Italy’s Jonathan Milan wins Tour de France 17th stage, Pogacar retains yellow
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Jonathan Milan cycles to the finish line to win the 17th stage of the Tour de France.
PHOTO: AFP
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VALENCE – Italian Jonathan Milan of Lidl-Trek claimed his second victory in the Tour de France when he won a crash-disrupted sprint in the 17th stage on July 23.
He prevailed in a 10-man sprint after the peloton was held up behind a massive crash with just 1km to go, as riders went down on slippery roads in a rainy finish in south-eastern France.
Eritrean Biniam Girmay was attended to by race doctors.
Slovenia’s Tadej Pogacar crossed the finish line safely to retain the overall leader’s yellow jersey. He leads Dane Jonas Vingegaard by 4min 15sec.
“I’m without words, I have to say,” said Milan. “I didn’t survive (to this point in the race) alone, I survived with the help of my teammates. Without this, I would have been dropped on one of the climbs.
“Today was a tough stage. We controlled it from the beginning, also with the help of some other teams… then it was a difficult final, also because of the weather, and we had to get to the roundabouts in first position.
“My team helped me, they supported me... it was a team victory and I have to thank them, from the bottom of my heart. Super, super happy for all of us.
“I actually didn’t know there was a crash. I hope everyone was OK. The team left me in the best position. I was really focused for it. I was looking forward to it. It’s a big achievement for all of us.”
Frenchmen Quentin Pacher and Mathieu Burgaudeau as well as Jonas Abrahamsen of Norway and Italian Vincenzo Albanese broke away early but stood little chance against the collective power of the sprinters’ teams.
With the peloton breathing down their necks, Abrahamsen went solo with 11km remaining, only to be reined in 4.3km from the line.
Milan was the strongest in the reduced sprint, edging out Jordi Meeus of Belgium and Denmark’s Tobias Lund Andresen, who were second and third respectively.
“It was super-nice to hear on the radio that Jonny won, after a hard day,” said Lidl-Trek’s Quinn Simmons.
“My girlfriend, this morning, was wondering why I was so nervous. I said: ‘If I have a really good day, I think I can set up a sprint for Jonny, and I think he can win’.
“I’m not a fan of racing in the rain… I did my work in the first 150km, and then let the big boys do the work at the end. It looks like they nailed it. He (Milan) is one of those guys who is easy to suffer for.”
The 18th stage on July 24 is a brutal mountain trek between Vif and the Col de la Loze, one of the most feared ascents in the Tour de France. REUTERS
