Alberto Contador (Trek-Segafredo) has been through it all at the Tour de France over the years, but the Spaniard conceded that the 2017 edition – one of his final cracks at the maillot jaune – is pushing him to his limits, as two crashes on the road to Pau dealt further physical and psychological blows.
Crashes have been a theme of Contador's recent history in the Tour, going some way to explaining why he hasn't finished on the podium – officially, at least – since his 2009 victory.
He abandoned the 2014 edition on stage 10 after crashing on the descent of the Petit Ballon, and the following year a crash on the descent of the Col d'Allos put him out of podium contention. In 2016 he crashed twice in the opening stages, losing time and suffering physically, and he abandoned the race on stage 9.
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This July, despite avoiding early mishaps, Contador has endured a rough few days stages as the Tour has reached its midway point. He hit the deck and hurt his knee on Sunday's mountain thriller to Chambery, eventually losing over four minutes, and he was on the tarmac a further two times on Wednesday's flat stage 11.
"I've never believed in bad luck but the truth is that this Tour is pushing me to my limit, above all psychologically," said Contador, with a sigh, from the steps of the Trek-Segafredo team bus in Pau.
The first crash came in the feed zone and involved a number of other riders, but the second one was rougher, coming inside the final and leaving him with a hard chase as the sprint trains moved through the gears. Contador avoided time loss but was banged up, his white handlebar tape stained with blood from his right hand.
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