Alaphilippe Stays Strong, Extends Tour de France Lead On Stage 13

The race leader put in 14 seconds on Geraint Thomas during the Tour’s only individual time trial.


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  • Julian Alaphilippe won Stage 13 of the Tour de France, unexpectedly growing his overall lead.
  • Geraint Thomas placed second, putting in time on his rivals but losing 14 seconds to Alaphilippe.
  • Wout van Aert crashed hard on a turn and had to abandon the race.

It was supposed to be a day of defense for Julian Alaphilippe, the current leader of the 2019 Tour de France. But during the race’s only individual time trial on Friday, the Frenchman managed to not only protect, but actually extend, his lead on the General Classification.

Alaphilippe sailed across Stage 13’s 27K loop through the Pyrenean foothills, never losing power and finishing a good 14 seconds ahead of Geraint Thomas, who took second on the day. His overall lead now grows to 1:26 over Thomas, the returning Tour champion who also sits in second place on the GC.

Thomas had been a favourite to win on Friday. Indeed, he put time in on his rivals when crossed the line 22 seconds ahead of Stage 8 winner Thomas De Gendt, who set the time to beat for much of the day and ultimately took third. But it wasn’t enough to steal the yellow jersey from Alaphilippe, who will now go down as an unexpected (albeit still-longshot) contender for the overall win in Paris.

“If he carries on like this he’ll win the Tour,” Thomas said of Alaphilippe at the finish line. “He’s going incredibly well and is certainly the favorite or the one to watch at the moment. But there is a long way to go and a lot of hard stages to come.”

Egan Bernal, Thomas’s co-captain on Ineos and an early pre-race favourite, went a little too hard too early on the course, losing power toward the end and finishing 1:36 behind Alaphilippe. This cost the 22-year-old Colombian significant time in the overall rankings, and his GC position fell from third to fifth.

Bernal also lost the white jersey in the Best Young Rider competition to Enric Mas, Alaphilippe’s teammate on Deceuninck–Quick-Step.

But Thibaut Pinot had a productive day. After staying in the top three overall for two stages, the Frenchman lost major time in the crosswinds on Stage 10. A smooth ride on the time trial course, however, allowed him to jump back up to a respectable seventh place on the GC, at 3:22 behind.

Tour favorites Mas, Steven Kruijswijk, and Rigoberto Uran had good rides as well, each rising in the overall field. Meanwhile Nairo Quintana, Adam Yates, and Daniel Martin all lost time, with the latter falling out of the top 10.

The day’s most disappointing news came with the crash of Wout van Aert, the 24-year-old Tour debutant who won Stage 10 in a narrow bunch sprint. Van Aert went down while rounding a corner to the home stretch, crashing hard when his front wheel got caught on the metal barrier.

The Belgian was taken to the hospital in an ambulance with a flesh wound in his right leg. His Jumbo–Visma team said that he was conscious, but had to abandon the Tour.

The race now returns to the mountains with its second and third days in the Pyrenees. Expect further shakeups to the General Classification as the course takes riders over some of the most challenging climbs yet.

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