Valentin Paret-Peintre bagged a first home win on an enthralling stage 16 of the Tour de France on Tuesday, July 22, pipping Ireland’s Ben Healy atop the 1910m altitude Mont Ventoux finish line. Behind them, Jonas Vingegaard attacked overall leader Tadej Pogacar relentlessly, but the defending champion tracked the Danish cyclist all the way up the 15km ascent to extend his lead by two seconds.
They were eclipsed, however, by a frantic fight for the line and the stage win between EF’s Healy and Soudal Quick-Step team’s Paret-Peintre, who relieved French hopes for a Tour raced entirely on French soil.
Trailing by 4min 13sec at the start of this stage, Vingegaard attacked with 9km to climb on the Mont Ventoux, whose eerie upper reaches resemble a lunar landscape Vingegaard and his Visma team did everything they could to hurt the Team UAE leader Pogacar, but the 26-year-old resisted all they threw at him despite being isolated from his teammates early in the climb which is already etched into Tour folklore after epic past battles.
Chris Froome ran part of the way up during a frantic wait for mechanical assistance, while even the great Eddy Merckx once needed oxygen at the summit.
Historical cyclist Tom Simpson even died on this leg in 1967, after collapsing on a baking climb, but asking to be helped back onto the saddle.
Stage 17 should be one for the sprinters as Tim Merlier hopes to add to his two stage wins and current green jersey, Jonathan Milan, also targets a second win at the 700m straight run to the finish line at Valence. The weather, however, could rewrite the script with 50kph winds forecast along the 170km run.
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