(Sportcom) – Hugo Houle’s (Israel – Premier Tech) good form allowed him to be part of the day’s breakaway and try his luck at clinching the polka dot jersey of top climber on Sunday’s ninth stage of the Tour de France to win .
Houle slacked off the 193 between Aigle (Switzerland) and Châtel with 18 kilometers to go while the yellow jersey group was no longer around thirty seconds away to keep their energy going forward. He finished 38th, 7min 37s behind winner Bob Jungels (AG2R Citroën).
“I’m very, very proud of my day. It was very difficult to catch the breakaway and I tried to play the mountain jersey a bit but Simon Geschke (Cofidis) was way too strong,” admitted the Sainte-Perpétue native, who was in a very strong group of around twenty runners, who were also joined by his teammate Guy Niv, made a good impression.
Among the group’s most prominent were green jersey Wout Van Aert (Jumbo-Visma), Thibaut Pinot (Groupama – FDJ), Rigoberto Uran (EF Education-EasyPost) and future winner of the day Bob Jungels, who took the place solo Escape 64 kilometers after a short drive with Geschke.
With Uran well placed overall, this ensured Tadej Pocagar’s yellow jersey UAE side Emirates narrowly covered the gap. Jungels was able to defend himself against Pinot, who faced him with almost 20 kilometers to go. The Frenchman came 20 seconds closer without making the connection.
“It was a big fight for the breakaway and our mission was to bring Jakob (Fuglsang) or Michael (Woods) up front with a rider like me. Unfortunately, Woods crashed before the climb where the breakaway went. Jakob tried several shots on the climb and when the shot finally went off we didn’t have anyone so I jumped into the breakaways,” Houle told Sportcom, who earned 6 points in the best climber score.
“If I had won the first two (hill sprint) I would have had the polka dot jersey. There were a lot of points up for grabs today.”
In fact, it was Geschke who donned the polka dot jersey at the end of the stage and Houle has no regrets trying his luck. In fact, he prides himself on his fitness level. His role on his team could also change if Woods remains affected by his crash on Sunday. The Ottawane, who according to Houle “suffered a lot”, reached the finish line in 131st (+27.35 min.) in the same group as Antoine Duchesne (Groupama-FDJ), 95th. Guillaume Boivin (Israel – Premier Tech) followed in 158th, almost 36 minutes back.
“It’s probably one of the best levels (in terms of shape) I’ve ever had,” said Houle. I’ve made a few breaks in the Tour de France, but today (Sunday) it was a very high level.
Does Monday’s rest day suit him or would he have preferred to continue the momentum he started on Sunday?
“A rest day always comes at the right time,” the athlete concluded with a wink.
Magdeleine Vallières-Mill until the end of the Giro
Italy’s Chiara Consonni (Valcar – Travel & Service) won the tenth and final stage of the Tour of Italy women’s sprint. In addition to finishing 68th, 14 seconds back, Magdeleine Vallières-Mill (EF Education – TIBCO – SVB) notably completed the first major lap of her career at the age of 20 to claim the title, unofficially best Canadian in the 10 stage competition and finish 38th place, just over an hour and a half behind the winner, Dutch Annemiek Van Vleuten (Movistar).
In addition, she occupies the second best place in her training behind the American Krista Doebel-Hickok, 15.
“I wasn’t really there for a result, so I wasn’t expecting anything,” the Sherbrooke resident admitted with some embarrassment. “It’s cool, I got some UCI (International Cycling Union) points. I personally remember feeling better and better every day. And with the team, I learned to push my limits by trying to help my teammates.
The young woman was particularly proud of her hill climb on Saturday, where she was part of the breakaway before helping her teammate Doebel-Hickok.
After this final experience, the cyclist rests for the next few days.
“I’ll catch up on lots of sleep, do schoolwork and see what’s up with the bike shop in Sherbrooke (which his father is a co-owner of).”