Pierre Barbier loses the stage win by 0.4 seconds - “I really thought I had won, and it seemed clear to me when I crossed the line"

As painful as it is when you lose the moment that matters when you put your whole heart and soul into it, it is even more difficult when you learn of the loss after having celebrated a victory. Pierre Barbier understands this well.

Barbier used every bit of his energy in the final sprint of the CRO Race's second stage. It was a very close call between him and first stage winner Jonathan Milan. A photo finish was used to determine the winner. But Barbier started celebrating even before the announcement of the result.

But to his disappointment, he was 0.4 seconds slow than Milan. “I really thought I had won, and it seemed clear to me when I crossed the line... It's a big disappointment to come so close to winning. Everyone had worked very hard today,” said Barbier.

But the rider keeps an optimistic approach and believes he will definitely clutch a victory in the last four stages. “It's hard to take it in stride, but we have to bounce back, and we have enough assets in our game to keep believing. Starting tomorrow with this gravel finish,” concluded Barbier. He currently holds the second position in GC, just 14 seconds behind overall winner Jonathan Milan.