a hellish seventeenth stage on the Col de la Loze

Breathtaking atmosphere at the top of this Tour de France. At 2,300 meters above sea level, Col de Loze (Savoy) was, on Wednesday 19 July, the scene of all fantasies. “It was the place to be on the road today”, exclaims a spectator. The fervor of the great days of July. Thousands of enthusiastic fans, massed on the alpine slopes, which sometimes reach 24%.

Vingegaard increasingly protagonist

This 17th stage promised hell for the riders. Curves so tight as to cause traffic jams and cyclists almost in agony. “It’s one of the hardest stages of my career.”, said Frenchman Thibaut Pinot. If Felix Gall’s Austrian triumphed at the finish, Tadej Pogačar fell on him, before being eliminated by the favourites. The yellow jersey, Jonas Vingegaard, now has a lead of 7.35 seconds in the general classification.