16
13:41
constant distance
But even at the front of the race, Neilson Powless and Laurent Pichon are not really pushing hard and seem to be saving their strength. Although the large field is still rolling comfortably, the cushion of the two breakaways settles down for about two minutes.
14
13:32
Lightweight Counters for Powless
And that’s exactly how it happens: Neilson Powless doesn’t even have to get out of the saddle to secure the next mountains classification. So two points go to the American, Laurent Pichon grabs a point. Meanwhile, the follow-up work in the peloton has still not been clarified.
12.
13:27
Powless wants to increase padding
Without much effort, Neilson Powless tackles this first climb. With Laurent Pichon not yet having any points in the mountains classification, the Frenchman is unlikely to want to steal the two points from his EF Education-EasyPost competitor at the top of the Côte de Trabakua.
10
13:24
The first ramp lurks
The first climb of the day will soon be the Côte de Trabakua. This is a 4.1-kilometre-long slope in the third category – an average gradient of 5.4 percent has to be overcome.
7.
13:23
Leisurely ride in the peloton
The large peloton is not yet thinking about organizing the usual follow-up work. That’s why Neilson Powless and Laurent Pichon almost effortlessly extend their lead to over a minute.
4.
13:19
Pichon follows Powless
Laurent Pichon from the French team Arkéa-Samsic is currently the only one hanging on Neilson Powless’ rear wheel. And apparently the rest of the Pelton quickly agree that this constellation is satisfactory. The riders at the front spread out and slow down.
3.
13:17
First attack by Powless
As expected, Neilson Powless, who leads the mountains classification, is immediately back in the lead. On the small hills he can extend his lead a bit again today. EF Education-EasyPost’s American is currently four points ahead of Tadej Pogačar, who in turn is wearing the white jersey of the best young professional on his shoulders.
1.
13:15
Here we go!
Tour director Christian Prudhomme waves his famous flag from the race control vehicle and opens the 3rd stage! As usual, it only takes a few moments before the first intensive attacks are made in the front part of the field.
13:05
Let’s get down to business
The entire peloton has just slowly started to move. The professional cyclists roll through the Basque starting point of Amorebieta-Etxano at a leisurely pace for about ten minutes before tour director Christian Prudhomme will release the third exchange of blows of the traditional highlight of the season.
12:57 p.m
Cyclists complain about tacks on the road
Yesterday, strangers who had spread tacks on the road 20 kilometers from the finish caused a lot of excitement. Lilian Calmejane posted a video on Twitter showing five of these needles stuck in his front tire. “Thank you for this human nonsense,” wrote the Frenchman. Thomas Pidcock also complained about a loss of tire pressure. Groupama sporting director Philippe Mauduit reported that some of his riders suffered punctures from pin nails. Two drivers from the Lotto team were also affected.
12:45 p.m
Lafay’s coup in San Sebastian
Yesterday’s Sunday ended with a surprise coup in San Sebastian: Victor Lafay attacked from a lead group of just 24 people with a kilometer to go and overpowered the big favorite Wout van Aert. The 27-year-old Frenchman gave his team Cofidis the long-awaited first stage win in 15 years and grabbed the green jersey himself. Adam Yates (UAE Team Emirates) meanwhile defended the overall lead, while his teammate Tadej Pogačar hamstered another eleven seconds in the duel with last year’s winner Jonas Vingegaard (Jumbo – Visma) and jumped to second place.
12:38 p.m
The daily program
On the 193.5-kilometre part from Amorebieta-Etxano to Bayonne, leader Adam Yates will probably have no trouble defending the yellow jersey, as the first pure sprinter stage is on the agenda. On the Atlantic coast of northern Spain, the tour entourage moves to France, crossing the border in the last third of the race. Four mountain classifications in the small categories shouldn’t pose any major obstacles on this path. In the later final there is a special feature: For safety reasons, the race organizer ASO changed the route at short notice in order to avoid a dangerous roundabout.
12:30 p.m
Welcome to the 3rd stage!
Have a wonderful good day and welcome to the third stage of the 110th Tour de France! The class riders have already had two very tricky opening days in their legs, now the hour of the sprinters should come for the first time on largely flat terrain. The sharp start is scheduled for 1:15 p.m.