Emotions of relief and joy could be seen on the face of Michał Kwiatkowski crossing the line atop of Le Grand Colombier as the Ineos-Grenadiers rider secured his first grand tour stage win since the 2020 Tour de France.
The Polish national has been fresh in viewers' thoughts as his name has been spotted in several breakaway groups so far this Tour. Kwiatkowski's hard work finally paid dividends as he soloed his way to a brilliant triumph late in today's race which saw the bunch depart Châtillon-sur-Chalaronne and find themselves taking on the Grand Colombier.
Today's climax promised one of the toughest tests of the Tour as the final climb presented 17kms of uphill riding with gradients of up to 12%. Similarly to stage 12, it was always going to be contested by those with breakaway intentions.
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Kwiatkowski launched a genius attack at the front of the race with just over 10km remaining after reeling in the leading group. From there, the former World Champion built a steady lead over his poursuivants, managing a gap of 38 seconds just 3000m after taking off.
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The top two riders in the General Classification found themselves in pursuit of Kwiatkowski with Pogačar (UAE Team Emirates) or Vingegaard (Jumbo–Visma) both seeking another stage win to add to their Tour de France tally. Despite Pogačar employing the help of teammates Felix Großschartner, Rafał Majka and Adam Yates in the final 5kms, Kwiatkowski maintained a strong lead heading towards the flamme rouge.
A valiant effort from the Polish rider saw him take his second ever Tour de France stage win and Ineos-Grenadiers' win of this season's Tour. The team generals can breathe a sigh of relief as they have struggled to this point, failing to even secure a podium finish until Kwiatkowski's victory.
We finally see some slight movement in the General Classification with Pogačar shaving 17 seconds (4 bonus seconds) off the gap to yellow jersey holder Vingegaard, the help of Pogačar's teammates proving crucial in his 3rd place finish.
Australian high-flyer Caleb Ewan withdrew from the Tour after another grueling stage out the back of the peloton as the Lotto–Dstny rider barely bested the cut-off point in yesterday's race. It follows the exit of fellow sprinter Mark Cavendish (Astana Qazaqstan) on stage 9, this year's Tour is certainly taking no prisoners.
The hills just keep coming as tomorrow's race holds three category 1 mountains and one hors catégorie (beyond categorisation) climb. The drama has only begun.
