Hugo Houle battles onto Tour de France podium: "I can be proud of this result"

Hugo Houle was an outside for today's stage in the scenario of a breakaway succeeding, and he put his qualities to the test, joining the harshly disputed day's escapee group which went on to fight for the victory, and getting close to succeeding.

“I'm really happy that I was able to stay with Mads Pedersen in the final and finish third. With these names in the break, I can be proud of this result. It's the best performance in the Tour," Houle told the media after the 13th stage of the Tour.

In the heat, where he thrived in the Tour de Suisse last month, finishing 15th whilst supporting Jakob Fuglsang's GC ambitions, Houle found himself in the right move of the day as he linked up to the front trio early on in the day, alongside Mads Pedersen and Fred Wright who whom he'd battle for the stage win.

With a win in the bag, Israel - Premier Tech didn't go into the day with overly high pressure, however excitement rose as Houle responded to the attack of Mads Pedersen inside the final 15 kilometers. The Canadian tried attacking however with no success over his group partners. He was in first position into the sprint and finished the day third, however possibly a moment of international spotlight the 31-year old was yet to achieve in his career.