"I tried something, but it didn't work out the way I wanted" - Mathieu van der Poel's climbing legs not enough to win Tour de France hilly day

This year's Tour de France does not feature good opportunities for the classics riders. Today was one of the few opportunities, but the climbing proved too much for Mathieu van der Poel who cracked on the final one and had to settle with no result of of the day.

"It was much better than the past few days," van der Poel said at a flash interview. The Alpecin-Deceuninck rider had been ill over the last few days but showed better legs today, surviving the brutal start of the stage to be able to be part of the breakaway of 15 riders, and then having the legs to contest the stage. His tactic was not to try and survive the climbs, but to anticipate the main attacks on ascents that did not particularly suit him.

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Alongside Andrey Amador, he made a move on the descent of the first of the final three climbs, building a gap which he sustained until the base of the final one. There he was then caught by a reduced chaser group. "I was on the limit. I tried something, but it didn't work out the way I wanted." He still had the legs to briefly respond to some moves, but blew up after trying to follow Ion Izagirre's stage-winning attack. “I gave everything, I knew it was my last chance this week..."

Perhaps the last of the race for the Dutchman, who will likely continue to support Jasper Philipsen until Paris now, lacking any hilly stage where he could make the difference most likely. "Even though I didn't feel great yet, I tried. I was hoping to get over the last climb with a bit of a lead, but the gap was too small and the body was empty," he concluded. Van der Poel was eventually caught and dropped by the peloton as he looked to save legs for the coming weeks.

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😱 That was close! A scare for @mathieuvdpoel in the downhill. 😱 Frayeur pour @mathieuvdpoel passé pas loin de la faute dans la descente. #TDF2023

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