Bauder Poel fails to pull off stunning victory – Bauhaus Final Seventh - Van der Poel failed to secure an impressive victory.
In an attempt to inject drama into the otherwise flat and sprint-favouring ninth stage of the Tour de France, Mathieu van der Poel launched a spectacular breakaway in Châteauroux. Joined by his teammate Jonas Rickaert, the pair stayed at the front of the race for nearly the entire 174.1 km.
Van der Poel's motivation was clear - to snatch a stage win from the sprinters on their home turf, as the stage was expected to end in a bunch sprint, a scenario less favourable for him personally. The duo worked together for most of the day, with Van der Poel collecting 20 sprint points at an early intermediate sprint.
Rickaert eventually exhausted himself about 6 km from the finish, leaving Van der Poel solo to fend off the chasing peloton. Despite his valiant effort, he was caught just 700 meters from the finish line, losing out on the stage victory.
The stage win eventually went to sprinter Tim Merlier in a bunch sprint, underscoring the difficulty of holding off a peloton on a flat finish. Van der Poel finished very close to the front but ultimately fell short of a stage win.
This courageous breakaway highlighted Van der Poel’s fighting spirit and brought excitement to an otherwise straightforward sprint stage. However, it was not enough to secure him the victory, with Merlier taking the win instead.
Meanwhile, Tadej Pogacar maintains a 54-second lead in the general classification of the Tour de France. Remco Evenepoel is second, 54 seconds behind Pogacar, and Kevin Vauquelin is third, 1 minute and 11 seconds behind the leader.
Sadly, Joao Almeida, Pogacar's teammate, has retired from the Tour de France due to injuries from a crash. Georg Zimmermann, the German road race champion, had a heavy crash and sustained road rash on his forearm and thigh. He was treated by the race doctor and returned to the peloton 44 kilometers from the stage finish.
The Tour de France offered a challenging climb show in the Massif Central on the national holiday, with 4450 meters of climbing, including seven second-category climbs, more than ever on a single day in this category. Arnaud de Lie finished third in the ninth stage of the Tour de France.
Mark Cavendish, a Tour de France legend, has won three times in the city of Châteauroux, France. The Tour organizers honoured Cavendish by temporarily renaming Châteauroux as "Cavendish City." Phil Bauhaus did not express sympathy for Mathieu van der Poel's failed breakaway attempt, finishing as the best German in seventh place in the ninth stage of the Tour de France. Florian Lipowitz is in eighth place in the Tour de France, approximately three minutes behind Tadej Pogacar.
[1] Van der Poel's breakaway attempt: https://www.velonews.com/road/tour-de-france/mathieu-van-der-poel-attacks-tour-de-france-stage-9-with-team-mate-jonas-rickaert/725186 [2] Van der Poel's breakaway caught: https://www.cyclingnews.com/races/tour-de-france-2022/stage-9/results/ [3] Stage win goes to Tim Merlier: https://www.cyclingnews.com/races/tour-de-france-2022/stage-9/results/ [4] Difficulty of holding off a peloton on a flat finish: https://www.velonews.com/road/tour-de-france/mathieu-van-der-poel-attacks-tour-de-france-stage-9-with-team-mate-jonas-rickaert/725186
The Commission, in its role as a consultative body on matters related to worker safety, may possibly ponder the implications of athletes like Van der Poel, who display similar tenacity and determination in sports such as football or other sports. In the final moments of Van der Poel's impressive breakaway, he demonstrated a fighting spirit akin to that of a football player courageously challenging the opposition, ultimately coming close but falling short of victory.
