Arnaud Demare had a tough old time of it in the Pyrenees. He was dead last across the line on stage 16, 41 minutes behind stage winner Julian Alaphilippe. On the uber-short stage 17 he finished just one spot higher, after being dropped inside the first kilometre. Then, there was the Twitter barb from fellow sprinter Andre Greipel, suggesting that Demare had undue assistance in making the time cut on stage 17.
The Frenchman bounced back in the best way possible on stage 18, shrugging off his detractors and finishing at the opposite end of the field to the two days prior. In a stage that was always going to end in a sprint, Demare capitalised on a strong supporting ride from his FDJ teammates and won the bunch kick into Pau.
That’s two Tour de France stage victories in the past two years for Demare who reaped the rewards for battling through the mountains. If he can survive Friday’s mountainous jaunt through the Pyrenees and ride a measured time trial on Saturday, he’ll be one of the favourites for Sunday’s final-stage dash down the iconic Champs-Elysees.
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- Mitchelton-Scott DS Matt White briefs Luke Durbridge on the stage ahead. Durbridge went on to get himself into the day’s main breakaway.
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- Adam Yates bears the scars of a rider that crashed at high speed while descending in the Pyrenees.
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- Peter Sagan poses with the Tour’s medical staff a day after his (rare) crash on stage 17.
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- Vive Le Tour indeed.
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- Spectating the Tour de France: fun for the whole family.
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- After a couple of tough days in the Pyrenees, stage 18 was a much more relaxed affair for the GC contenders, including race leader Geraint Thomas.
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- Niki Terpstra and Luke Durbridge were part of the day’s main breakaway. They were joined by Guillaume van Keirsbulck, Thomas Boudat and Mat Hayman (not shown).
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- Roadside sunflowers. As iconic a sight at the Tour de France as the soaring peaks of the Alps and Pyrenees?
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- In the hour or so before the race comes through, the publicity caravan rolls along the race route, dispensing freebies to roadside fans.
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- And the fans love their freebies, particularly those from the Haribo float.
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- As predicted, the stage came down to a bunch sprint …
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- … with two Frenchmen, Arnaud Demare and Christophe Laporte, duking it out for the win.
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- Demare got the chocolates while Laporte complained Demare had interfered with his sprint. The overhead footage shows that Demare did deviate from his line, but the race jury didn’t overturn the result.
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- Even amongst the madness of a post-Tour media scrum, there’s always time to thank those who helped deliver you to victory.
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- “I told you this new deodorant was great!”
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- Lawson Craddock was last across the line again, 4:38 behind Demare. After crashing on stage 1 and breaking his scapula, Craddock has turned his fight for Paris into a fundraising drive. He’s now raised nearly $140,000 for the Greater Houston Cycling Foundation.
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- With all that gauze, Peter Sagan looks like a mango that’s boxed up and ready for shipping.
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- Simon Clarke has a word with SBS TV host Mike Tomalaris for the network’s live broadcast back to Australia. Tomalaris has been covering the Tour for more than 20 years — a very impressive streak.
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- Durbridge and Terpstra congratulate each other on a strong ride in the break.
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- Combativity prize for Luke Durbridge, a rare highlight in what has been a forgettable Tour de France for Mitchelton-Scott.
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- That’s two stage wins in two years at the Tour de France for Demare. Could he snag another on the Champs Elysees on Sunday?