With a rear derailleur stuck in the 11-tooth sprocket for the final 20 kilometres due to a bent derailleur hanger, Colombian Rigoberto Uran of Cannondale-Drapac won a chaotic Stage 9 of the Tour de France from a select group of GC contenders.
Uran’s stage win from a six-man sprint, in a photo finish against Warren Barguil (Team Sunweb) was but one of many storylines on a day that saw several marquee riders on the ground, including Richie Porte, Dan Martin, Alberto Contador, Geraint Thomas, Robert Gesink, and Rafal Majka — with Porte, Thomas and Gesink all out of the race due to injuries.
The most severe injury belonged to Porte (BMC Racing), who came to this Tour as a heavy GC favorite and started the stage sitting fifth overall. On the descent of Mont du Chat with 23km remaining, Porte misread a corner and lost control, sliding across the road at high speed and into a rock wall. Porte’s crash put Martin (Quick-Step Floors) on the deck, though the Irishman was able to continue.
Race leader Chris Froome (Team Sky) withstood a mechanical issue, several attacks, spending the final 30km isolated without teammates, and the hectic descent of Mont du Chat to finish third on the stage and defend his yellow jersey.
“I have mixed feelings,” Froome said. “I am happy to be in jersey. That was a crazy stage. I’ve just seen images of Richie Porte’s crash, and it gives me a horrible feeling. I really hope he is alright, and has a speedy recovery. Also Geraint Thomas is out of the race with a broken collarbone, so yes I have mixed feelings about today. The rest of my team was fantastic, the guys did a massive job, to control that kind of race today was no easy task.”
Adding to the drama of the day, eight riders missed the time cut, including stage winner and green jersey contender Arnaud Démare and three of his FDJ teammates, as well as Matteo Trentin, one of the key men in Marcel Kittel’s Quick-Step Floors leadout train.
-
- Ramon Sinkeldam (Sunweb) spun his legs prior to the day’s stage.
-
- A supertuck expedited the traverse of one of the many intermediate valleys on Stage 9.
-
- A minion and an alligator conversed alongside the course.
-
- Laurens Ten Dam (Sunweb) led one of the early iterations of the breakaway on Stage 9.
-
- Ascending through the forest. Today’s stage included seven categorized climbs, including three Hors Category climbs.
-
- Impending rainstorms early in the day. The precipitation that ultimately came created treacherous conditions on the many technical descents.
-
- Alexey Lutsenko (Astana) was one of the many athletes hitting the deck.
-
- Lutsenko remounted his bike and continued on, though others weren’t so fortunate.
-
- A rain-soaked switchback – one of the many hazards to overcome on the roads to Chambéry.
-
- Rafal Majka (Bora-Hansgrohe), another victim of the wet descents. Like Lutsenko, he carried on with the stage.
-
- Team Sky’s dominion at the front of the field. They’d receive a major blow to their team structure, however, losing Geraint Thomas to a broken collarbone in the same crash as Majka.
-
- An elevated perspective for some spectators on the roads to Chambéry.
-
- The summit and descent off the Grand Colombier on Stage 9 offered some of the most spectacular views of the 2017 Tour.
-
- Not even a glance to the right, however, for the men of the main group.
-
- Marcus Burghardt (Bora-Hansgrohe) contently flashes a peace sign on the dry descent off the Grand Columbier.
-
- Polka-dot clad race fans moved part of their living room onto the course as to better follow the action.
-
- Warren Barguil (Sunweb) and Tiejs Benoot (Lotto-Soudal) distanced themselves from their opponents over the summit of the Grand Columbier.
-
- Kiwi George Bennett (Lotto-Jumbo) valued style over power-to-weight ratio.
-
- French Gendarmes held back the fanatical spectators from Tiejs Benoot.
-
- Alexis Vuillermoz (Ag2r) was seen peeking out from behind the duo of Barguil and Benoot prior to detaching on the Grand Columbier.
-
- The white jersey of Simon Yates (Orica-Scott) ascended the final climb of Mont du Chat.
-
- GC contender Richie Porte took a hard fall on the descent off Mont du Chat on Stage 9 after misjudging his line through a tight chicane. BMC Racing later announced that Porte had broken his clavicle and pelvis.
-
- The Tour affirmed its savage beauty on the chaotic Stage 9, where incredible vistas were juxtaposed against the misfortune of many a rider.
-
- Uran wins the sprint to take out stage 9 of last year’s Tour.
-
- After an aggressive, long day, Barguil was overcome with emotion upon hearing that he narrowly missed out on the win.
-
- The Tour’s Stage 9 marks Rigo Uran’s first major win in muliple seasons. Taking the queen stage at the Tour de France is sure to re-start his momentum.
-
- Barguil had a bit of consolation upon receiving the polka dot jersey.