La 4e étape et étape reine de ce Tour des Alpes a tenu toutes ses promesses ce jeudi 24 avril ! Sur un parcours de 162.7 km en forme de montagnes russes empruntant à la fois les routes italiennes et autrichiennes, les favoris ont lancé la guerre à près de 100 km de l'arrivée et offert un spectacle et un suspense exceptionnels pendant plus de deux heures sous la pluie et dans le froid... et c'est Thymen Arensman qui est sorti vainqueur de cette bataille épique et a renversé le général ! Pour son premier succès avec INEOS Grenadiers (il n'avait plus gagné depuis une étape de La Vuelta 2022, alors avec DSM), le Néerlandais s'est imposé à l'issue d'un raid en solitaire sensationnel et même encore plus long que celui de Marco Frigo la veille ! Parti à plus de 80 km, il a ensuite livré un superbe mano à mano avec Derek Gee (Israel-Premier-Tech), qui faisait lui aussi partie des attaquants, et un admirable Michael Storer (Tudor Pro Cycling), qui a tout tenté pour sauver son maillot de leader... en vain !
Video : Tour of the Alps
« Le vélo, partout & toujours ici » sur
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Video : Tour of the Alps
« Le vélo, partout & toujours ici » sur
https://www.cyclismactu.net / Cyclism'Actu
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00:00The penultimate day of this the 48th tour of the Alps. Pensive mood at the start, not least
00:26because it's the Queen stage and also the weather was coming in. Very cold, lots of arm warmers
00:32and gloves on display as you can see, leg warmers too and no surprise it was nine celsius at the
00:39start and I've got to tell you some rain came in as well. It did not dampen the enthusiasm of a
00:45breakaway however, a whole sequence of them but ultimately it was going to take yet again a bit
00:50of fortitude and that was displayed by Thiemann Ahrensman. He rocked off the front and as the
00:56very select band of brothers started to fracture Bauman and Derek G teamed up as well in hot
01:02pursuit. Who else was going to be out there? That was the big question. Max Paul rolled the dice,
01:07Zangala as well, young riders with big ambitions but time was starting to run out. Another day of
01:13high altitude, 3,370 meters in total in the second longest stage of this year's race,
01:20destination Obertiliac. The climbs though in the last sector, the big loop had been completed and
01:27the run for home was just around 32 kilometers in length after this peak. Well, wherever you climb
01:34you have descents as well and it had a wearing down effect on just about everybody and suddenly
01:39the realization that those up the road may well indeed take the lead and it was left to Michael
01:44Storer to extricate himself from the chase and start to close down himself. Oh my goodness,
01:50what a task at hand with 33 kilometers remaining. Ahrensman up front had a deficit at the beginning
01:55of the day of a minute and 18. Storer was at 3 minutes and 10 with the climbs and the descents
02:00constantly coming like punches to the solar plexus. Ahrensman was out there, a time trialist.
02:06Likewise, the chaser, Derek Gee of Canada, also a time trialist. The ability to park pain is part of
02:12what they do extremely well and the man who'd taken on the task of trying to wind them in was of course
02:19our leader, Michael Storer. Behind him, the likes of Paul, of Bardet, they all regrouped together,
02:26couldn't decide on who was going to be the main man of their group. Giulia Ciccone in the red
02:31points leader's jersey was also part of it. Baumann was tagged by Storer but up ahead is where his mind
02:38lay. Derek Gee of Canada and of course Thiemann Ahrensman, could they hold on? And indeed what
02:43would be the margin at the end of the day? Storer knew that he had an advantage but you had to factor
02:48in bonuses and in this race time bonuses at the line. 10, 6 and 4 seconds available. They count for an awful
02:54lot. It's been decided by a handful of seconds in the past. Would that be the case indeed by the time
03:01we finish duties at Leeds tomorrow? This the big day however that could set your stall out and indeed
03:07how you're going to approach the remainder of the race. Constantly they were attacking each other.
03:11It was just one blow after another. This time it was Felix Gall that went off for Decathlon 82 on the
03:18Mondial and still out front Ahrensman was paddling away. 28 seconds back to Gee and a minute and 41 at
03:26this point. Cut to a minute and 23 by Michael Storer. That would be just about enough for him to hold on
03:32to the green jersey. A minute and 18 all of a sudden it was going his way and then of course the news got
03:39through to Ahrensman. He had to dig very very deep and that's precisely what he did. He was starting
03:44to rock and roll as the green meter markers were there into the hoarded section and when he crossed
03:50the line after four hours and 17 minutes the clock started to count back. How would it be? Derek G was
03:57coming in and his margin. Well it was to be a minute and 18 seconds for him and six bonus seconds to be
04:04taken off his tally and then finally Storer across the line but he knew he'd lost the leader's jersey
04:10and by a margin of just 11 seconds. Can you believe it? Then it was a battle for points of course that
04:16was rocking into our consciousness. Felix Gall the Austrian wanted to make a statement and did so at
04:22the line. Just edged Giulio Ciccone who stays in the red jersey. Oh my life what a day we have had.
04:30Amazing racing. Max Paul taking over the young rider's jersey. Pickering still in blue but into green.
04:37Tieran Ahrensman our leader overall with just one day remaining of this fabulous race. We head to Leintz
04:45and he has a margin of 11 seconds so if he wins tomorrow he'll get 10 bonuses as well. He needs to
04:52just keep an eye on Michael Storer who trails him. Very modest margins here with a great day still to
05:00come. Always fabulous racing at the Tour of the Alps. The finale tomorrow.
05:05You