Six months into the new season, Philippe Gilbert went within a few bike lengths of clocking up his first victory of 2012, but fell just short of that target. Last year he won the first road stage of the Tour de France with a devastating surge on the Mont des Alouettes, dropping Fabian Cancellara en route to the line.
This time round Cancellara was the big aggressor, dragging eventual stage winner Peter Sagan (Liquigas Cannondale) clear and also providing much of the oomph which helped pave way for Edvald Boasson Hagen’s third place.
Gilbert was best of the rest, closing the gap with his final sprint but having to be content with fourth. He felt afterwards that if the day had been a little less stressful and a little more straightforward, that he might have pulled off the win.
“At 23 km to go, someone touched my wheel and I thought I was going to crash," he stated. "I stayed up, but lost a lot of places. Then I dug deep to come back in the final two kilometres and took some risks in the last descent. It's a bit of a pity because I finally won the bunch sprint, but it wasn't for the win.”
He was the most dominant of riders last year but this time round hasn’t quite put it together this season. He’ll hope to turn things around in the days ahead but today’s result will both further his frustration while also boosting his confidence. The Belgian is back in shape, but now needs to put it together.
Team leader Cadel Evans was prominent on the climb, being well placed on the lower slopes and remaining towards the front after Cancellara, Sagan and Boasson Hagen went clear. He didn’t dig too deep today in terms of chasing the win, easing back to finish twentieth, but showed that he is sharp and ready for what lies ahead.
The defending Tour champion said afterwards that he took encouragement from how the team as a whole performed. “Marcus [Burghardt] took me along on the last flat section there to the bridge," he stated. "We were doing 74 kilometers an hour just to move up on the flat.”
He had hoped to split things up amid suggestions that there was a crosswind, but the opportunity turned out not to be there. "As it was it was, it was a headwind, which makes it easy for everyone to stay on your wheel," he said. "But the team is working well and functioning well, and I'm glad to get one road stage done and the routine going.”
Tejay Van Garderen remains in the white jersey as best young rider. He is fourth overall with Evans now eighth.