Voeckler lives to stay in yellow for one more day! The common wisdom in cycling circles was that the 2011 Tour de France (TdF) was going to be decided in the final two mountain stages in the Alps.
With two days of enormous climbs, the weak were no longer had anywhere to hide, mountains like Col Agnel, Col d’Izoard, Col du Galibier, and Alpe-d’Huez are too big and too steep for those who aren’t good enough to survive. From the day when TdF founder Henri Desgrange made the decision to include Alpine passes in the Tour, the
high mountains became the place where riders who want to win the Tour make their move and stamp their authority on the race.
On today’s Stage 18, Leopard-Trek rider and two-time runner-up to Alberto Contador, Andy Schleck finally attacked. With a little over 60 kms to go before the stage finish on top of the monster Col du Galibier, Andy Schleck launched a blistering attack. For reasons that are not immediately obvious, the peloton did not react and just let Andy ride away—a big tactical mistake I my opinion. .
The responsibility for chasing Schleck fell on the shoulders of Aussie rider, Cadel Evans. For the final 25 kms of the race, Evans was left to play tow truck for the rest of the peloton.
Somehow, however, through all of the pain of the climbs and despite not being one of the chosen race favorites, Frenchman Thomas Voeckler managed to stay attached to Evans’ wheel and got to the finish line with enough time to retain his yellow jersey for the tenth day.
Voeckler’s lead is now down to a mere 15 seconds – a very tiny, sliver of an edge. (By comparison, American Greg Lemond defeated Laurent Fignon by a mere 8 seconds in the 1989 Tour.) All the so-called experts now agree that Voeckler cannot survive with the maillot jaune until Paris. Voeckler has one big fan in his corner, however. During a recent interview, American champion and seven-time Tour winner Lance Armstrong stated his support for the Frenchman, stating that it is not impossible for Voeckler to be in yellow on Sunday when the Tour ends.
Let’s hope that Lance is right. So far Voeckler has managed to surprise everyone with his resilience and courage; Voeckler will take his place in the history books as a worthy holder of the famous maillot jaune!
About Thomas Voeckler:
Voeckler has been a professional cycliste since 2001. He currently rides for Team Europcar (formerly known as Bbox Bouygues Telecom, Bouygues Télécom, Brioches la Boulangère, and Bonjour). He comes from the Alsace region of France (which explains his German-sounding last name) but later moved to Martinique, where he was nicknamed "Ti-Blanc" (petit blanc) due to his small stature and pale complexion. He also known as le Chou-Chou ("Sweetheart") perhaps because of his young looks and his habit of sticking out his tongue in races.
The 2011 Team Europcar (le equipe):
Voeckler’s big moment on the cycling world came in the 2004 Tour. In 2004, Voeckler won the French championship; he then entered the 2004 TdF. After escaping with five other riders during Stage 5, Voeckler gained significant time against the peloton, and earned the maillot jaune. To everyone’s surprise, Voeckler defended his jersey for ten days, even on stages not well-suited to his strengths. With the maillot jaune on his shoulders, and intense media attention all around him, Voeckler only rode stronger. He survived the dreaded Pyrenean climbs, seconds ahead of the eventual winner, Lance Armstrong. Eventually, however, Voeckler surrendered the jersey to Armstrong on stage 15 in the French Alps.
But by then, Voeckler had already become a national hero to the bike-crazy French.
I do not know if Voeckler can retain the maillot jaune through tomorrow’s daunting Stage 19. I sure hope he does – he is my sentimental pick to win it all. Even if he does not, however, Voeckler has become one of my cycling heroes!
To quote Robert F. Kennedy (who in turn was quoting Irish writer George Bernard Shaw):
Some men see things as they are and ask,
Why?
Other men dream of things that have never been and ask,
Why not?
Monsiuer Voeckler, I dare you to dream of things that have never been - I dare you to dream that you will wear le maillot jaune in Paris on Sunday.
Bonne chance M. Voeckler. Allez, allez, allez!
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