Thibaud Gruel’s second half of the season is definitely underway. The day after his fourth place in the Tour de Pologne, the young Frenchman once again showed his speed on Friday in Zakopane, in a fifth stage that concluded with a small bunch sprint. Still there despite the last climb, he secured fifth place on the day and sits fourteenth in the general classification ahead of the demanding day in Bukowina tomorrow. Rudy Molard is 25th.
On stage 5, the Tour de Pologne headed this Friday to Zakopane, one of the country’s main ski resorts. However, it wasn’t a summit finish, nor even a really hilly stage, that the riders had to face over the 206 kilometres. The day featured 2,700 metres of elevation, but the last classified climb was located sixty kilometres from the finish, although a last hill was to be tackled with barely ten kilometres to go. “It’s a climb we’d never done to my knowledge,” said Jussi Veikkanen. “So we didn’t really know how it would unfold. We had imagined several scenarios, but it was surely possible that it would finish with a small bunch, and that Thibaud could sprint.” A four-man breakaway formed shortly after the start and enjoyed a lead of more than five minutes. This gap remained unchanged for a long time before the peloton accelerated before the final third of the race. “With sixty kilometers to go, we entered a windy area that we know well, we wanted to play it safe and sacrificed Rémi so that the others could be positioned,” explained Jussi. “Rémi also took part in the chase because the gap wasn’t closing too much, and we really wanted to trust Thibaud.”
“I’m really frustrated,” Thibaud Gruel
In the long flat section before the final ascent of the day, the peloton closed in on the breakaway, with Huub Artz being the last man standing. Initially quite compact on the first slopes, the peloton thinned out significantly on the steeper, final section of the climb, and was reduced to around fifty riders while catching the leader. A few accelerations came towards the summit, before Alberto Bettiol and Jan Christen broke away on the downhill. “I was still pretty fresh on the last climb, we weren’t that many to make it to the top, and I was still well positioned, feeling good,” Thibaud explained. “Everything was going well.” In the final, the leading duo took a gap up to fifteen seconds over the peloton, but the final, slightly uphill three kilometres allowed the pack to come back, just before the flamme rouge. “Unfortunately, I got boxed in on the corner with three kilometres to go,” added Thibaud. “I tried to move back up, but since it was a false flat, I lost some energy and was a bit too far back when I had to launch the sprint.” Beyond tenth place when the final sprint began, the French puncher was still able to move up to fifth, while Matthew Brennan took the victory.
“Yesterday I was at the limit and 4th was where I belonged, but today I have some regrets,” said Thibaud. “I’m really frustrated because I felt I had very good legs and a real opportunity to do better than that.” “It leaves us a bit hungry for more,” added Jussi. “We’re happy with the team performance, but the final adjustments were missing today. He had a better result in his legs, even if Brennan seemed untouchable. That said, Thibaud is going very well, and that’s very reassuring for the next few weeks. We know he handled July and the preparation for the second half of the season well, and he’ll have nice goals.” Before that, a hilly stage to Bukowina looms on Saturday, with repeated ascents of two rather short but steep climbs. “We’re not setting ourselves any barriers or limits, which was the briefing when we arrived in Poland,” added Jussi. “Our time trial specialists are waiting for Sunday, but the rest of the team will have the opportunity to go for it tomorrow.” On Friday night, Thibaud Gruel sits in 14th place overall, 23 seconds behind the leader, while Rudy Molard is 25th, 34 seconds off.
