"I'm riding insane wattages and they're still coming back at us" - Mathieu van der Poel in disbelief during stage 13
Cycling
There's was a massive battle for a spot in the breakaway in the thirteenth stage of the Tour de France. Even the likes of Mathieu van der Poel tried to enter to early moves. However with wind picking up the speed and peloton nervous about echelons, the world champion never got much of a gap.
Mike Teunissen, who was on a lead-out duty for green jersey wearer Biniam Girmay, expressed his surprise about the stage to the NOS. "The first hour and a half was not normal. I was still talking to Mathieu when he was caught. He said: 'I'm riding insane wattages here and it's unbelievable that they're still coming back at us. We've been riding for it the whole time'."
"Then there was also the game in the wind... There are no easy days in the Tour. It was unbelievable. We can go to bed early tonight, that's nice for a change," Teunissen jokes.
Teunissen's leader Biniam Girmay wasn't able to contest the victory in Pau. The Eritrean had to settle for fourth place. "It was a very difficult stage. Bini was not feeling completely at his best. So we did not interfere with the chase. We would have been happy if there had been no breakaway," Teunissen explains.
"We tried again at the end, but we were no longer fresh. And we have to be realistic. You always want more, but I think we have to be satisfied. Today we were mainly concerned with guiding Bini through the stage well. We succeeded and it is no shame that he comes fourth for once."
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Ondrej ZhasilCycling Journalist
Ondřej Zhasil is a cycling journalist at CyclingUpToDate and has been part of the team since 2023. He is based in Ostrava, the third-largest city in the Czech Republic, and covers professional cycling across the main UCI competitions, including the Tour de France, the Giro d’Italia, and La Vuelta a España. A key focus of his work is startlist analysis and pre-race coverage, where he examines team selections, rider line-ups, and tactical scenarios ahead of major events.
Alongside WorldTour coverage, Ondřej has developed specific expertise in junior cycling and in racing across East Asia, including competitions in China and Japan. He also maintains a broad working knowledge of other disciplines and levels, including cyclocross, while continuing to expand his understanding of mountain bike racing.
Ondřej holds a bachelor’s degree in Mathematics and Physics, which supports his analytical, data-driven approach to performance and race analysis. In his reporting, he regularly uses ProCyclingStats for results, statistics, and historical context. He places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles promptly when new, verified information becomes available.
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💚 Biniam Girmay keeps strong lead in the Tour de France points classification after stage 13 💚 🥇 Biniam Girmay: 346 points 🥈 Jasper Philipsen: 271 points 🥉 Anthony Turgis: 141 points 📸 @cyclingmedia_ag #TDF2024
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