Aussie hopes battered by crashes as Tadej Pogacar dominates Tour de France Stage 7
A serious crash seven kilometres from the finish on the challenging Mur-de-Bretagne saw 10 riders hit the tarmac, including Jack Haig who could not continue and had to retire with head trauma.
His team leader, Santiago Buitrago, also lost valuable time.
The Australian was one of two GC options for Bahrain Victorious in the race, but now the Colombian has dropped 13 minutes, meaning his aspirations for a top-10 finish lie in tatters.
Slovenian superstar Tadej Pogacar was too strong on the steep final climb but only attacked in the final 150 metres.
His main rival, Jonas Vingegaard, bounced back from his disappointing time trial to finish right on the wheel for second place, with Belgian Remco Evenepoel just behind them and still holding on to second overall.
Australian Team Jayco AlUla also battled today, with leader Ben O'Connor still not recovered from his spectacular crash on day one.
'It's disappointing and frustrating,' O'Connor said.
'Just when I seem to be coming good it comes back and bites me. I can't do anything about what has happened, I just need to grit the teeth and get on with it.
'Hopefully I can recover when we get to the high mountains and show some of the form that I know is there.'
His teammate Eddie Dunbar, who rode to a spectacular fourth place on Stage 6, went down in the group on Stage 7.
Also teammate Luke Plapp struggled and admitted to a stomach upset that disrupted his night's sleep and caused him to lose a few kilograms.
He did well to get through.
Stage 10 on Monday looks, on paper, as the toughest stage so far with more than 4000 metres of climbing and seven category 2 climbs.
But Pogacar looks so in control.
He has not wasted any energy and looks to have his name pencilled onto the trophy already. On the positive side, there was the brilliant ride by Michael Storer in Stage 6 riding for the fledgling Tudor Pro Cycling team.
His aggressive third place is the best by an Aussie in this year's Tour.
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After Michael Storer's heroics the day before, Stage 7 of the Tour de France proved a tough one for the Aussies. A serious crash seven kilometres from the finish on the challenging Mur-de-Bretagne saw 10 riders hit the tarmac, including Jack Haig who could not continue and had to retire with head trauma. His team leader, Santiago Buitrago, also lost valuable time. The Australian was one of two GC options for Bahrain Victorious in the race, but now the Colombian has dropped 13 minutes, meaning his aspirations for a top-10 finish lie in tatters. Slovenian superstar Tadej Pogacar was too strong on the steep final climb but only attacked in the final 150 metres. His main rival, Jonas Vingegaard, bounced back from his disappointing time trial to finish right on the wheel for second place, with Belgian Remco Evenepoel just behind them and still holding on to second overall. Australian Team Jayco AlUla also battled today, with leader Ben O'Connor still not recovered from his spectacular crash on day one. 'It's disappointing and frustrating,' O'Connor said. 'Just when I seem to be coming good it comes back and bites me. I can't do anything about what has happened, I just need to grit the teeth and get on with it. 'Hopefully I can recover when we get to the high mountains and show some of the form that I know is there.' His teammate Eddie Dunbar, who rode to a spectacular fourth place on Stage 6, went down in the group on Stage 7. Also teammate Luke Plapp struggled and admitted to a stomach upset that disrupted his night's sleep and caused him to lose a few kilograms. He did well to get through. Stage 10 on Monday looks, on paper, as the toughest stage so far with more than 4000 metres of climbing and seven category 2 climbs. But Pogacar looks so in control. He has not wasted any energy and looks to have his name pencilled onto the trophy already. On the positive side, there was the brilliant ride by Michael Storer in Stage 6 riding for the fledgling Tudor Pro Cycling team. His aggressive third place is the best by an Aussie in this year's Tour.
