Biniam Girmay has made history once again, claiming his third stage win at the Tour de France on Thursday. The new sprinting sensation’s victory overshadowed a tumultuous day for Primoz Roglic, who suffered a significant crash near the finish line.
Girmay, who recently became the first Black rider to win a Tour stage, demonstrated his sprinting prowess by edging out Wout van Aert and Arnaud Demare. The win solidified Girmay’s lead in the race for the best sprinter’s green jersey. However, Demare was later relegated from second to 67th place for pushing Van Aert towards the barriers, promoting Pascal Ackermann to third place.
Roglic’s crash, which occurred just 12 kilometers from the finish, was the second in 24 hours for the four-time Grand Tour champion. The incident happened when a rider in front of him hit road furniture and lost control, causing a chain reaction. Despite remounting with the help of his Bora-Hansgrohe teammates, Roglic crossed the line 2 minutes and 27 seconds after Girmay, dropping him to sixth place overall.
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Two-time Tour champion Tadej Pogacar retained the yellow jersey and expressed his dismay over Roglic’s crash. “It’s really sad to see him crash today. I hope he is fine. Normally he is a big fighter, maybe he bounces back and wins some stages,” Pogacar said.
Pogacar now leads the general classification by 1:06 over Remco Evenepoel, with defending champion Jonas Vingegaard in third place, 1:14 behind. Roglic’s crash saw him fall behind Joao Almeida and Carlos Rodriguez, now trailing 4:42 behind Pogacar.
The crash also disrupted the final sprint preparations for several top riders, including Matthieu Van der Poel, who could not lead out his teammate Jasper Philipsen. Girmay, however, was expertly guided through the chaos by his Intermarche-Wanty teammate Mike Teunissen. Teunissen’s efforts ensured Girmay was perfectly positioned for the final 200 meters.
“First of all I would say thanks God giving me a lot of strength and power,” Girmay said. “Without God we cannot do anything so I’m super happy. The last 600 meters I found Mike and then he did a super good job, he took me from 15th to top 3 and from there I just knew I could deliver.”
Stage 12’s 204-kilometer route from Aurillac to Villeneuve-sur-Lot was relatively smooth until the late crashes. The stage began with 167 riders after Michael Morkov was withdrawn due to a positive coronavirus test.
An early breakaway featuring Jonas Abrahamsen, Quentin Pacher, and Valentin Madouas was caught after 162 kilometers, setting the stage for Girmay’s remarkable finish.
Friday’s Stage 13 promises another flat route, taking riders from Agen to Pau in southwestern France. All eyes will be on Girmay to see if he can continue his sprinting dominance.
- Tags: Biniam Girmay, Tour de France
