NO DOUBTING THOMAS
Brit heads into time trial with two-minute lead, Roglic moves into third
Geraint Thomas has a firm grip on the yellow jersey as the Tour heads into its last competitive stage.
Having worn the leader’s yellow jersey over the Alps and through the Pyrenées, only one more challenging stage stands in the way of Geraint Thomas winning his first Tour de France.
Thomas takes an advantage of two minutes and five seconds over Dutch rival Tom Dumoulin into Saturday’s 31-kilometre individual time trial in the Basque Country.
The pressure of leading has reminded Thomas of the time he helped Britain to the gold medal in team pursuit at the 2012 London Olympics.
“It comes down to tomorrow but I can take confidence with how I’m riding, and what will be will be,” he said. “There’s still one more big day to go.”
While Dumoulin is the time trial world champion, Thomas is quite capable in the discipline and acknowledged he should be able to protect his advantage.
“It’s going to be a tough day tomorrow. I’m really knackered,” Thomas said. “I’m still trying not to get carried away.”
He increased his lead after the final mountain stage on Friday, while Sky teammate and fourtime champion Chris Froome lost his spot on the podium.
Primoz Roglic of Slovenia won the 200.5-kilometre 19th leg through the Pyrenées with an attack on the dangerous descent from the Col d’Aubisque.
Aformer ski jumper who rides for Team Lotto NL-Jumbo, Roglic finished19 seconds ahead of Thomas, while Romain Bardet of France crossed third with the same time. “I had legs today,” Roglic said. “I really tried a lot of times and finally I went away on the descent.”
Thomas received a six-second bonus for ending up second, while Dumoulin finished sixth and Froome eighth, both with the same time as the race leader.
Roglic leapfrogged Froome into third spot overall, 2:24 off the pace, while the defending champion now trails by 2:37.
After the hilly time trial, the race concludes with the mostly ceremonial finish on the Champs-Elysées in Paris on Sunday
Froome initially fell behind on Friday’s climb up the Aubisque before latching back onto the lead group on the descent.
It was Roglic’s second Tour victory, having claimed Stage 17 in the Alps last year.
Roglic showed courage on a twisty descent.
The route from the pilgrimage town of Lourdes to Laruns took the peloton over three legendary climbs — the Col d’Aspin, the Col du Tourmalet and the Aubisque — before the dive down to the finish.
Mountain classifications leader Julian Alaphilippe was first over the Aspin and Tourmalet as part of an early breakaway.
Mikel Landa and Bardet then attacked from the yellow jersey group up the Tourmalet and joined the leaders before Roglic, Thomas and Dumoulin took over on the final climb.