’huez.
Place in the day’s standings, Second in the General classification – Chris Froome is ready for Yellow
Bardet, Nibali and Quintana will lose valuable time
The Dutchman Dumoulin, the Second of this year’s Giro d’italia behind Froome, and was able to keep up as one of the top drivers with the Sky-Stars. Other podium candidates, such as the Frenchman, Romain, and the Italian, Vincenzo Nibali, and the Colombian Nairo Quintana lost on the first mountain of the Tour arrival Bardet, however, less than a Minute on Thomas. Especially Quintana’s Moviestarplanet Team had first taken the Initiative. The Spaniard Alejandro Valverde pulled out temporarily a lead of two minutes and could dream of from the first Yellow Jersey after a ten year break. However, at the beginning of the final slope of the 38 caught up with-Year-old again.
Then, the Sky Team dominated the decisive Phase of the stage. Exciting will be, if Thomas more of that than the noble helper Froomes. The race will decide about the captain’s role, said the two team-mates on Monday. In Alpe d’huez, you will see clearer.