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Non-mellow yellow: Pogačar storms to victory on first summit finish of 2022 Tour de France

Consecutive stage wins for reigning champion

July 8, 2022
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Can’t stop, won’t stop. The day after Tadej Pogačar seized the yellow jersey, he triumphed on the brutally difficult first summmit finish of the 2022 Tour de France: La Super Planche des Belles Filles. The UAE-Emirates ace won his first Tour de France in 2020 by storming up La Planche des Belles Filles in a time trial. The Slovenian now leads second place Jonas Vingegaard by 35 seconds. Michael Woods was the top Canadian in 28th and rose to 34th in the GC.

You can watch the 2022 Tour de France at FloBikes.

The Course

Friday’s parcours offered up the first summit finish of the 109th edition. At the midway point of 176 km came the first of two Cat. 3 ascents, but the day was really about La Super Planche des Belles Filles, 7 km of 8.7 percent, with grades of 20 and 24 percent in the final couple of kilometres. Gravel was the extra spicy ingredient–the Super in La Super Planche des Belles Filles–in the last 850 metres.

It was another day with a bonkers start, averaging 53 km/h in the first hour. After a few failed attempts, the biggest breakaway of the 2022 edition got loose and Michael Woods decided to try to bridge to it.

Michael Woods attempts to bridge to breakaway early on Stage 7.

Unfortunately, Woods didn’t make it. Still, he was psyched for the stage, his 100th race day as an Israel-Premier Tech fellow.

There were a lot of likely lads in the 11-strong breakaway: Dylan Teuns, Giulio Ciccone, Mads Pederson, Lennard Kämna and Max Schachmann, who was only +2:07 of Pogačar. UAE-Emirates gave it a short tether. On the first Cat. 3, Col de la Grosse Pierre, there was a decanting of the breakaway. By the top of Cat. 3 Col des Croix the gap was just under 3:00.

La Super Planche des Belles Filles

By the foot of the first 2022 Tour de France summit finish climb, the breakaway had a 1:40 advantage. Ineos pulled the peloton to the base.

Kämna immediately accelerated, further streamlining the fugitive group. His luxuriantly-bearded compatriot Simon Geschke attacked and Kämna bridged over. In the favourites’ group, UAE-Emirates grabbed the reins.

With 5 km to go, Kämna went solo. He had 1:08 over the yellow jersey group, which lost first Ben O’Connor then Thibaut Pinot and then Alexandr Vlasov as UAE kept grinding. Woods was the only Israel-Premier Tech rider left.

Kämna still had 46 second with 3 km to clamber. The fans were whipped into a frenzy. Woods trickled off the back.

When Pogačar’s last teammate peeled off, the Slovenian led the little string. It was desperately close for the German. Vingegaard attacked and flew by Kämna, pried out a gap and tried to hold off the yellow jersey but to no avail.

Primož Roglič was third, vaulting him up to 13th in the GC.

Saturday is another hilly affair, with a Cat. 3 climb to the finish in Lausanne.

2022 Tour de France, Stage 7
1) Tadej Pogačar (Slovenia/UAE-Emirates) 3:58:40
2) Jonas Vingegaard (Denmark/Jumbo-Visma) s.t.
3) Primož Roglič (Slovenia/Jumbo-Visma) +0:12
28) Michael Woods (Canada/Israel-Premier Tech) +2:05

2022 Tour de France GC
1) Tadej Pogačar (Slovenia/UAE-Emirates) 24:43:13
2) Jonas Vingegaard (Denmark/Jumbo-Visma) +0:35
3) Geraint Thomas (Ineos/Great Britain) +1:10
34) Michael Woods (Canada/Israel-Premier Tech) +7:52