(Sportcom) – The cyclists of the Tour de France have completed more than half of the stages of this 110th edition and according to Quebecer Guillaume Boivin, Team Israel – Premier Tech can be proud of the work done so far.
On Thursday, the riders took part in the 12th stage of the Tour between Roanne and Belleville-en-Beaujolais. The Spaniard Ion Izagirre from the Cofidis team attacked with 30 kilometers to go and was the first to complete the 168.8 kilometer route.
He beat Frenchman Mathieu Burgaudeau (TotalEnergies) and American Matteo Jorgensen (Movistar) by 58 seconds.
At Israel – Premier Tech, Belgium’s Dylan Teuns took part in the day’s breakaway and finished eighth (+1min 27s).
Hugo Houle finished 57th (+11m25s) in a group of 21 riders while Boivin was 132nd (+27m57s).
“For me, it was all about getting through the stage,” Boivin said, citing the “extremely difficult” start reserved for the athletes.
It remains that day and night separated his experience of last year’s Tour de France and this year’s.
The man called in as backup at the last minute had not had the opportunity to prepare sufficiently for the start of the greatest cycling event in the world. This time the sensations are much higher.
“It’s really not the same story as last year! It’s more fun and less stressful not to wonder every day if we’re going to finish or not. I get through the mountains much better, can even go into the break and do my job,” said Boivin, who particularly supported Michael Woods in his victory on the ninth stage.
“So far we can be very proud of the tour we’re doing and we hope to continue in that direction. There are some solid steps ahead of us.”
In addition to Woods’ victory, Latvia’s Krists Neilands put on quite a show on Tuesday by edging away some twenty miles. He was caught three kilometers from the finish.
“He had a fantastic day on Tuesday, it was pretty impressive. It narrowly missed, but the stars didn’t align. I think we’ll see him again for the rest of the tour.
Houle and Boivin currently sit 77th and 132nd respectively in the provisional standings, still led by defending champion Jonas Vingegaard (Jumbo-Visma). Ontario’s Michael Woods, teammate of Houle and Boivin, is 30th-best of his lineup.
At the end of the 13th stage, a summit arrival is planned on Friday, followed by two mountain stages at the weekend.