Even with the recent exploits of Chris Froome and Bradley Wiggins in recent years, the sight of a Brit in yellow still seems something of a novelty to seasoned Tour de France followers.
But as this year’s Tour head’s into its 8th stage Saturday from Rennes to the Mûr-de-Bretagne, the men from across the English Channel are once again proving they are now a force to be reckoned with on the Grand Boucle.
Before Wiggins’s victory in 2012, a British rider had never before won the Tour de France. Now, 2013 champion Froome is aiming to become the first Brit to have won it twice.
So far, that aim is looking well within his grasp.
Froome finished yesterday’s stage from Livarot to Fougères in the yellow jersey he inherited afterTony Martin’s Tour-ending crash on Thursday.
The Team Sky man finds himself 11 seconds clear of Peter Sagan in second and, though it is still early days, a decent lead of the rest of the “big four” general classification contenders.
Of those, Alberto Contador is the closest to him at 36 seconds back. Vincenzo Nibali is one minute 38 behind and Nairo Quintana almost two minutes.
Cavendish ends Tour draught
But the biggest star on Friday was Froome’s countryman Mark Cavendish.
So often the one bright spot during the long pre-Wiggins dark days of British cycling, the ‘Manx Missile’ has been suffering an unusually barren spell of late.
But Cavendish returned to winning ways as he sprinted to the stage win in Brittany.
It was almost two years to the day – the 13th stage on July 12, 2013 – since Cavendish last tasted victory at the Grand Boucle.
And having finished third and fourth in previous sprint finishes on this year's race, both of which were won by Germany's Andre Greipel, the win will have lifted a significant weight of Etixx-Quick Step rider’s shoulders.
"It was the longest run without one in the Tour de France for me now, I think two years.
"To get back to winning is nice. I had my wife and daughter here and it was special to do it in front of them."
The win means the 30-year-old now has 26 stage victories to his name. Just the great Bernard Hinault (28) and Eddy Merckx (34) have more.
Froome capitalises on others' misfortune
Froome, meanwhile, was happy to have completed what was a rare quiet stage for the general classification riders after an unusually drama-packed opening to the Tour. He is the only pre-race favourite who has not yet crashed on this year’s Tour – and he knows simply managing to stay upright is one of the main reasons he finds himself ahead.
But Froome was perhaps due a little bit of luck after a string of crashes ended is hopes of defending his Tour de France crown last year.
Optimism was high among Froome’s Sky team ahead of Saturday’s stage, which comes before a team time trial on Sunday.
"I think we've got a really strong team here especially on that parcours (route) for the team time trial, it's very testing, I think we're up for it," Froome told a news conference.
However, he is not writing off any of the other contenders just yet.
"Quinta has lost a lot of time already, that's quite a big blow for him, but I expect him to be up there in the mountains. Alberto Contador? The big question is how fresh is he after the Giro?
"Nibali? We'll have to see how he is in the climbs but he's been fine this first week."
Saturday’s 181.5km eighth stage could provide Froome with a chance to extend his lead. The Mûr de Bretagne sees a similar finish to Monday's climb up the Mur de Huy, where Froome was second behind Spaniard Joaquim Rodriguez but gained a handful of seconds on his main rivals.
The Mûr de Bretagne is longer than the Mur de Huy but not as steep – 2km at an average 6.9 percent gradient as opposed to 1.3km at 9.6 percent.
And Froome believes there will be some movement between the favourites.
"From what I understand, it's not going to be as selective as the Mur de Huy," said the Team Sky leader.
"But we can certainly expect there to be small gaps."
COMMENTS