Cycling - Tour Of Britain 2024 - Paul Magnier wins stage 1... Julian Alaphilippe did the job
C'est un Français qui a remporté la 1ère étape du Tour de Grande-Bretagne ! Ce mardi, Paul Magnier s'est imposé à Kelso en réglant au sprint un groupe d'une cinquantaine de coureurs. Soutenu dans le final par des équipiers de luxe nommés Remco Evenepoel et Julian Alaphilippe, le jeune coureur de la Soudal Quick-Step, toujours aussi impressionnant de puissance, n'a pas tremblé dans la dernière ligne droite pour prendre le dessus sur les Britanniques Ethan Vernon (Israel-Premier Tech), Robert Donaldson (Trinity Racing) et Tom Pidcock (INEOS Grenadiers). Le Néerlandais Casper van Uden (Team dsm-firmenich PostNL) a complété le top 5. Paul Magnier portera le maillot de leader du classement général mercredi à l'occasion de la 2e étape.
Video : @TourOfBritain
Video : @TourOfBritain
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SportsTranscript
00:00Thank you, thank you. We hope you win today.
00:07Do you need a photo?
00:09Oh yes, thank you.
00:11That's brilliant, thanks so much.
00:17For sure I'm happy to be back here and it's always a race that I enjoy.
00:25I don't know, I like it.
00:27It's a quite aggressive type of racing with short climbs,
00:33really full gas effort, narrow roads.
00:38I always like it so I'm looking forward.
00:43Of course I'm super motivated to finish well this season
00:49with a good condition and hopefully with a win.
00:56If it's here it would be nice but also until my last race of the season
01:01I want to give my best like I always did.
01:05Every race now is special for me because I know it's the last one with the team
01:11and I want to just give everything.
01:20Stage one, the Scottish Borders stage of the 2024 Tour of Britain men
01:25and the star quality of double Olympic champion Remco Evenepoel of Sudal Quick-Step
01:30leading the peloton over the start line on the longest stage of this edition of the race.
01:36181.9 kilometres from Kelso to Kelso over a sequence of five categorised climbs
01:43and three intermediate sprints.
01:45And for all that there was a big battle to get in the breakaway of the day
01:49with all the rewards on offer for a break that did get away eventually.
01:53Animated by these two riders initially.
01:56Julius Johansen of Saab Colour Anicola and Callum Thornley of Trinity Racing.
02:03They were joined by another rider eventually from the team of Global 6 United.
02:08It was the South African rider Callum Ormiston
02:11who eventually managed to get across a 10 second gap
02:14to make it three riders at the front of the race.
02:16At which point Sudal Quick-Step allowed the breakaway to establish itself
02:22and they nearly got the best part of four minutes as the race calmed down
02:25and took a bit of structure.
02:27Julian Alaphilippe and Remco Evenepoel then putting their team on the front
02:31and controlling the advantage of the breakaway.
02:33Evenepoel resplendent in gold.
02:36Heading towards the top of the first categorised climb of the day, Scott's View.
02:40It was Callum Thornley who attacked a little bit too early perhaps
02:43mistaking the 500 metres to go sign for the top of the climb.
02:47But he recovered and came past Callum Ormiston who had countered him.
02:51Callum Thornley then of Trinity Racing taking the first Cat 3 climb
02:55with four climbs remaining on the day.
02:59Then heading towards the first of three intermediate sprints at Melrose.
03:03It was Johansen of Saab Colour Anicola who took the first sprint.
03:09And Gianni Moscon of Sudal Quick-Step who was controlling the pace back in the peloton.
03:15Callum Thornley then obliterated the opposition
03:17on the second categorised climb of the day to Dingleton.
03:21Racking up by this point ten points in the King of the Mountains.
03:25And then straight on to Dunyon Hill, another Category 2 climb
03:28with another six points on offer for the winner.
03:30And on this hill when Callum Thornley attacked
03:32there was no reaction from Ormiston or indeed from Julius Johansen.
03:36Those two riders then Thornley and Johansen going clear over the top.
03:40And Callum Thornley with an unassailable lead
03:43in the King of the Mountains competition at this point.
03:45But hoping to add to his tally.
03:47Ormiston was then swept up as they headed towards Kelso
03:51and the cobbles of the finishing line for the first passage
03:54at the second intermediate sprint.
03:56That gave the man from the Portuguese team, Johansen,
04:00a big lead in the points competition.
04:03Meanwhile, Gianni Moscon, who'd done his work,
04:05came to grief at the back of the peloton
04:08with a rider from Saint-Pierre and Rowan Baker
04:10and Moscon touching wheels.
04:12As we headed towards the final two climbs then
04:14Ineos Grenadiers and Connor Swift started to animate the race.
04:18Pushing on, trying to pull a group clear, including Julian Alaphilippe.
04:22Remco Evenepoel chasing across to get to the front of the race
04:26as Connor Swift continued to apply the pressure.
04:29Up and over Scott's view for the second time,
04:31Callum Thornley adding another four points
04:33to his King of the Mountains tally.
04:35As the attacking continued behind,
04:37including Remco Evenepoel going on the offensive.
04:40Local rider Oscar Onley from Kelso
04:43also visibly up towards the front in the colours of DSM.
04:46And with the Dingleton climb done,
04:49the Scott's view climb done, I should say,
04:52that was it for Callum Thornley at the front of the race
04:54who sat up, nothing more to gain from him.
04:56That left Johansen to pick up the final ten points
04:59for the last intermediate sprint of the day.
05:01And one climb remaining, it was the Dingleton climb.
05:04That was the signal on the Dingleton climb
05:06for Julian Alaphilippe to light it up
05:08from the very bottom of the climb.
05:10Oscar Onley and Joe Blackmore of Israel Premier Tech going with him.
05:13Further up the climb, Wout Poels attacked
05:15as those groups came together again.
05:17And Remco Evenepoel plus Onley and Blackmore followed that move.
05:20Evenepoel persisting with the attack.
05:23Three kilometre climb, then Tom Pidcock
05:26took them over the top of the last categorised climb
05:29as Joey Roscoff attacked
05:32in the company of Jake Stewart and Remco Evenepoel.
05:34But that attack too was brought back.
05:37A very dynamic ending to the race.
05:39Saw the race in bits, little groups going off the front
05:42and riders coming to grief on a fast and furious descent
05:45towards the finish line in Kelso in the last 20 kilometres.
05:48Then, as they approached the line,
05:51there was a big sprint, an unexpectedly large group
05:54of the best part of 70, 80 riders coming to the line
05:57and Soudal Quick-Step trying to set it up for their man Paul Manier.
06:00Julian Alaphilippe in the final kilometre
06:02getting on the front and stretching things out.
06:04Jake Stewart of Israel Premier Tech then taking over,
06:06riding for his teammate Ethan Vernon on his wheel.
06:09With the rider in third place there, Paul Manier
06:11opening up his sprint first on the cobbles
06:13in the final 100 metres of the run into the line.
06:16And from the moment he hit the front, he was not to be caught again.
06:19The 20-year-old revelation of the sprinting season
06:22from Soudal Quick-Step getting the win.
06:25Ahead of Ethan Vernon, another second place at the Tour of Britain for him.
06:28And a good ride from Bob Donaldson of Trinity Racing
06:31to pick up the bonus seconds in third place
06:34with Tom Pidcock in fourth.
06:37Manier though imperious and with the win on stage one
06:40came the first leaders jersey, the new green leaders jersey
06:43in the Tour of Britain.
06:46Win number three of his first season with his new team,
06:49Soudal Quick-Step, the graduate of the Trinity Racing team.
06:54Leading the general classification by one slender point
06:56from Julius Johansson, Ethan Vernon in third,
06:59Bob Donaldson in fourth and Tom Pidcock who picked up bonus seconds
07:02on the road in fifth place and well placed.