Søren Kragh Andersen executed the exact move today that won him Stage 14. With 16 km (9.9 mi) left in today' Stage 19, Andersen broke away from the leaders and entered into time-trial mode. A few cyclists tried to catch him, but Andersen increased his lead most of the way to the finish line, winning by 53" over those chasing cyclists. I grabbed the screen capture below when his speed hit 76 kph (47 mph).
Andersen was down in his bike, fully into time-trial mode. Check him out crossing the finish line.
It was jaw-dropping watching Andersen treat those last 16 km like a time trial. He simply powered his way to the finish line, only holding back in the last 100 m or so. As I predicted yesterday, our prediction came in a bit slow.
- Stage 19: 3h 36' 33" (actual), 3h 50' 00" (prediction), 13' 27" slow (6.21% error)
The yellow jersey group with all the general-classification contenders came in 07' 38" later, meaning my model did well with them, but when considering next year's Tour de France model, I'll have to think about the power outputs cyclists like Andersen are capable of. Check out his average speed.
- Stage 19: 12.81 m/s (46.13 kph or 28.67 mph)
Even race organizers weren't anticipating an average speed above 45 kph. Well done, Mr Andersen!
Tomorrow's Stage 20 is a mountain time trial. Starting in the small commune of Lure, riders will travel 36.2 km (22.5 mi) to the northeast. They'll finish in La Planche des Belles Filles, but only after contending with a 5.9-km (3.7-mi) category-1 climb to the finish line. The average gradient is 8.5%, but the final hill to the finish line is an insane 20%. When the cyclists will be at their most tired, they'll need a little extra in the tank for the push to the finish line. Our prediction is given below.
- Stage 20: 52' 47" (prediction)
It will be interesting to see how the general-classification contenders fare on the final climb. Can the Slovenian duo hold on to the top two spots?
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