Geraint Thomas comes away unscathed from 'frustrating' Tour de France crash
The Welshman was forced to chase after a crash before the final climb of stage eight
Geraint Thomas (Ineos) is "fine" after a crash on Tour de France stage nine but "the worst" was that Thibaut Pinot (Groupama-FDJ) gained time in the race for the final overall classification.
>>> Five talking points from stage eight of the 2019 Tour de France
The Welsh 2018 Tour de France winner fell over Michael Woods (EF Education First) at 15 kilometres to race to Saint-Étienne, just before the top of a climb where Pinot attacked with new race leader Julian Alaphilippe (Deceuninck-Quick-Step).
"I'm fine, but it was just frustrating obviously," Thomas said while warming down on his bike.
"It was a key moment in the race, Woodsy crashed, and just took out Gianni [Moscon] and me. I just got tangled up in Gianni's bike a bit and it took a bit of time to get going but the boys did a great job and I closed the gap, the final bit and slowly moved up the group.
"It's annoying and frustrating, but at the same time, to come back like I did shows the legs are good at least. You just don't ever want to give an unnecessarily time away. If I hadn't crashed, I could have followed [Pinot], so a totally different story then. That's the way it goes. There is still a lot of racing to come."
Moscon's Pinarello frame set snapped in half. Thomas was "gassed" however when he returned to the group of favourites that Pinot had just escaped from.
Get The Leadout Newsletter
The latest race content, interviews, features, reviews and expert buying guides, direct to your inbox!
"By the time I got to the top 20 to 15, that's when they sprinted over the top then for seconds, so then, I was gassed for a bit," Thomas continued.
"Yeah, I just didn't want to ride on the front and tow everyone, kinda hoping with the numbers, but there was just no speed in it. It was frustrating, I just sat there thinking, 'Come on.'"
It was Thomas's second crash in the Tour de France after he fell in the closing two kilometres of stage one.
Pinot, winner of two stages in the last years, placed third overall in 2014.
"Very," Thomas replied bluntly when asked how dangerous of a rival is Pinot in the overall.
"I think he's been on the podium before," Thomas said. "he's riding really strongly. So a big threat."
Thomas looked at his left arm that was covered with chain grease when asked where the worst was.
"The left," he continued. "But the worst was that Pinot got time. I'm fine."
Thank you for reading 20 articles this month* Join now for unlimited access
Enjoy your first month for just £1 / $1 / €1
*Read 5 free articles per month without a subscription
Join now for unlimited access
Try first month for just £1 / $1 / €1
Gregor Brown is an experienced cycling journalist, based in Florence, Italy. He has covered races all over the world for over a decade - following the Giro, Tour de France, and every major race since 2006. His love of cycling began with freestyle and BMX, before the 1998 Tour de France led him to a deep appreciation of the road racing season.
-
Pro cyclo-cross rider disqualified and fined after stomping on opponent's bike
Eli Iserbyt apologised for 'rage of anger' at event in Beringen
By Tom Davidson Published
-
'I don’t think the people around Tom help' - Geraint Thomas on the Tom Pidcock and Ineos Grenadiers situation
Pidcock was "deselected" from Il Lombardia on Saturday, with the rider taking to Instagram to discuss decision
By Tom Thewlis Published
-
'I don’t think the people around Tom help' - Geraint Thomas on the Tom Pidcock and Ineos Grenadiers situation
Pidcock was "deselected" from Il Lombardia on Saturday, with the rider taking to Instagram to discuss decision
By Tom Thewlis Published
-
Tom Pidcock 'deselected' from Ineos Grenadiers squad for Il Lombardia
British rider says 'I guess off season starts early' in Instagram post
By Tom Davidson Published
-
Ineos Grenadiers have had their worst season ever, and the woes appear not to be over. What’s next for the super-team of a bygone era?
With Tom Pidcock possibly off to Q36.5 and Luke Rowe leaving, the news is not quiet around the British WorldTour squad
By Adam Becket Published
-
Remco Evenepoel puts transfer speculation to bed ahead of World Championships road race
'I'll stay where I am' says Double Olympic champion as he confirms he will remain at Soudal Quick-Step next season
By Tom Thewlis Published
-
'You can't sugarcoat it' - Luke Rowe says Ineos Grenadiers are 'underperforming'
British squad's experienced road captain believes his team has been "overtaken" by others
By Tom Davidson Published
-
Steve Cummings replaced by Tom Pidcock's coach in Tour of Britain management team shake-up at Ineos Grenadiers
Cummings was on the provisional start list submitted to the race organiser, but was replaced by Kurt Bogaerts
By Tom Thewlis Published
-
Dan Bigham becomes Head of Engineering at Red Bull-Bora Hansgrohe after leaving Ineos Grenadiers
After winning a silver medal at the Paris Olympics, Bigham then left his role at Ineos due to his frustrations with the setup currently in place at the team
By Tom Thewlis Published
-
Remco Evenepoel and Julian Alaphilippe confirmed for Tour of Britain Men
Double Olympic champion and Alaphilippe headline Soudal Quick-Step team selection
By Tom Thewlis Published