The sun accompanied the men of the Tour de France for this second stage. On the agenda were two first-category climbs and a challenging finish through the Col d’Eze, known for making a difference in Paris-Nice, and finally the Col des Quatre Chemins.
There were only 173 riders at the start this morning near Place Massena after the withdrawals of John Degenkolb (Lotto-Soudal, out of time), Rafael Valls (Bahrain, fractured femur) and Philippe Gilbert (Lotto-Soudal, fractured left kneecap).
At the start, eight riders quickly broke away to form the breakaway of the day. Among them was Peter Sagan, aiming to collect points in the intermediate sprint for the green jersey classification. Though the Slovak did not manage to cross the line first (contested by the Italian Matteo Trentin (Team CCC), he achieved a good result of the day with 17 points gained.
The battle for the polka dot jersey also enlivened the first part of the race. It was contested by the French Benoît Cosnefroy (AG2R-La Mondiale) and Antony Perez (Cofidis) as well as the Austrian Michael Gogl (NTT Pro Cycling). In the end, it was Cosnefroy who claimed the best climber’s jersey thanks to a huge effort in the Col de Turini.
The climbs took a toll on the general classification leader, sprinter Alexander Kristoff, who was understandably in trouble today but will surely have an opportunity to shine again tomorrow.
The escapees caught at the foot of the Col d’Eze
40 kilometers from the finish, as they began the penultimate difficulty of the day, the day’s escapees were swallowed by the peloton of favorites, which included Julian Alaphilippe and all the contenders for the final victory. Confident in his strength, the Frenchman benefited from the mechanical incident that hit the veteran Spaniard Alejandro Valverde (Movistar) as well as the crashes of Tom Dumoulin – which delayed one of the contenders for victory, the Dutchman Wout Van Aert (Jumbo-Visma) – and the recent winner of the Critérium du Dauphiné, the Colombian Daniel Martinez (EF Pro Cycling). It was shortly before these crashes that the Frenchman decided to have his teammates lead at the foot of the last difficulty, the Col des Quatre Chemins. Following this, Alaphilippe, who had spent 14 days in yellow last year, initiated the attack. He was followed by the promising 22-year-old Swiss, Marc Hirschi (Sunweb), and later by one of the outsiders of this Tour de France, the Briton Adam Yates (Mitchelton), who made a strong move in the general classification.
Arriving at the Promenade des Anglais, the Frenchman perfectly managed his sprint, taking the lead in the last 300 meters before being challenged by the Swiss Hirschi, who finished just centimeters behind at the line.
Reactions:
The day’s winner, Julian Alaphilippe:
“This victory doesn’t taste the same as last year’s. I was circling around it this year and was determined to do well in the Tour de France. I had warned the team to make the final harder. I had planned to try something here, I really wanted to do well. I’ve always said that I wasn’t here to play for the general classification but I had marked this stage and wanted to win it. (On defending the yellow jersey). The approach is to take it day by day. Having the yellow jersey is something to respect; it’s a huge pride, so we’ll do everything to keep and defend it as much as possible. I don’t want to give it up.”
Benoît Cosnefroy (AG2R-La Mondiale, new polka dot jersey holder):
“The breakaway went away on the flat, right from kilometer 0. I was able to score points in the Col de la Colmiane where I felt good, then it became more difficult at the Col de Turini. I was 45 seconds behind in the Col but managed to catch up two kilometers from the summit and was able to contest the points. Then it came down to placement with Anthony (Perez, 2nd equal in the climber’s classification). He tried to test me in the last difficulty but I was well positioned on his wheel. Now the goal is to savor this moment. It means a lot to me. I’m happy to step onto my first podium protocol. This jersey makes me dream. I know I’m not one of the best climbers in the peloton. I’m going to defend this jersey as much as possible but I’m not under any illusions.”
Stage classification:
- Julian Alaphilippe (FRA/Deceuninck-Quick Step) in 4h55’27”
- Marc Hirschi (SUI/Sunweb) s.t.
- Adam Yates (GBR/Mitchelton-Scott) at 1″
- Greg Van Avermaet (BEL/CCC) at 2″
- Sergio Higuita (COL/EF Pro Cycling) s.t.
- Bauke Mollema (NED/Trek-Segafredo) s.t.
- Alexey Lutsenko (KAZ/Astana) s.t.
- Tadej Pogacar (SLO/UAE-Emirates) s.t.
- Maximilian Schachmann (GER/Bora-Hansgrohe)
- Alberto Bettiol (ITA/EF Pro Cycling) s.t.
General classification:
- Julian Alaphilippe (FRA/Deceuninck-Quick Step) in 8h 41’35”
- Adam Yates (GBR/Mitchelton-Scott) at 4″
- Marc Hirschi (SUI/Sunweb) at 7″
- Sergio Higuita (COL/EF Pro Cycling) at 17″
- Tadej Pogacar (SLO/UAE-Emirates) s.t.
- Esteban Chaves (COL/Mitchelton-Scott) s.t.
- Davide Formolo (ITA/UAE-Emirates) s.t.
- Egan Bernal (COL/Ineos-Grenadier) s.t.
- Richard Carapaz (ECU/Ineos-Grenadier) s.t.
- Tom Dumoulin (NED/Jumbo-Visma) s.t.
Additional classifications:
Green jersey: Alexander Kristoff (NOR/UAE-Emirates) 64 points
Polka dot jersey: Benoît Cosnefroy (FRA/AG2R-La Mondiale) 18 points
White jersey: Marc Hirschi (SUI/Sunweb)
Best team: Trek-Segafredo
Most combative rider of the stage: Benoît Cosnefroy (FRA/AG2R-La Mondiale)
