Through the rain. Through the heat. Through the tiny roads. Averaging 50.9 km/h over 163.1 km, the world just witnessed the fastest stage in Tour de France history.
From the jump, there were wannabe breakaways. Few made it out, but one name stuck out, Julian Alaphilippe of Tudor, formerly a founder of the wolfpack. Anthon Charmig of the ever-present Uno-X Mobility, Nelson Oliveira of the new and improved Movistar, and Mathis Le Berre of Total Energies join Julian in this rainy yet speedy breakaway.
As everyone in the peloton knows, Stage 11 and 12 will be the last time for a while for the sprinters to win a stage. Soudal Quick-Step, the team of Tim Merlier, the Tour’s top sprinter, wasted no time in setting the pace to catch the breakaway.
Alaphilippe performed heroically for his hometown today. Reminding us all of the former world champion’s glory days, alas, he was the first to be picked off by the peloton.
With 6km to go, the other shook each other’s hands, and were completely engulfed by the fastest peloton of all time.
With tiny roads, the sprinters struggled to find their footing. Soren Wærenskjold of Uno-X Mobility, the team that just keeps popping up, took advantage of the chaos. His monstrous strides broke into a sprint well before anyone else. His eloquent draft and launch were no match for anyone else as he crossed the line to solidify this as the fastest Tour stage of all time.
Will the monster sprint teams iron out their lead out rehearsals tomorrow, or will it be another surprise first time Tour victory ?
Check out the latest articles from EasySportz
Check out the latest FIFA World Cup scores
