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Tour de France: Chris Froome third but victory within sight

Last updated on .From the section Cyclingcomments552

Briton Chris Froome is set to win the 100th Tour de France after finishing third on the penultimate stage.

Froome, 28, leads by over five minutes and will not be challenged on Sunday's traditional procession into Paris.

"I can't quite believe I'm sitting here in this position," said Froome. "It really is amazing.

"I'm a bit lost for words. I've still got to roll into Paris but this is the GC [general classification] sorted out. To finish it off like this is special."

The Kenya-born rider added: "It was quite hard to stay on top once I got to three kilometres to go because I knew I had accomplished what I wanted to do. I was overwhelmed."

Team Sky's Froome stayed on the wheel of closest competitors Nairo Quintana and Joaquim Rodriguez as they climbed to the summit of Mont Semnoz and the Briton was forced to push away spectators with about three kilometres to go as they inadvertently threatened to impede his progress.

Quintana jumped clear late on to win and secure second overall while Rodriguez also moved onto the podium in Paris.

Spain's Alberto Contador started the day behind Froome but cracked on the final climb to drop to fourth overall, finishing two minutes and 28 seconds behind the stage winner.

Germany's Jens Voigt, the oldest competitor in the race at 41, had led a breakaway but was caught on the final hors categorie - the hardest rating - climb.

Froome will become the second successive British winner when he crosses the line on the Champs Elysees following Sir Bradley Wiggins's victory 12 months ago.

He has led since stage eight and finished the 20th stage, from Annecy to Annecy-Semnoz on Saturday, with a lead of five minutes three seconds in the general classification.

Quintana's first ever stage win also secured the Colombian the polka dot jersey for the King of the Mountains to go with his white jersey for the best-placed rider under 25.

Peter Sagan, from Slovakia, took an an unassailable lead in the points classification with victory in the intermediate sprint to deny Mark Cavendish a chance of winning the green jersey.

But the Manxman will be aiming for victory as the tour concludes at sunset on Sunday in Paris as he bids to become the first rider to win the final stage on five occasions.

Cavendish, who has won the last four sprint finishes on the Champs Elysees, currently shares the record with the legendary Belgian Eddy Merckx.

The final stage will be under floodlights for the first time and is expected to finish at around 20:45 BST.

Results of stage 20:

1. Nairo Quintana (Col) Movistar 3:39:04"

2. Joaquim Rodriguez (Spa) Katusha +18"

3. Chris Froome (GB) Team Sky +29"

4. Alejandro Valverde (Spa) Movistar +1:42"

5. Richie Porte (GB) Team Sky +2:17"

Overall standings after stage 20:

1. Chris Froome (GB) Team Sky 80:49:33"

2. Nairo Quintana (Col) Movistar +5:03"

3. Joaquim Rodriguez (Spa) Katusha +5:47"

4. Alberto Contador (Spa) Saxo-Tinkoff +7:10"

5. Roman Kreuziger (Cze) Saxo-Tinkoff +8:10"

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552 comments

  • Comment posted by Benji Hyer, at 16:29 20 Jul 2013

    A just and unbelievable end to the Tour de France!! Congratulations to Chris Froome on his stunning yellow jersey victory, and also to Quintana and Rodriguez on their respective podium places. So glad that they denied drug-cheat Contador any glory. No doubt that the unsung hero of this all was Richie Porte. Hope that Cavendish can top off Briatin’s glory with a sprint win in Paris tomorrow.

  • Comment posted by Tris v3, at 17:31 20 Jul 2013

    He is not a brit. This is another andy murray or lennox lewis moment.

    ---------

    Oh dear! Both of them were born in Britain. Try again.

  • Comment posted by U15423424, at 17:25 20 Jul 2013

    Funny how when Dan Martin was declared an 'Irish' winner of a stage this year noone complained that he was born in England, as he chose to represent Ireland and his father is Irish.

    Not surprised to see the trolls out in force, just disappointing when there is so much to enjoy in this year's Tour.

  • Comment posted by Laurence, at 17:35 20 Jul 2013

    I didn't hear anybody cast aspersion over Mo Farah's right to compete for GB? He was also a foreign born national I believe. So why are they knives out for Froome on this issue. He's a British passport holder, trained by and races for a British team. The only difference is he's white and that makes him fair game for such criticism? Last time I looked we were multi-cultural in the UK.

  • Comment posted by York Trout, at 16:29 20 Jul 2013

    Awesome again today by Froome; well done to Quintana what a result, what a day securing stage, polka dot and white jerseys.

    Richie Porte for my hero of the tour.

    Let's just hope Cav can make it five tomorrow - are OPQ good enough to lead him out?

  • Comment posted by U14966550, at 18:41 20 Jul 2013

    Yawning once again at the self-loathing anti-British losers who can't stand the thought of anyone else from these isles succeeding. Froome is British, his country of birth is irrelevant. Even if it wasn't, he was trained and funded within Britain by Britons. This is a British victory just as Wiggins's was last year in every sense of the word. Stop moping and do something with your lives.

  • Comment posted by Welsh Dragon, at 20:05 20 Jul 2013

    Froome - congratulations on a superb performance
    Quintana - what a revelation. Look out TdeF...
    Porte - stunning unselfish effort - defines the word 'sacrifice'
    Riblon - fantastic French win on Alpe d'Huez
    Schleck - hope to see you back at the top next year
    Voigt - an example to middle-aged men everywhere
    Cavendish - greatness beckons...

    TdeF - enjoyed every second - see you next year

  • Comment posted by Ryan Thomas, at 16:30 20 Jul 2013

    Keep up the good work Froomy! This has been a more demanding TDF than the one won by Sir Bradley Wiggins! It's brilliant to see another British person doing so well in their field!

  • Comment posted by U5144507, at 16:33 20 Jul 2013

    @13. since when did anyone with a lead of 5 minutes lose the tour on the last stage into Paris?

  • Comment posted by U15309045, at 16:29 20 Jul 2013

    Quintana is the next TDF star.
    An Andean Indian means he has probably lived and cycled most of his life above 6000 feet and is used to it.

  • Comment posted by Eggieplant, at 16:29 20 Jul 2013

    Stunning achievement. He got slightly overlooked last year, this is richly deserved.

  • Comment posted by U15794400, at 16:40 20 Jul 2013

    Well done Team Sky! Great performance going into the final climb today.
    Looking forward to a Cav win tomorrow.

  • Comment posted by SteveMc, at 19:45 20 Jul 2013

    So sad to see all these comments made by the whinging ,moaning class ,was it to hot for you today ? Daily mail not delivered ? You are the best couch athlete and critic in the UK !
    But what can you expect from these losers in life , kick them out the UK and stick them on a remote island and they can moan ,moan ,moan all day and we as a nation will embrace our success and enjoy it !
    Go Chris Go!

  • Comment posted by U15401436, at 18:05 20 Jul 2013

    The nationality debate is utter idiocy. A few keyboard warriors on here with significant chips on their shoulders. Who knows why? And who cares about a few idiots?

    Froome has been brilliant, deserves his victory even more as his support was weak except for Porte (next year for him?)

  • Comment posted by Tim Howell, at 17:46 20 Jul 2013

    Just to support Peter @ 23 - Richie Porte for overseas SPOTY. Even today, when Froome attacked on the last climb, he stayed behind to keep a beady eye on Contador and Kreuziger, before, to my glee, sprinting away from them in the final km to finish on his own.

  • Comment posted by Larry Boyd, at 16:24 20 Jul 2013

    Well done Frooomedog a well deserved and hard fought tour

  • Comment posted by Tris v3, at 16:47 20 Jul 2013

    How could Movistar not know Quintana was such an amazing climber and waste so much effort backing Valverde?

    This has been an amazing Tour. Loved watching Froome and the young Columbian battle it out over the last few days. Can't wait for next year.

  • Comment posted by U15719357, at 16:25 20 Jul 2013

    It's never over 'til it's over, but... this is over.

    Well done Chris, fantastic achievement.

  • Comment posted by U15713280, at 18:14 20 Jul 2013

    Well done by Froome and Team Sky. Froome earned this one and will enjoy being able to fulfill his dream of winning. Plus, the beating he took from the press must have made this one tough. But he handled it with class and did the right thing by releasing his power data.

  • Comment posted by Chesham Rob, at 10:52 21 Jul 2013

    405 The only quibble I have is the knighthood bestowed on Bradley

    Wiggo's knighthood was for many years of cycling achievement culminating in the TDF last year. He won 4 Olympic gold medals at three separate games, in addition to world champs etc. He made the notoriously difficult switch from track success to GT success. In short his lifetime achievements stand comparison with any in any sport

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