Although he placed a fine third on the uphill finish on stage one, Tour de France race leader Thor Hushovd dimisses his own chances of fighting for victory on today’s stage to the Mûr de Bretagne. “I am afraid it is too difficult,” he said after yesterday’s third stage of the race. “It is harder tomorrow than the first stage, this last climb up to the finish line.”
The riders who finished ahead of him on Saturday, Philippe Gilbert (Omega Pharma Lotto) and Cadel Evans (BMC Racing Team), are amongst those expected to fight for the stage victory. Evans is just one second behind Hushovd in the overall classification and will be a big danger with regards to the race lead. However Hushovd’s team-mate David Millar is level on time with the Norwegian, and will fight to keep the jersey within the team.
A total of ten riders are four seconds back, and some of these could also be a threat. The group includes Edvald Boasson Hagen, Geraint Thomas and Bradley Wiggins (Sky Procycling) as well as Frank and Andy Schleck (Leopard Trek).
Hushovd’s acceptance that the climb is too tough for him to target a win would appear to suggest he could also be in trouble in defending his race lead. However he promises to do whatever he can to remain at the top of the general classification for another day. “We will see…I will really try to make it,” he vowed. “My only goal tomorrow is to keep the yellow jersey.”
Knowing that his time at the top is limited, the Norwegian make sure to soak up the atmosphere on yesterday’s stage to Redon. “I enjoyed the day..I was sitting there in the peloton and talking with a lot of people,” he told French TV after the stage. “I tried to enjoy it.”
He also ensured the jersey was prominent in the finale, hitting the front inside the final 500 metres to help lead out his team-mate Tyler Farrar for the win. Selflessly putting his ambitions on hold, he drove the pace, then handed over to Julian Dean, who took Farrar to his own launch point. He had little problem in taking the gallop ahead of Romain Feillu (Vacansoleil), landing his first-ever Tour sprint win on US Independence Day.
“In the end I was following Tyler to see if I can do something, and from the last corner I did a good leadout for him,” explained Hushovd. “With myself and Julian Dean, I think he had the perfect leadout and then he had the legs to finish and win the stage. It is incredible. First of all, it is really nice to win a stage in the Tour de France, and it is his first win here. Of course it is really special on the Fourth of July.”
Should he lose yellow today, Hushovd will return to the rainbow bands of world champion. He was involved in yesterday’s intermediate sprint, rubbing shoulders with Mark Cavendish in an action which – unfairly, many believe – saw both of them relegated afterwards. However despite being in that action, the two time Maillot Vert winner denied the classification is a target.
“The green jersey is not a goal for me,” he insisted. “I was up there and just followed the guys who were sprinting. That was the only reason. We will see with Tyler, maybe he will go for green now. He is close.”
Farrar is second in that classification, seven points behind Spanish champion Jose Joaquin Rojas Gil (Movistar).