Nibali wins Tour stage 20, Bernal set for overall victory: Daily News Digest
Welcome to your Daily News Digest. Here’s what’s happening today:
Vincenzo Nibali climbs to victory on the penultimate stage of the Tour de France, Egan Bernal secures yellow for Paris, Thibaut Pinot laments Tour heartbreak but vows to return. Those stories and more in today’s Daily News Digest.
Story of the Day: Nibali wins Tour de France stage 20 as Bernal cements yellow
Vincenzo Nibali (Bahrain-Merida) soared to victory on stage 20 of the Tour de France as Egan Bernal cemented his overall win.
Nibali pulled clear of the day’s breakaway with around 12 kilometers left to race on the climb to Val Thorens. Despite an attempted chase by his former breakaway companions and then the gradual closing in of the yellow jersey group, the Italian churned away on the Alpine slopes to maintain a safe gap all the way to the top, winning with a 10-second advantage over Movistar’s Alejandro Valverde. Valverde’s teammate Mikel Landa took third.
Race leader Bernal rolled over the line in fourth celebrating with Ineos teammate Geraint Thomas, his GC victory all but secured with only the sprinter-friendly finale in Paris ahead.
Egan Bernal and Geraint Thomas at the Tour de France stage 20 finish line. Photo: Dion Kerckhoffs/Cor Vos © 2019
More to come…
Moving Pictures
The hard-working voices of Colombian radio have delivered some stirring commentary of Egan Bernal’s incredible race this July …
Colombian radio. pic.twitter.com/pQDjFfYuwe
— Caley Fretz (@CaleyFretz) July 27, 2019
… and speaking of people who clearly love cycling, great emotion from this passionate fan.
Serious cycling fan. #TDF2019 pic.twitter.com/eEhQII1k4Z
— DANIEL McMAHON (@cyclingreporter) July 27, 2019
Race Radio
Pinot: ‘I was convinced’ I would have won the Tour
Thibaut Pinot’s Tour de France ended in heartbreak on Friday’s stage 19. The Groupama-FDJ rider started the day sitting fifth overall and looking like a top contender for the yellow jersey, but he abandoned the race around an hour into the stage due to an injury to his thigh.
For a rider who spent a few days during the three-week race as the oddsmakers’ overall favorite to win, pulling out of the race was a bitter pill to swallow. He climbed into the team car in tears, and was left to wonder what might have been.
“Since Sunday in the Pyrenees, I felt I was capable of doing it,” Pinot said of his own belief in his chances of winning before the DNF.
“Without this problem, I’m sure I would have done it. I was convinced, and nothing was going to stop me. In the end, we’ll never know. It will take some time to come to terms with that.”
A year is a long time to wait to get another shot at the race, but Pinot vowed to return in a post on social media, saying, “I don’t know what the rest of the season has in store for me, but it is certain that I will be at the start of the Tour in 2020.”
New Hungarian team eyes Rebellin and a Giro invite
According to TuttoBiciWeb, a nascent Hungarian team is hoping to score a Giro d’Italia invite in 2020. A member of team brass said the “Epowers Factory Team” is working to sign Davide Rebellin.
“I can’t go too far into the details of the project because, as you know, the cycle market has time and regulations to respect,” said Thomas Pocze. “We will certainly hire five or six Hungarian riders, the best at national level, who will be joined by other Europeans, mainly Italian and French.”
Coming Up at the Tour
Only one stage remains at the 2019 Tour de France.
Stage 21 will take the Tour peloton into Paris, where the fast finishers will look to close out the race with a prestigious Champs-Élysées sprint win.
In case you missed it …
Today at the Tour: Bernal into yellow after a surreal day in the Alps
Feature Image: Vincenzo Nibali wins stage 20 of the Tour de France. Photo: Dion Kerckhoffs/Cor Vos © 2019
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