Ben Healy gives Ireland rare yellow jersey as Simon Yates wins Tour de France 10th stage

Le Mont-Dore Puy de Sancy – Ben Healy rode himself into the ground in a nail-biting finale to become the first Irishman in 38 years to wear the yellow jersey at the Tour de France, as Britain’s Simon Yates claimed victory in Stage 10 on July 14 with a perfectly timed attack.

Giro d’Italia champion Yates emerged from the day’s breakaway to secure his third career Tour stage win, pulling away on the final climb to beat Dutchman Thymen Arensman and Healy, who finished second and third, respectively.

Said Yates: “I actually didn’t feel good out there. It was a hard start... I also wasn’t really expecting any opportunities here. We came here for Jonas (Vingegaard) and the GC (general classification).

“I’m under no illusion what we’re here for. The plan today was to stay there (in the breakaway) and see what was going on, and then the gap became too big.

“So, I cracked on.”

Heading into the first rest day, Healy leads defending champion Tadej Pogacar by 29 seconds in the general classification, after the Slovenian eased off on the final ascent.

Belgian Remco Evenepoel sits third, one minute further back, after losing six seconds in the closing kilometres when Pogacar briefly surged in an attempt to test Vingegaard, widely seen as his main rival for the overall title.

Vingegaard stayed locked on to Pogacar’s wheel and remains 1min 17sec behind the UAE Team Emirates rider.

As Pogacar approached the finish, Healy smiled while watching the Slovenian on the giant screen.

With Pogacar visibly backing off, the EF Education-EasyPost rider crossed the line to become the first Irishman to lead the Tour since Stephen Roche won the race in 1987.

Healy had looked one of the strongest riders in the breakaway on the 165.3km hilly route from Ennezat, but Yates timed his move to perfection, attacking solo on the final climb to seal a tactical victory.

Meanwhile, Eddy Merckx, the most successful cycling racer ever, is back in hospital for an operation to treat complications for a new hip, sources close to the Belgian great said on July 14.

The 80-year-old fractured his hip after falling off his bike last December.

A titanium prosthesis was fitted, but that was subsequently replaced by a cemented version, with fresh problems arising from this one.

Merckx is expected to remain in hospital for around a fortnight.

He had five titles in the Giro d’Italia to go with his five on the Tour de France, as well as one victory in the Vuelta a Espana. He also won a host of one-day classics and three world titles.

Merckx also suffered a heavy fall in the autumn of 2019, forcing him to spend several days in hospital. REUTERS, AFP