Long stalled in the wheel of the best in the climb to the Grand Colombier, David Gaudu ended up cracking in the end, when Tadej Pogacar’s teammate, Adam Yates, accelerated to just under three kilometers from the summit. The Frenchman finished the 13th stage, won by Michal Kwiatkowski, almost a minute behind Tadej Pogacar and 40 seconds behind Jai Hindley, third in the general classification. The leader of the Groupama-FDJ team, who was unable to obtain the support of his teammates (Madouas and Pinot had been left behind before) when he was in trouble, still retains his 9th place overall but his dreams of podium seem to fly away irretrievably.
“We quickly saw that UAE Team Emirates wanted the stage victory. They rode like crazy all day. Afterwards, the final ascent was very fast. I don’t explode but I let go at 2.5 km because I’m at full speed, like everyone else, ”explained the Breton, aware of his current limits against the runners in front of him in the general classification.
“I can’t do much more on a physical level because I’m at 100%. It goes up three or five notches above Paris-Nice. We are at the bottom and we cling. If they are stronger than us physically, it’s because they are stronger and then there you go… I’m not beaten down but you have to be lucid. It goes up much too fast for us”, added the first Frenchman in the general classification, whose body will be put to the test again on Saturday with the stage linking Annemasse and Morzine Les Portes du Soleil, a compact route of 151, 8 km and five difficulties to swallow.
