The stage from Vila Real de Santo António to Tavira was tailor-made for the sprinters. De Lie knew the finish from last year, when he sprinted to third place there. This time, he had to be content with sixth.
“The tactic agreed beforehand was to wait, and the team stuck to that plan,” explained sports director Pieter Vanspeybrouck in the Algarve. “Other teams opted for the same approach, with the riders of, among others, Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe still riding ahead of us. But then you see that the pace in the final ten kilometres isn’t particularly high- at least not high enough- which meant everyone was still fresh and the advantage we were hoping for disappeared. In the end, Arnaud (De Lie, ed.) came out of the final corner in a good position, he was fifth at that moment, but that effort cost him energy, which is why he finished sixth today.”
New opportunities for the sprinters will come on Saturday, with the stage from Albufeira to Lagos. Tomorrow in Portimão, it will be one for the climbers, with a summit finish on Alto da Fóia.
Picture: PhotoNews
