The day had started with fond memories for Israel Premier Tech, but it ended on a minor setback with little result.

• Also read: 110^e Tour de France: another memorable duel

• Also read: 110^e Tour de France: Thrills in front of the landscape

On the 64 motorway towards Tarbes, the road sign indicated “Foix 155”. July 19, 2022, between Carcassonne and Foix.

Hugo Houle, first Quebecer to win a stage.

“We’re not far,” Houle replied via email of this place that changed his life and sports career.

A few hours later his training hadn’t broken through to write another chapter. Apart from the temporary presence of Latvia’s Krists Neilands in the break, there was little comment on the bus after the five-kilometre downhill bike ride. Due to the altitude and fluctuating temperatures, the riders wanted to shower and change.

Unsatisfied

Unable to follow the best, Michael Woods finished in a group of around thirty cyclists 23 minutes ahead of the winner. The Ottawa runner was happy to be reunited with his parents, Deanna and Barry Woods, despite a difficult day in Cauterets.

“I’m happy to see her, but not at my performance,” he said simply before disappearing.

“We hope that the next few days will be better. He came to win a stage,” added the couple, who are lovingly caring for Mike’s two children and his wife Elly during the Tour.

Hugo Houle belonged to the same group as Woods, but in his case the situation is not the same. “I rode at my own pace. You are one level up. It’s been a long time since I understood that these are the two great attackers of the tour,” the Quebecer started, speaking of Pogacar and Vingegaard, who host the show day after day.

different profile

With a mythical pass like the Tourmalet, Houle enjoyed interacting with the crowd, even if it wasn’t his first time. “You appreciate the chance to be there.”

“Of course it’s special to see so many people,” commented Guillaume Boivin briefly, who was protected behind Houle in another group.

The 169.9km seventh stage will be held on a flat track between Mont-de-Marsan and Bordeaux.

The profile invites the sprinter teams to control the race. The finish will be decided after two kilometers of straight line on the quays. For the climbers you have to wait until Sunday.

In summary

• We were in Lourdes, at the foot of the Pyrenees. A world-renowned site for the Notre-Dame de Lourdes Sanctuary, a Catholic pilgrimage site. Every year millions of people visit the Grotto of Massabielle, where the Virgin Mary is said to have appeared to a young girl in 1858. The commercial side mixes with the spiritual side.
• At the start in Tarbes, a supporter from Quebec wanted to greet Hugo Houle. François-Olivier Hamel from Saint-Augustin-de-Desmaures is on a solo trip in which he has notably climbed the Tourmalet by bike.
• With a 60^e Tadej Pogacar, wearing the best young player white jersey, improves his record in this area. He topped this ranking at the end of the last 57 disputed stages of the Tour, having finished 13th^e Stage of the 2020 edition.
• What viewers don’t see on screen is how this crowd, so dense and crazy, manages to conquer the mountain. An incredible parade of celebrations by recreational vehicle, bike, on foot or with organized shuttles.
• In the press room, under a marquee on the Esplanade des Œufs, the roaring group of drunken fans disrupted the media, who were trying to work under incredible wedding music. In the hotel on the Avenue du Paradis in Lourdes, the contemplation was better.
• In 2022 we witnessed Tadej Pogacar’s victory on the Super Planche des Belles Filles, a summit in the Vosges. With all due respect for the Haute-Saône, the landscape comparison seems lame to me. Are you more of pebbles or green meadows?