Losing the yellow jersey is not a pleasure but Vincenzo Nibali doesn't make drama. Especially since it was worn by a French rider, Tony Gallopin, at the end of the ninth stage, who does not cause any fear for the final victory of the Tour. The French celebrate their return to the top of the Tour on the eve of their national holiday on July 14, do not cry in the Astana house where many feared that the defense of the yellow jersey could eventually wear down the resistance of the Squalo squires in view of the next mountain stages, starting from this Monday, the last one in the Vosges, with six Gpm and the final climb, hard and tough, to the Planches des belle filles. A goal that Contador has set in his sights to attack Nibali.
Sparks are expected. Gallopin's has every appearance of being the yellow jersey for a day, even if the transalpine rider of Lotto Belisol, who yesterday in Gerardmer was seventh in the general classification at 3'27”, restarts from Mulhouse with an advantage over the Italian over a minute and a half. Effect of an old-fashioned stage with the group of the best who almost doesn't care about the various escapes that are made up along the way, 170 km on the ups and downs of Alsace, with the Markstein and the Grand Ballon, the biggest bumps to overcome.
If Gallopin is the new yellow jersey, the hero of the day is however Tony Martin, the time trial world champion, author of an extraordinary feat that saw him fly away halfway up the Markstein climb, leaving his teammate in the lurch. adventure, the Italian Alessandro De Marchi: there were still over 50 km to go to the finish, with the Grand Ballon to tackle before the descent and the long flat stretch leading to Mulhouse. Martin, taking advantage of his skills as a passer, did nothing but increase the advantage over everyone, both on the initially 28-man squad chasing him with Gallopin, Machado, Rolland and Joaquim Rodriguez, and above all on the group of Nibali, Contador and Valverde , with Astana men setting the pace without ever damning their soul conviction.
An athletic feat from the past that brings the German victories up to five in this Tour, an absolute masterpiece by a champion who month after month proves to be something more than just a formidable specialist in races against the clock. Passing first on the last Gpm, Martin also conquered the polka dot jersey of leader of the climbers. His arrival in Mulhouse was triumphant and solitary, with an advantage that settled at 2'45” over the first pursuers regulated in the sprint by Fabian Cancellara. Third was the Belgian Van Avermaet. With the same time as Cancellara, 18 other riders closed, including Gallopin, Machado and Rolland. The group with Nibali arrived 7'46” behind Martin. From one minute and 34 seconds Gallopin had become the new yellow jersey but also Tiago Machado and Pierre Rolland made a big leap in the general standings entering the top ten, the Portuguese in third place behind Nibali at 2'40″, the French in eighth just over 4 minutes from the record.
