Two and half years after a life threatening accident, John Degenkolb (Trek-Segafredo) took the win on stage nine at the Tour de France at Roubaix on Sunday, and it may not have been the biggest win of his career, but it was perhaps the most important.
His first Tour de France victory followed six second places in six participations. A Paris-Roubaix winner in 2015, he achieved his goal in Roubaix as he outsprinted yellow jersey Greg Van Avermaet and Belgian champion Yves Lampaert. Pre race challenger Richie Porte abandoned the Tour de France in a crash before the cobblestone sections.
It has been two and half years of struggle to reach the top again after a life-threatening and nearly career-ending accident, and Degenkolb took an emotional victory after a thrilling stage nine that included 15 cobblestone sectors of his familiar terrain.
“Pure happiness,” answered Degenkolb when asked what was going through his mind when he had won. “I was chasing this victory for so long, and it’s really hard to describe. It was a really hard fight the whole day. It’s also a victory of the team. We really had a plan to stay out for the trouble all the time and it really worked out really well. It’s unbelievable.”
Five riders rode away right after the start – Omar Fraile (Astana), Thomas De Gendt (Lotto-Soudal), Antwan Tolhoek (LottoNL-Jumbo), Jérôme Cousin and Damien Gaudin (Direct Energie). They were joined at km 20 by Chad Haga (Sunweb), Olivier Le Gac (Groupama-FDJ), Reinhardt Janse van Rensburg (Dimension), Nicolas Edet (Cofidis) and Lilian Calmejane (Direct Energie). But the main incident from the early part of the race was the abandon of Richie Porte (BMC) who broke a collarbone in a crash at km 7. José Joaquin Rojas (Movistar) was also forced to pull out.
The leaders meanwhile have a maximum time gap of 3’49” at km 35 and Tolhoek was ejected from the breakaway as he punctured on the first cobbled sector at km 47.
Romain Bardet (AG2R-La Mondiale) was the first GC contender to puncture but he made it back. Team Sky then put the hammer down with 65 kilometres to go. The peloton was split for a while. Race leader Greg Van Avermaet (BMC) stretched the lead group with 50 kilometres to go on the seventh cobbled sector where Bardet sustained a second flat tyre.
Chris Froome (Team Sky) then crashed with 46 kilometres to go but without any consequences. Other crashes affected Mikel Landa (Movistar) and Rigoberto Uran (EF Education First).
Gaudin and Janse van Rensburg rode away with 37 kilometres to go and Jasper Stuyven (Trek-Segafredo) was first to bridge the gap 20 kilometres before the end.
At the bonus point with 18 kilometres remaining, Van Avermaet took 3″, Stefan Küng (BMC) 2″ and Dan Martin (UAE) 1″. Yves Lampaert (Quick Step) then accelerated on the cobbled sector of Camphin-en-Pévèle and Van Avermaet and John Degenkolb (Trek-Segafredo) accompanied him.
Bardet had a third flat tyre with 6 kilometres to go and chased back with the Landa group. Up front, the leading trio entered the streets of Roubaix with a healthy lead. Degenkolb assumed the lead in the last kilometre, and he opened up the sprint with neither Lampaert nor Van Avermaet able to come around him with Philippe Gilbert beating Peter Sagan for fourth place. Van Avermaet extended his lead in the overall ranking before the rest day preceding the mountains.
“I was focusing on the race, trying to stay calm. I felt good and then [in the sprint] you don’t have to think,” he said afterward.
“This is a very big victory, since a very long time,” continued an emotional Degenkolb. “I have been through a lot of things in the past, and it was such a hard time. I want to dedicate this victory to one of my best friends who passed away last winter. This was really something for him because I said no, I am not done. I have to make at least one really big victory him, he was like my second Father.
“It’s so great now to be on the highest level again. There’s no way to make it more dramatic, more fantastic, than winning a stage like today. It can’t get better than this.”
