Biniam Girmay Celebrates Victory on Stage 12
History-maker Biniam Girmay sprinted to his third victory at this year’s Tour de France, while overall contender Primoz Roglic lost significant time after a late crash on stage 12.
Eritrean cyclist Girmay became the first black African to win a Tour de France stage with his opening win on stage three, followed by another triumph on stage eight.
Intermarche-Wanty rider Girmay, 24, outpaced Wout van Aert in a thrilling bunch sprint in Villeneuve-sur-Lot. Initially, Mark Cavendish finished fifth but was later relegated.
Tadej Pogacar retained the leader’s yellow jersey and remains one minute and six seconds ahead of Remco Evenepoel, with defending champion Jonas Vingegaard trailing by another eight seconds.
However, podium hopeful Roglic, who ended the stage with a torn jersey and a bloodied shoulder, dropped from fourth to sixth in the general classification after losing two minutes and 27 seconds due to a late crash.
Pogacar, from UAE Team Emirates, was also delayed by a crash in the peloton early in the stage, requiring a bike change, but he rejoined the main group without issues.
The 203.6km route from Aurillac to Villeneuve-sur-Lot provided one of the last chances for a bunch sprint, assuming the sprinters’ teams could control any breakaway attempts.
A four-man group, including Groupama-FDJ riders Valentin Madouas and Quentin Pacher, Jonas Abrahamsen of Uno-X Mobility, and Total Energies’ Anthony Turgis, opened up a three-and-a-half-minute lead over the peloton. However, the peloton caught up with more than 40km remaining, setting the stage for Girmay’s victory, further establishing him as the fastest sprinter in this year’s race.
In addition to his stage win, Girmay extended his lead in the green jersey points competition, opening up a seemingly insurmountable 111-point lead over Jasper Philipsen.
“The green jersey gives me wings – I feel super fast. It’s in the head. I’ve had my ups and downs in recent seasons but I changed things this year and it’s working,” Girmay said.
A rare moment of calm in the peloton was disrupted with 12km remaining when Alexey Lutsenko crashed, bringing down Slovenian Roglic.
The Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe rider had been one minute and 31 seconds behind the podium, but that gap has now increased to three minutes and 28 seconds.
Reacting to Roglic’s incident, race leader Pogacar said: “It is really devastating. He was in very good shape already and I could feel he was getting better with every stage. I’m pretty sure he would have been fighting for the GC in the next few days.”
Both Astana Qazaqstan rider Cavendish and Arnaud Demare, of Arkea-B&B Hotels, were relegated due to illegal moves in the sprint.
Stage 13 on Friday features a relatively flat 165.3km route from Agen to Pau. However, as the race enters the Pyrenees, the hilly terrain approaching the finish could pose challenges for the sprinters.
This stage is one of only two remaining opportunities for the sprinters, including Cavendish, who claimed a record 35th Tour de France stage win last week, to secure victories in this year’s race, along with stage 16 in Nimes.
Tour de France 2024 – Stage 12 Results
- Biniam Girmay (ERI/Intermarche-Wanty) – 4hrs 17mins 15secs
- Wout van Aert (BEL/Visma-Lease a Bike) – same time
- Pascal Ackermann (GER/Israel Premier Tech) – same time
- Jasper Philipsen (BEL/Alpecin-Deceuninck) – same time
- Arnaud de Lie (BEL/Lotto-Dstny) – same time
- Alexander Kristoff (NOR/Uno-X) – same time
- Phil Bauhaus (GER/Bahrain Victorious) – same time
- Bryan Coquard (FRA/Cofidis) – same time
- Dylan Groenewegen (NED/Team Jayco-AlUla) – same time
- Ryan Gibbons (SA/Lidl-Trek) – same time
Tour de France General Classification
- Tadej Pogacar (SLO/UAE Team Emirates) – 49hrs 17mins 49secs
- Remco Evenepoel (BEL/Soudal-Quick Step) – +1min 06secs
- Jonas Vingegaard (DEN/Visma-Lease a Bike) – +1min 14secs
- Joao Almeida (POR/UAE Team Emirates) – +4mins 20secs
- Carlos Rodriguez (SPA/Ineos Grenadiers) – +4mins 40secs
- Primoz Roglic (SLO/Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe) – +4mins 42secs
- Mikel Landa (SPA/Soudal-Quick Step) – +5mins 38secs
- Adam Yates (GB/UAE Team Emirates) – +6mins 59secs
- Juan Ayuso (SPA/UAE Team Emirates) – +7mins 09secs
- Giulio Ciccone (ITA/Lidl-Trek) – +7mins 36secs
Source: BBC.COM
