Tour de France 2020 Stage 10 - As it happened
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Updated 08/09/2020 at 16:16 GMT
Follow the ebb and flow of Stage 10 as Sam Bennett got his Tour monkey off his back and moved into green on a day of thrills and spills in western France.
Stage winner Team Deceuninck rider Ireland's Sam Bennett celebrates as he crosses the finish line at the end of the 10th stage of the 107th edition of the Tour de France cycling race, 170 km between Le Chateau d'Oleron and Saint Martin de Re, on September
Image credit: Getty Images
No change in the top 10 on GC
Primoz Roglic retains the yellow jersey after a stressful day in the saddle. The Slovenian stays 21 seconds clear of Egan Bernal and 28 seconds clear of Giullaume Martin.
An emotional Bennett back in green
With that maiden Tour win, Sam Bennett moves back into the green jersey with a 21-point lead over Peter Sagan. Interviewed at the finish, Bennett was lost for words - before breaking down in floods of tears seconds after questioning why he hadn't...
"It hasn't hit me yet - I thought I'd be in floods of tears but I'm in shock. I forgot to throw my bike at the end so I wasn't sure I'd got it. I thought maybe I was in too big a gear."
Victory for Sam Bennett!
The Irish champion finally gets his Tour de France win! He's led out by Morkov and no one had enough to beat him to the line - with Ewan second, Sagan third and Viviani a distant forth. After all that work from Sunweb, Cees Bol is only eighth, behind Pedersen, Greipel and Coquard.
2km to go - Still Sunweb
Bol has his leadout teeing him up nicely but Mitchelton-Scott are there for Luka Mezgec - and Deceuninck-QuickStep are there for Bennett. Sagan, Ewan, Viviani, Hofstetter are also there.
3km to go - GC riders breathe easy
The yellow jersey favourites will be pleased to get past the 3km mark - any crashes now and they won't lose time. Cofidis are creeping up for Viviani, ditto Total Direct Energie for Bonifazio.
4km to go - Sunweb going all in
Bol has come close a couple of times - as has Marc Hirschi - so Sunweb are doing their best to finally get that win. It's Hirschi and Tiesj Benoot who are doing the pulling. They're all there except Roche, who went down earlier. Coquard looks to be there too, despite saying he was too bashed up to sprint. A second wind, perhaps?
6km to go - Sagan far back
The pace has really slowed up as Jumbo-Visma control things with more riders. Sagan and Bennett are quite far back, interestingly. Sunweb have edged up for their man Cees Bol. No sign of Lotto Soudal and Ewan as yet, ditto Cofidis and Viviani.
10km to go - Calm before the storm
Sonny Colbrelli has been dropped so he won't contest the sprint. Sagan and Bennett are still there, as are Kristoff and Viviani, Ewan too. Jumbo-Visma now have two men on the front leading out Roglic - it looks like Van Aert and Jansen.
12km to go - On to the island
It's a first ever Tour visit to the Ile de Re. Kung was reeled in after his second cameo off the front. Jumbo-Visma then make a huge hash of the first roundabout on the island when they decide to go left, then change their mind and go right - losing about 50 positions in the process for their man in yellow. Movistar and Bora are on the front.
16km to go - On to the bridge
The pack now heads over towards the Ile de Re but it's been whittled down considerably following all those incidents. Miguel Angel Lopez (Astana) and Alejandro Valverde (Movistar) are in a small chase group behind as Stefen Kung tries to solo clear.
17km to go - BIG CRASH!
There's another crash in the main pack when the road - again - narrows either side of a central reservation. A CCC rider, Mathias Koch, went down hardest. But Richard Carapaz and Julian Alaphilippe look to have been involved too. Chaos.
18km to go - Splits ahoy!
Jumbo, SUnweb and Ineos have combined as the pack explodes behind them. Already there's a group which won't get back on, with a long tail on this peloton now whith many battling to hold on.
20km to go - Ineos muscle in
Dylan van Baarle cuts a corner and causes some grief on the front of the peloton. There's a fierce battle because the road is about to turn 90 degrees which could welcome a change of wind direction. Ineos have four riders on the front now for Bernal, the white jersey, as Jumbo-Visma edge up too.
25km to go - La Rochelle looking beautiful
The peloton rampages through the pretty coastal town of La Rochelle, the famed location for the school French textbook Tricolore that so many of us studied with at school... Barguil has the peloton in sight but he's back with his team car. His compatriot Coquard, who also went down earlier, has told French TV apparently that he's not feeling well after his tumble and will not be contesting the sprint.
30km to go - CRASH!
There's been another crash as the road narrows with a third of the pack held up after Warren Barguil (Arkea-Samsic) took a tumble with a few others. It's not so serious but it's just highlighted the tension levels as this stage reaches its climax. EF Pro Cycling and Bahrain McLaren are visibile on the front, along with UAE Team Emirates and Ineos, working to keep their GC men - Uran, Landa, Pogacar and Bernal - out of trouble. Jumbo-Visma opting to hold a little back for Roglic, which is interesting.
35km to go - Tension high again
We have a wind change forecast and the pace has ramped up as the road narrows once again through a town and the peloton strings out again through a series of turns and roundabouts. It's been a lovely stage for us fans to watch, what with the backdrop of the Atlantic coast, but it must be extremely stressful for those in the saddle.
39km to go - Trentin wins sprint
Matteo Trentin takes the intermediate sprint ahead of Peter Sagan (just) and a half-hearted Sam Bennett. It looks like the Irishman is going to leave it all for the final sprint today in his bid to win a maiden Tour stage and take back the green jersey. So, that's 20-17-15 points for the top three there. Coquard, by the way, took fifth behind Morkov.
40km to go - Amador gaffe
Andrey Amador edges ahead of the pack to pick up a musette and a bidon; he misses the first then fumbles the second, forcing numerous riders to take evasive action in the pack behind as they dodge the errant water bottle. Not the Ineos rider's best hour...
42km to go - Intermediate sprint approaching
We're a few kilometres away from the amuse bouche to today's finish - the intermediate sprint at Chatelaillon. Just seven points split Sagan and Bennett in the green jersey standings so this could be an interesting one...
50km to go - Trouble for Ewan
Could I have just jinxed Caleb Ewan? The Lotto Soudal rider is currently off the back with a couple of teammates - and judging by his scowl, things aren't all going hunky-dory for the stage 3 winner.
Ewan to double up?
We spoke to the Australian pocket-rock this morning ahead of what he deems the first proper bunch sprint stage of this year's Tour.
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Caleb Ewan expects 'nervy' stage as he targets a sprint opportunity
55km to go - Ineos and EF on the front
Team Ineos and EF Pro Cycling looked to put in a dig on the front of the pack, but it looks like they're just keeping their men out of trouble. Movistar and Bahrain-McLaren are also there. Cyril Gautier dropped back to pick up his teammate Coquard, but then decided to latch onto the back of the Cofidis train dragging Martin back instead. It's okay, though, because Le Coq Sportif has managed to get back on.
60km to go - Martin chasing back on
Giullaume Martin has five Cofidis riders helping to pace him back to the peloton. He's about 40 seconds back with Coquard, all on his own, a minute down. Pogacar looks to have rejoined the pack after his scare. It looks like Toms Skujins was involved in that crash, too. Nasty...
65km to go - CRASH!
All this road furniture is causing more and more damage... and this time two big GC riders go down in the incident - Tadej Pogacar and Giullaume Martin. Neither of them look too bashed up but will have a long ride back on. Worse affected was Davide Formolo, Pogacar's UAE teammate, who looks very badly bashed up. Bryan Coquard also went down. It looks like someone clipped the curb of a central reservation when the road had split into two narrow lanes.
75km to go - Dan Martin off the back
Ireland's Dan Martin, who may have been caught up in that crash, is riding off the back with two Israel Start-Up Nation riders and a CCC Team rider. The pace has eased a little, though, and the B&B Hotels team of Bryan Coquard have come to the front. The Frenchman is, like Sam Bennett, still looking for a maiden Tour stage win despite numerous second and third places in his career.
81km to go - Cobbles no wobbles
Tim Declercq leads the pack through a cobbled right-hander without too much ado. After that flurry of activity - which saw the break reeled in just as splits occurred, exacerbated by that crash - things have come back together. But the stress and tension is still there for that was a reminder how fast things can change - especially if those crosswinds emerge.
88km to go - Carthy and Powless at the back
The EF Pro Cycling rider who could have caused that crash was either Hugh Carthy or Neilson Powless, both of whom are currently right on the back of the race and fighting back on.
Here was Powless talking at the start today...
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'Everyone is on such a high level at the Tour this year, the racing is so fast' - Neilson Powless
A replay of that crash...
Here's the moment a mini-pile up tore through the back of the pack and ended Sam Bewley's Tour.
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'Oh dear, this is not good' - Nasty crash in the peloton leaves riders in a ditch
92km to go - Bewley out
Sam Bewley's debut Tour is over on day 10 following that crash. He had no chance - taken out from behind and the side after some rider dominoes following a sudden veer to the left by that EF rider who sparked it all off. Nico Roche of Sunweb was also involved but he's back on his bike, fortunately.
95km to go - Two groups behind
There are two groups off the back of the peloton following those splits and the crash. Sam Bewley went down hard on the grass verge with his Colombian teammate Chaves and it doesn't look good for the 33-year-old Kiwi Tour debutant, who may well not continue. There were reports that Peter Sagan was in the second group but he's there with the 100-strong main pack, which is being driven now by the Jumbo teammates of the yellow jersey Roglic.
As a result of all this action, the two-man Swiss break has been swallowed up. So it's curtains for Schar and Kung. Will we see a counter move from anyone?
99km to go - CRASH!
And that's what you get in these situations... an EF Pro Cycling rider touches wheels with someone near the back of the pack and the domino effect caused numerous riders to hit the deck - most notably Mitchelton-Scott duo Sam Bewley and Esteban Chaves.
100km to go - Splits in the bunch!
Already, without much wind, some echelons are forming with numerous riders losing contact with the pack. They'll have a fight to get back on now given the fast pace. Thibaut Pinot is among the riders distanced, along with Ineos duo Pavel Sivakov and Dylan van Baarle.
105km to go - Tension in the pack
With the wind getting up and the road furniture (most notably roundabouts) count up, the stress levels of he peloton has been ramped up. The riders have clearly been told to get near the front by their directors, which has led to a bit of jostling and an increase in pace which sees the gap come down to 30 seconds for our duo ahead. Not much is happening, sure, but the spectre of a flashpoint looms large...
Viviani needs a victory
Poor Elia Viviani hasn't notched a single win since his move from QuickStep to Cofidis. Could today be his chance? It's worth mentioning that at this point in last year's Tour, Caleb Ewan still hadn't got on the scoresheet... The Australian's first win came in Stage 11 and he ended up with three come Paris. So all is not lost yet for the Italian - and today's flat finish could provide him the ideal route back to the top.
120km to go - No joy for the break
Schar and Kung have been given no leeway from the pack, with the race covering a mammoth 46km in the first hour. The advantage of the two leaders is only 1'10" having at one point almost been two minutes.
Dodgy haircut alert
We're afraid to confirm the withdrawal from the race of Egan Bernal's hair and sense of style, which decided to call it quits at some point yesterday during what we can only presume was a pique of boredom - or a lost bet.
Bernie previews today's stage
Here's our man in the mask, Bernie Eisel, previewing today's crepe-flat stage.
135km to go - De Gendt on the front
Thomas De Gendt has come to the front of the break to set tempo ahead of the Deceuninck-QuickStep train. The Belgian will be hoping his Australian teammate Caleb Ewan can double up with a second stage win today, while QuickStep are keen to deliver Sam Bennett to the line for a maiden Tour stage win that would also put him back in green. The gap for the two leaders is 1'45".
145km to go - Beautiful scenery
The sun is out and there's isn't a cloud in the sky, which is really showcasing this neck of the beautiful Charente-Maritime coastline. Today is very much this Tour's "tourist stage".
150km to go - Just 528m of climbing
Today is the first proper stage for the sprinters in this year's Tour - and the first stage devoid of any categorised climbs. Any climbs at all, really - in fact there are just 528 altitude metres on the menu today. The first 47km today - until the riders reach the town of Royan - take place pretty much on the coast before the peloton heads inland for a loop ahead of the finish on the Ile de Re. Were it blustery, wind could be a factor - but it's pretty calm right now. A bigger problem may come from the road furniture and the technicality of some of the roads.
155km to go - No reaction from the pack
The peloton are happy to let these two Swiss rouleurs go on a hiding to nothing. The gap creeps up to 1'30" with the Jumbo-Visma team of Primoz Roglic near the front with Bahrain-McLaren and a few others. Total-Direct Energie are the local team today so expect them to go all-in for their Italian sprinter Niccolo Bonifazio.
165km to go - Swiss on a roll
After compatriot Marc Hirschi came so close on Sunday, two Swiss riders have taken inspiration from the Sunweb youngster by riding clear from the outset. Michael Schar (CCC Team) and Stefan Kung (Groupama-FDJ) are the two men in this early move, which has sparked no reaction whatsoever from the peloton. That's probably it for the early action. We can expect this two-man move to be held at a few minutes for the majority of the stage before the battle for green comes to the fore ahead of the expected bunch sprint.
168.5km to go - They're off!
For the first time in as long as I can remember, the man waving the flag from the back of the Tour director's red Skoda is not Christian Prudhomme - laid low with coronavirus (although thankfully asymptomatic) - but his deputy, François Lemarchand. And that's it - the second phase of the 107th Tour de France is under way.
Today's stage - back to the coast
The next two days couldn't be further away from what we saw over the weekend... Gone are the mountains of the Pyrenees and back is the sea. Not the Mediterranean that greeted the race's grand depart the weekend before last, but the Atlantic coast around the Ile de Re, which is where today's pancake-flat stage 10 heads. There could be some wind but it should be a bunch sprint and a key day in the battle for the green jersey....
Bonjour le Tour! Prudhomme positive!
Welcome back - and we hope you have enjoyed the rest day... The good news is that every rider has been given the all-clear to continue the Tour after this morning's Covid-19 tests. The bad news is that Tour director Christian Prudhomme tested positive... Here's the news below:
Top five on GC
Here's how things look in the general classification as the race heads into its second week:
- 1. Primoz Roglic (Slo) Team Jumbo-Visma 38:40:01
- 2. Egan Bernal (Col) Ineos Grenadiers 0:00:21
- 3. Guillaume Martin (Fra) Cofidis 0:00:28
- 4. Romain Bardet (Fra) AG2R La Mondiale 0:00:30
- 5. Nairo Quintana (Col) Team Arkea-Samsic 0:00:32
- 6. Rigoberto Uran (Col) EF Pro Cycling 0:00:32
- 7. Tadej Pogacar (Svn) UAE Team Emirates 0:00:44
- 8. Adam Yates (GB) Mitchelton-Scott 0:01:02
- 9. Miguel Angel Lopez (Col) Astana 0:01:15
- 10. Mikel Landa (Spa) Bahrain-McLaren 0:01:42
Wiggins analysis
Bradley Wiggins says the Tour de France will be “a different race” when the action resumes on Tuesday.
The peloton head into Stage 10 on the back of the first rest day, which followed a frenetic day of racing in the Pyrenees as Primoz Roglic (Team Jumbo-Visma) moved into the yellow jersey.
Wiggins expects Jumbo-Visma to go on the defensive – a style we have grown accustomed to with Ineos, formerly Team Sky, at the Tour.
However, the 2012 Tour champion also expects the action to become more unpredictable as the GC rivals play cat-and-mouse, potentially allowing those out of contention to shoot for stage wins.
“It’s the first time where the dynamic changes,” Wiggins said on the rest day podcast.
We’ve got our established leader now who we expect to be in with a shout come Paris in Primoz. They [Jumbo-Visma] will take control of the race, as they already have done, but they’re in a defensive position now.
“It’s like a different race starting again now. The whole dynamic is different, and more breaks tend to go to the finish, more riders that are done on GC will be up for the road trying to win stages.”
The action resumes with an almost pan-flat trip along the Atlantic coast, although crosswinds could prevent a mass sprint and make it a tactical affair.
Roglic leads defending champion Egan Bernal (Ineos Grenadiers) by 21 seconds in the overall standings. Britain’s best hope Adam Yates (Mitchelton-Scott), who wore yellow for four stages until Sunday, is 1:02 adrift.
Stage 9 recap
Tadej Pogacar led home a Slovenian one-two in Stage 9 of the Tour de France as compatriot Primoz Roglic moved into the yellow jersey after a pulsating second day in the Pyrenees.
The Slovenian duo was part of a deluxe chase quartet alongside Egan Bernal and Mikel Landa which swept up Swiss escapee Marc Hirschi with just over one kilometre remaining after a heart-in-mouth descent of the Col de Marie Blanque.
Team Sunweb's Hirschi put in a brave sprint after spending 90 kilometres on the front of the race, but Pogacar (UAE Team Emirates) and Roglic (Jumbo-Visma) powered through to deny the 22-year-old a first professional win. The victory instead went to an even younger Tour debutant, 21-year-old Pogacar, who moments earlier almost hit the deck when touching wheels with his compatriot in the sprint for bonus seconds over the top of the final climb.
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Highlights of an all-time great Tour stage as Pogacar and Roglic break Hirschi's heart
How to watch on TV and livestream details
Stage 9 will be broadcast live on Eurosport 1 from 12:25pm and you can also watch an uninterrupted feed on Eurosport Player and right here on eurosport.co.uk.
Dan Lloyd, Bradley Wiggins, Orla Chennaoui and the team will bring you all the best post-race analysis and reaction on The Breakaway, which will be available to watch on Eurosport Player before 7pm.
And don't forget, we are bringing you daily podcasts from the Bradley Wiggins Show - check in with your podcast platform of choice this evening...
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