The Tour de France hit the most grueling stage of the race so far on Saturday, rolling through the Jura hills so fast that it briefly rediscovered something it had lost in recent years: a little bit of chaos.
The 116.5-mile, up-and-down stage brought a mess of attacks, huge fractures in the peloton, and a surprise win for a French Tour rookie who nearly cramped his way out of contention. Two different riders threatened to steal the leader’s yellow jersey. In fact, the pace was so high that rider Geraint Thomas said there wasn’t even time for a “nature break.”
For fans and Tour de France romantics, it was exactly what this race had been missing. The only group that hated it was the defending champion, Team Sky. Chaos isn’t how the British outfit rode to victory in four of the past five Tours. For a team that obsesses over every nugget of data at all times, chaos is the enemy.
So with 20 miles and a nasty climb to go on Saturday, Team Sky, the deepest, richest team in the sport, did what it does best and killed the party.
Overall race leader Chris Froome and his Sky lieutenants drove the main bunch like a locomotive to close the gaps to their nearest rivals and retain the yellow jersey. (The day’s winner, 24-year-old Lilian Calmejane, isn’t a general classification threat.) Sky is now the first team in 40 years to hold on to the overall lead through the first eight stages of a Tour.
“Really, really tough day,” said QuickStep Floors rider Dan Martin, who took 13th on the stage. “The way Sky rode, and with that finish, you were never going to get anywhere anyway.”
Source: Tour de France Gets Some Much-Needed Chaos in Grueling Stage – WSJ
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