Jonas Vingegaard produced a 20-kilometer solo in stage five to secure his second win in a row. The 29-year-old Dane left everyone behind in the tough finale, further strengthening his lead in the general classification.
“We had absolutely targeted this stage,” Vingegaard said afterwards. “The team rode a fantastic race. A strong breakaway went up the road, but the guys did a great job keeping them within reach. Everyone sacrificed themselves for me, so it’s nice to reward them with another stage victory.”
The riders were greeted with sunny conditions for stage five. The peloton set off from Cormoranche-sur-Saône for a 206-kilometer route to Colombier-le-Vieux over rolling terrain. The decisive part of the stage came in the finale, where steep climbs followed one another in quick succession. After his heroic stage win on Wednesday, Vingegaard started the day as the new leader of the general classification.
It took a while before the day’s breakaway formed. Only after more than an hour of racing five riders managed to escape from the peloton. The bunch, led by Team Visma | Lease a Bike, kept the group within reach. Victor Campenaerts then seized his opportunity to bridge across. The 34-year-old Belgian quickly joined the break together with Ivan Romeo and Lorenzo Milesi.
On the first steep climb in the demanding finale, Campenaerts chose his own pace. Later, he would prove to be of great value in support of his team leader. Meanwhile, Team Visma | Lease a Bike set an impressive tempo in the reduced peloton, steadily closing in on the front of the race. Among others, Bruno Armirail looked tireless.
At the foot of the steepest climb of the day, the Côte de Saint-Jean-de-Muzols, the last breakaway rider was caught. Not long afterward, Vingegaard accelerated. No one could follow the race leader’s pace. Vingegaard steadily increased his advantage and rode unchallenged to his second consecutive stage victory. In the general classification, his lead over nearest rival Daniel Martínez grew to 3’22”.
“The Côte de Saint-Jean-de-Muzols was the climb where I wanted to launch my attack,” Vingegaard said. “For a moment it seemed like it wouldn’t happen because the attackers didn’t give up easily, but in the end I was still able to go there. The team positioned me perfectly, after which Victor made one final effort to launch me. I’m happy with this second stage win and my lead in the general classification. Now it’s about staying focused for three more days until Nice.”
Stage 5
- Jonas Vingegaard (Team Visma | Lease a Bike) 4h29’01”
- Valentin Paret-Peintre (Soudal Quick-Step) +02’02”
- Harold Tejada (XDS Astana Team) +02’20”
GC
- Jonas Vingegaard (Team Visma | Lease a Bike) 17h22’06”
- Daniel Martinez (Red Bull – Bora – Hansgrohe) +03’22”
- Georg Steinhauser (EF Education – EasyPost) +05’50”
