Turgis pips Pidcock to win Stage 9 of Tour de France as Pogacar keeps lead

UAE Team Emirates' Slovenian rider maintains 33-second advantage in General Classification

TotalEnergies team's French rider Anthony Turgis, left, pips Ineos Grenadiers' British rider Tom Pidcock at the finish line to win Stage 9 of the Tour de France in Troyes on July 7, 2024. AFP

UAE Team Emirates' Tadej Pogacar celebrates on the podium after retaining the overall leader's yellow jersey. AFP

TotalEnergies team's French rider Anthony Turgis celebrates on the podium after winning Stage 9. AFP

UAE Team Emirates' Slovenian rider Tadej Pogacar celebrates on the podium. AFP

Anthony Turgis in tears after after winning Stage 9. AFP

UAE Team Emirates' Tadej Pogacar during the race. AFP

Remco Evenepoel of Soudal Quick-Step in action on the gravel. EPA

UAE Team Emirates rider Tadej Pogacar, in the overall leader's yellow jersey, follows his teammates on a gravel road. AP

French rider Anthony Turgis pipped Britain's Tom Pidcock on the line in Troyes to win Stage 9, as UAE Team Emirates' Tadej Pogacar maintained his overall lead in the Tour de France .

Turgis and Pidcock were in a group of riders who spent virtually all of the 199km stage in a breakaway and it came down to a reduced sprint, with Pidcock slamming his handlebars in frustration after coming within metres of a second career Tour stage.

Afterwards, Turgis said: “It's incredible. It was a long day, the team put its trust in me by giving me carte blanche today. I dedicate this win to all the people who trusted me.

"It's a year since I'm on the Tour. At the start of the Tour I always saw the cameras for the wins on different riders and always the big favourites. I have always believed that if I go to race, I go to try and win.

"I've never won on the WorldTour. But now, to win on the WorldTour at the Tour de France? It's incredible. It's not any stage, it's one of the key stages. Stages like this are incredible."

Behind the sprint finish, race leader Pogacar tested the mettle of his general classification rivals several times on the 14 gravel sections that characterised the day, with Jonas Vingegaard, Remco Evenepoel and Primoz Roglic all having issues at different times.

But by the end there were no time gaps between the main contenders as they crossed the line a little under two minutes after Turgis.

The inclusion of a stage featuring some 32 kilometres of gravel sectors – full of jeopardy for those targeting yellow – caused great controversy in the build-up to the Tour but there was no doubting the entertainment value.

An almighty battle to get into the breakaway led to a rapid pace from the off and things rarely settled down for the next four and a half hours.

Pidcock missed the initial split but hooked up with Irishman Ben Healy to make the bridge after the first gravel sector, making it a 12-strong group out in front.

Their advantage grew to two and a half minutes early on but then soon tumbled as Roglic lost ground behind splits at the back of the main peloton in the early gravel sectors, prompting Pogacar to attack in a bid to put his fellow Slovenian into trouble.

A mechanical issue forced Vingegaard to take the bike of his teammate Jan Tratnik, and such was the pace that he would never be able to change back before the finish.

Pogacar and Evenepoel continued to try attacks over the last 100km, and at one point they joined the breakaway group.

But every time they had gone forward Vingegaard was able to respond without being willing to contribute himself, effectively neutralising the moves. The main contenders dropped back, allowing Roglic to recover, and leaving the rest of the breakaway to contest the stage.

Jasper Stuyven tried a late attack but was caught inside the final kilometre before Turgis won the sprint.

Pogacar said: "It was fun riding. I was not expecting that the gravel would be so gravely. There was a lot of rocks and sand, and it was difficult to ride on. It was quite fun, but I would make that loop the opposite way so that we would have a tailwind to the finish because [the headwind] was not in favour of our attacks today.

"I was watching Remco, and he was watching me. We couldn't go together, but it was still a fun day, and tomorrow is finally a rest day. I had great legs. I must say that today was one of the hardest of the Tour and I felt good. I can't wait to start the proper mountains."

Going into Monday’s rest day, Pogacar leads overall by 33 seconds from Evenepoel, with Vingegaard third at one minute 15 seconds, and Roglic fourth a further 21 seconds back.

Before the start of the stage, there was a moment of silence at the start line in memory of Andre Drege, the Norwegian cyclist who died aged 25 after a crash at the Tour of Austria on Saturday.