Geraint Thomas once again demonstrated his strength at the final showdown of the 105th Tour de France and defended his yellow jersey with third place in the individual time trial from Saint-Pee-sur-Nivelle to Espelette, with which he will be the overall winner of the Champs-Elysee in Paris on Sunday. Tom Dumoulin won the stage.
Team-mate Chris Froome, on the other hand, secured a place on the podium. He finished second behind Dumoulin in the time trial and displaced yesterday’s stage winner Primoz Roglic from third place overall. Thomas and Froome, two riders from the same team, are on the podium for the first time since 2012.
Time trial world champion Tom Dumoulin was able to live up to his role as favourite on the stage and win the time trial just ahead of Froome, but no longer attack Thomas’ top position decisively. He will reach Paris as the runner-up in the overall standings.
On the last leg to Paris, the Yellow Jersey is traditionally no longer attacked, which is why Thomas’ overall victory has already been determined before the final leg.