"I just wasn't perfect myself" - Kaden Groves apologizes to Mathieu van der Poel being unable to finish off the job

The eighth stage of Tour de France had quite atypical arrival in Laval. Kaden Groves finished third there, but it was much thanks to his Alpecin-Deceuninck teammate Mathieu van der Poel who prepared a perfect position for the Australian sprinter.

"I didn't have the best feeling," Groves told WielerFlits at the finish line. "But the team did a fantastic job. Mathieu was there, as always, to drop me off. The timing was a bit early, though. That might work in a flat sprint, but I didn't have the legs for a tough uphill sprint like this."

We have seen a lot hesitation in the last kilometer. As most sprint trains already lost their domestiques along the way, both Groves and later winner Jonathan Milan looked at each other when Van der Poel's shift ended and the line was still not in their sight. Eventually the Italian confirmed his status of top sprinter though and triumphed without any difficulties.

"Milan is clearly in fantastic form," Groves continued. "We saw that a few days ago in the sprint against Tim (Merlier, ed.). Today he had another super sprint. But I also went a bit too early. I lost a few places at the last roundabout, so it wasn't perfect. But the team did a fantastic job. I just wasn't perfect myself. Tomorrow is another chance," he concluded.