Extinguished, Friday on his land, stuck to the bitumen and the gravel in the climb of the Planche des Belles Filles where he could not keep up with the pace of the favorites, poissard on Saturday after being the victim of two falls and taking his arm in the face of an assistant from the Trek team holding out a musette, we imagined Pinot condemned as far away as Paris to a role of lieutenant for its leader David Gaudu.
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Unpredictable and always hitting where you least expect him, Thibaut Pinot thwarted the odds by failing on the verge of picking up a fourth victory in the Grande Boucle.
Or rather at forty seconds, because the Frenchman, flying on the slopes at 6.1% towards the Haute-Savoie ski resort when he decided to distort, alone, company with the group of pursuers, finally stuck in the last , less selective and more favorable to the power of the Luxembourger, Bob Jungels, winner before the rest day.
The Franc-Comtois, believed in it almost to the end, in the streets of Châtel, transformed into an incandescent stadium when the Frenchman passed like a shell at 80 km / h under a blazing sun after crossing the Pas de Morgins.
The turns of the station even looked like Kop screaming with his "
Pi-not!"
Pi-not
” as the hero of the day passes, grimacing, puffy cheeks.
The village ignited even more when the giant screen planted at the foot of the church displayed twenty seconds between the climber and the Luxembourger, admirable for his courage.
Read alsoTour de France: Solitary luminous Jungels, brave Pinot, suffering Van der Poel ... Our tops and flops of the 9th stage
Probably starting a little late in his impossible quest eight kilometers from the last ascent, Pinot realized that the last cable lengths along the Dranse d'Abondance, the river leading to the finish line, were going to smile on the rider of the AG2R formation - Citroen Team.
The jersey open, short of breath, Pinot, positive for Covid-19 a few days before the start of the event, released his effort to finally finish fourth in a freewheel.
Whatever the seconds lost, the 30-year-old (32) is not aiming for the general anyway.
David Gaudu, his leader, gave him a deserved hug in the finish area.
Not enough to comfort the friend, face closed as ever when a team assistant put a wet towel around his neck.
This is the first day where I have more or less good feelings.
Thibaut Pinot
"
It's a pity, but I left 2'30 late at the foot of the pass which suited him better than me but I have no regrets, I gave it my all
", dropped the Frenchman on France Télévisions before to plan for the next three days in the Alps and its indigestible menu: “
It's the first day where I have more or less good feelings.
I am quite calm for the future.
The next two weeks are coming.
“Let him be reassured, the French public who made him an icon, should have other opportunities to shout at the edge of the roads, Alpine or Pyrenean.
