After spending the day within the breakaway, Ben Healy launched a solo assault in a bid for glory on the Tour de France stage 14 within the Pyrenees on Saturday. The Irishman hit the underside of the ultimate climb, the Pla d’Adet (10.6km at 7.9%), and was awarded most combative rider for his solo assault with simply over a minute to the yellow-jersey group that was on a mission to get the time bonus seconds on the end line.
However Healy was caught by yellow jersey Tadej Pogačar and his UAE teammate Adam Yates, and the hope for a stage victory needed to be postponed to a different day.
As anticipated on such a tough stage, the combat to get into the breakaway began from the flag drop on the 152km stage with EF Schooling-Easypost within the combine, launching a number of makes an attempt to power a separation.
Healy and his teammates Sean Quinn and Rui Costa jumped into a giant chase group, wanting to hook up with the breakaway because the Col du Tourmalet loomed. By the point the 19 km-long climb was carried out, ten riders have been off the entrance, together with Healy and US Champion Quinn. Working for his teammate, Quinn did enormous pulls on the entrance, however behind, the UAE-led peloton was bringing the hole down.
With 35km to go, an assault by David Gaudu (Groupama-FDJ) brought about Quinn to drop off the tempo, leaving Healy and 4 different riders off the entrance. Because the quintet made the precise flip onto the ten.6km climb to Pla d’Adet, the hole was hovering over the minute mark. Healy was in a position to crack his breakmates, and nonetheless had a one-minute lead with 8km to go on the hors class climb, however he was quickly caught and handed by Yates and Pogačar.
“With the hole we had, it was at all times going to be bold. I simply knew I needed to go full fuel from the underside, which is what I did. I held in there for a bit of bit nevertheless it wasn’t meant to be immediately,” Healy stated.
“I don’t know if disappointment is the precise phrase, it’s simply bike racing on the finish of the day. I gave the whole lot to be within the break and I used to be within the break with good legs however I used to be Tadej and I had legs like him, then I feel I’d race the identical means. There’s not quite a bit you are able to do about it.
“We took our greatest shot. That’s what we have now to do, take the alternatives after we get them. My teammates did an awesome job immediately for me. They took me into the break.”
As soon as caught, Healy sat up and loved the cheers of the crowds earlier than crossing the end line in sixteenth place, 3:27 from stage winner Pogačar. He was awarded probably the most combative rider prize for the day.
“I feel the group was one thing particular, it’s virtually deafening going up this climb and have folks scream your title, it’s for positive actually particular.”
Healy went on the assault quite a few occasions through the Tour thus far, and he took fifth on stage 9 when the break made it to the road. He is not carried out.
“I simply must take the nice legs ahead hopefully and I’m positive there can be some extra alternatives.”
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