TOUR DE FORCE
REVEALED THE DEAL THAT INSPIRED PORTE’S TRIUMPH
TASMANIAN Tour de France star Richie Porte has ridden himself on to the podium in the world’s toughest cycling event — fulfilling a lifelong ambition.
The Launceston-born father of two smashed the 36km individual time trial overnight on Saturday, propelling him into third place and set for the podium in Paris.
With the largely ceremonial final stage to ride into the French capital overnight, Porte is all but guaranteed his “dream” result.
In doing so, he will become only the second Australian to finish on the podium, besides Tour champ Cadel Evans.
Porte said the achievement was inspired by a secret pact made with wife Gemma before this year’s gruelling 3484km event.
TASMANIA’S two-wheeled hero, Richie Porte, has revealed his “deal” with wife Gemma to miss the birth of his second child and compete in this year’s coronavirus-delayed Tour de France.
Porte, 35, repaid Gemma’s faith as she stayed at home in Monaco with son Luca and baby daughter Eloise due in the first week, claiming a careerbest third place overall to become only the second Australian to finish on the podium at the world’s toughest bike race, after 2011 winner Cadel Evans.
It was Porte’s dream to stand on the podium in front of the Arc de Triomphe on the Champs Elysees.
“When the whole coronavirus thing kicked off and the season was rescheduled, I knew I was going to miss the birth but my wife Gemma told me ‘go to the Tour, do your thing’,” Porte said.
“The only thing she said to me was that she’d be pissed with me if she turned on the television and saw me at the back of the peloton.
“To finally crack the podium — that’s the picture I want on the wall at home. It is an incredible feeling. It’ll take a while to sink in.”
Porte has been outrageously unlucky over his 10 years at the Tour de France.
He crashed and ended in hospital twice in the past three years, was taken down by a TV camera motorcycle when it stopped suddenly in front of him, he has punctured at the most inopportune moments, including
twice this year, and often had no teammates survive to help him through the tortuous Alps and Pyrenees summit stages.
None of that mattered in the early hours of Sunday (AEST) when Porte rode out of his skin in the 36km individual time trial to climb into third overall to make the Tour podium for the first time.
Only Slovenian duo Tadej Pogacar and Primoz Roglic were better than the courageous Tasmanian in the threeweek, 21-stage, 3484km Grand Tour.
When he finished the time trial and cemented his spot on the podium, Porte said: “It was such a sweet moment.
“For me it’s an absolute dream.”
TO FINALLY CRACK THE PODIUM — THAT’S THE PICTURE I WANT ON THE WALL AT HOME. IT IS AN INCREDIBLE FEELING. IT’LL TAKE A WHILE TO SINK IN
RICHIE PORTE