Stage 8

The road

At the start

Seven climbs to Saint-Étienne

Groenewegen took Chalon-sur-Saône and the classification did not move: Ciccone in yellow by six seconds from Alaphilippe. Tejay van Garderen did not take the start yesterday. Today is a Classic dressed as a Tour stage — seven categorised climbs in 200 kilometres through the hills above the Massif Central, the last of them the Côte de la Jaillière, two kilometres at 7.6 per cent, ten from Saint-Étienne.

How it was won

1. 1100 km to go

   Côte d'Affoux thins the break

   On the day's longest climb the small break is whittled to two, Thomas De Gendt and Alessandro De Marchi, over a parcours that resembles a Belgian Classic through the Massif Central.

2. 215 km to go

   Thomas hits the deck

   Fifteen kilometres out, Geraint Thomas crashes with Kwiatkowski and Moscon when Michael Woods slides out on a descending bend; Poels drags the defending champion back, but not in time to answer what comes next.

3. 312 km to go

   Alaphilippe and Pinot spring

   On the final climb Julian Alaphilippe and Thibaut Pinot leap from the bunch and slash De Gendt's lead; the two Frenchmen combine seamlessly while the chase behind hesitates just enough.

4. 4At the line

   De Gendt holds them off

   Fresher and flying, Alaphilippe and Pinot never quite close the gap — De Gendt clings on for a career-best breakaway win in Saint-Étienne, while Alaphilippe reclaims yellow and Pinot gains on the GC men.

The result