Tearful Felix Gall wins Tour de France queen stage: "To be doing so well in the Tour and to win the queen stage is incredible"

Felix Gall was exhausted and emotional in the flash interview. The Austrian climber was the best of the day's breakaway and took advantage of his legs and the work of his team, AG2R Citroën Team, to attack on the climb to the Col de la Loze and take a big win on the queen stage.

"It's incredible, I don't know what to say, this year has been incredible, now to be doing so well in the Tour and to win the queen stage is incredible, thanks to the team, they have given me so much," he said. "It's not easy to do 3 weeks of effort, I have the role of leader now after a few days, that has stressed me, it's not easy, but the last few days I've been slowly getting more comfortable, I was afraid of getting caught on the last descent, it's incredible."

He confessed that he had very good legs throughout the day, that he ventured into the initial breakaway not thinking about the win, but to be able to face the favorites on the last climb with some advantage, and that in the end everything went perfectly: "I'm thankful for all of this. I felt very good all day, I didn't think we could fight for the victory, I thought I could have some gap with the favorites if I anticipated, before the last climb I felt very good, I looked at the numbers, I knew it was a very hard day and that I could make it."

He made his move on the Col de la Loze, the highest and hardest of this year's race, to drop the rest of the surviving breakaway riders and maintain the small gap he had over Simon Yates. "I felt very good on the slope of the Col de la Loze and I tried even though at the time of the attack I wasn't so good. A year and a half ago I couldn't see myself in this position."