'Bardet Jusqu'au Bout'. The French have had precious little to celebrate so far in this Tour de France, but the front page of Thursday's L'Equipe issued a rallying cry to the sole torchbearer of the hopes of a home nation. And boy did he deliver.
'Bardet all the way'. On a day when the heavens opened in the Mont Blanc Massif, Romain Bardet did indeed go all the way – all the way to stage 19 victory and all the way to the podium. He's now set to go all the way to Paris to record his best-ever Tour de France result.
The stage victory and the leap from fifth to second overall were significant enough in and of themselves, but it was the manner in which they was executed that made this a day to savour, as the AG2R La Mondiale rider brought to life a race that was in danger of sleepwalking all the way to Paris.
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After Wednesday's summit finish at the Emosson dam, where Sky once again dominated and Froome gained more time, L'Equipe wrote that the race was "sliding slowly towards a chronic disinterest". On Thursday morning, Le Dauphiné Libéré published an interview with Marc Madiot, who said the race was emblematic of "sterilized" modern cycling. Even the receptionist at Cyclingnews' hotel in Le Grand Bornand held forth about how Sky were killing the spectacle.
Bardet's display was the perfect antidote.
"It really was instinct," he said of his decision to jump away with teammate Mikael Cherel on the descent ahead of the final climb of Le Bettex, while the wet weather was causing crashes and chaos behind.
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Tour de France stage 19 highlights video
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