Tour de France stage 19: No stage winner after hail shortens stage; Bernal takes yellow

Stage 19 was billed as a decisive stage in this year’s Tour de France and it did not disappoint. However, the way in which the race played out was impossible to predict.

Egan Bernal (Ineos) took the yellow jersey on a confusing and abbreviated stage by crossing over the Col de l’Iseran first. Due to extreme weather conditions in localized areas near the finishing climb in Tignes, the stage was called, however, and there was no stage winner declared.

The results were based on the times and placings of the riders at the summit of the Col de l’Iseran.

Bernal took the yellow jersey, having crested around 2:07 ahead of previous leader Julian Alaphilippe (Deceuninck-Quick-Step). The 22-year-old Colombian now leads the overall standings by 48 seconds over the Frenchman.

“I was feeling really good, and when they said that I had to stop I told them, ‘No, I’m not going to,'” Bernal said. “But then they explained to me what was going on and that I was the race leader and would be in the yellow jersey. I couldn’t believe it and I still don’t believe it. I’m so happy.”

For Alaphilippe, his dream run in yellow came to a close under somewhat confusing circumstances.

“We are all the in the same situation,” Alaphilippe said from his team car after the stage was called. “I don’t have any regrets. I did as I have always said I would. I did my maximum.”

“It doesn’t change my plans. I pushed myself each day and today I did in the last climb and on the descent… where I ended up in the car. I want to thank all my supporters. I don’t have any regrets.”

Halfway up the l’Iseran, the GC group was down to 14 riders, with riders falling off one by one. Enric Mas (Deceuninck-Quick-Step) was soon to go. Next was George Bennett (Jumbo-Visma). Winner of the previous day’s stage, Nairo Quintana (Movistar), soon fell off the pace.

Around 6km to the summit, Geraint Thomas (Ineos) attacked. Egan Bernal (Ineos) swung to the side and let others chase. Steven Kruijswijk (Jumbo-Visma) counterattacked, and Alaphilippe was gapped. Bernal sat on his wheel for a moment, then was gone up the road. Emanuel Buchman (Bora-Hansgrohe) was also able to join.

Then Bernal put in a dig and gapped everyone, riding through the remaining riders in the early break. Kruijswijk, Thomas, and Buchman stuck together on the road. Jumbo-Visma had Laurens de Plus, fading from the early break, to pull for the trio of contenders.

With 4km to go, Bernal hooked up with four others at the head of the race: Vincenzo Nibali (Bahrain-Merida), Rigoberto Urán (EF Education First), Warren Barguil (Arkea-Samsic), and Simon Yates (Mitchelton-Scott).

Then it was two: Bernal and Yates. On the road, Alaphilippe had lost the virtual lead in the overall to the 22-year-old Colombian.

And, finally, with 1km to go, it was one: Bernal flew to the summit of the highest paved pass in the Alps alone. He summited 55 seconds ahead of the Thomas group. Landa, who had just latched on at the pass, immediately went to the front.

Alaphilippe, riding alone, crested the l’Iseran at 2:07.

On the descent, chaos ensued when the news of a hail storm further up the road, that would make riding dangerous, trickled through to the riders scattered over the course. Ultimately, the stage was halted.

How the stage unfolded

Virtually from the gun, riders began to up the pace on the short, high Alpine stage, which began up a slight incline. Immediately, Alex Dowsett (Katusha-Alpecin) was dropped from the peloton.

Up front, a group of four managed to get away: Vincenzo Nibali (Bahrain-Merida), Dan Martin (UAE-Emirates), Pello Bilbao (Astana), and Jesus Herrada (Cofidis). But their lead was slim. A second group containing several more riders attempted to bridge up to them.

The break’s lead was tenuous; behind it was chaos, as riders were scattered along the road in ones and twos, as they climbed the Category 3 Côte de Saint-André.

Michal Kwiatkowski (Ineos), one of the British super-squads main domestiques, dropped off the tail of the peloton.

Martin led over the KOM line, with the three others trailing behind. The remainder of the shattered peloton crested 20 seconds later. Among the first over was Rigoberto Urán (EF Education First).

Thibaut Pinot (Groupama-FDJ) was suddenly drifting back and seeking the race doctor’s car. It appeared he needed some bandaging to his knee. Eventually he found his team car, grabbed scissors, stopped at the side of the road, and removed the bandage that was just applied. He was visibly in pain. And over 2:30 back. His teammates passed by without much more than a wave.

A few kilometers later, a teammate came beside him, they embraced, and Pinot stepped off his bike. He abandoned stage 19 while sitting fourth overall.

Up front, the four breakaway riders were joined by 21 others, including Urán, Warren Barguil (Arkea-Samsic), and Alejandro Valverde (Movistar), all well positioned in the overall standings.

The peloton didn’t want to let the breakaway go, and the gap hovered around 40 seconds.

Damiano Caruso (Bahrain-Merida) was the first to arrive at the top of the Category 2 Montée d’Aussois. It was clear he was chasing KOM points, with the help of Nibali. He scores two more at the top of the Col de la Madeleine.

Back in the peloton, big-name riders were steadily falling off the pace: Marc Soler (Movistar), Fabio Aru (UAE-Emirates), and Bauke Mollema (Trek-Segafredo).

Ineos domestique Jonathan Castroviejo began to increase the pace on the lower slopes of the day’s HC climb, the Col de l’Iseran. When he pulled enough to pull back teammate Dylan van Baarle, who had been part of the early break, Castroviejo pulled off and the Belgian took over. Wout Poels sat on his wheel, with Thomas and Bernal behind. Then, on their wheel, Enric Mas (Deceuninck-Quick-Step) and Alaphilippe settled in.

That’s when the attacks from Ineos kicked off.