Ben Healy (EF Education-EasyPost) has won the queen stage, in the rain, at Tour de Luxembourg today, his fifth of the season, but the 23-year-old Irishman immediately wants more. Healy crucially proved too strong for the combined efforts of chasers March Hirschi (UAE Team Emirates) and Dylan Teuns (Israel Premier Tech) and that could prove the winning of this race overall.
Healy says the rain today didn't bother him - and never does - and having won the 168.km queen stage today win a long-range solo effort on the hilly finishing circuit, he says the stages to come can really suit him. Far from resting on his laurels, at the end of an incredible season, he now wants to win the race overall.
“We had two cards to play with me and Richard,” Healy said of his team, and Olympic champion, Richard Carapaz. “Going long for me is my strength and we could use Richard behind if I got caught back. I just had the legs today to make it stick and Richard didn’t have to do anything."
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Healy attacked with just under 35km to go, catching surviving breakaway man Bastien Tronchon (AG2R Citroën Team) on the penultimate passage of the circuit before dropped him on the main climb to the finish. Once clear solo, Healy put his head down for the final 18km lap. Behind him, the race was splitting to pieces, with Marc Hirschi (UAE Team Emirates) and Dylan Teuns (Israel Premier Tech) eventually getting clear, working together in a bid to catch the Irishman up ahead.
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However, while they closed the gap quite quickly, from 40 seconds to 20 seconds, they never got much closer; Healy winning by 15 seconds from Hirschi by at the finish, with Teuns a 3rd and a further three seconds back. A four-man chasing group, which included Archie Ryan (Jumbo Visma), finished 37 seconds back.
And that result has put Healy in the yellow jersey by 19 seconds from Hirschi, wit Teuns 3rd at 24 seconds and deposed yellow jersey, Søren Kragh Andersen (Alpecin-Deceuninck), 4th overall at 43 seconds. Healy said while today was grim in the rain, he fancied the 23.9km TT tomorrow in Pétange as a chance to extend his lead.
“I don’t think anyone will ever admit to liking these stages,” he said. “The rain’s never nice to ride in, but for sure I perform well in the rain. It doesn’t slow me down. Now, it’s all about trying to hold on to this jersey.
“I’m pretty confident in my TT and now I have a nice buffer going into tomorrow. We have a strong team to look after the jersey if I keep it tomorrow for the last stage as well, so I’m pretty confident.”
