Tour de France 2014: Richie Porte ‘sorry’ for Alberto Contador’s withdrawal as Australian storms into second place
RICHIE PORTE has offered his commiserations to Alberto Contador after the tour favourite was bundled out of the Tour de France with a leg fracture
Good sport Richie Porte was one of the first to offer his commiserations to injured rival Alberto Contador after the tour favourite was bundled out of the Tour de France with a leg fracture on a day the Aussie established himself as a true contender for a top finish in the race.
Despite Contador’s absence from the Tour aiding the Australian’s bid to finish on the podium for the first time, 29-year-old Porte was upset at the loss of the Spaniard in the horrendous 10th stage of the 101st edition of the race.
Contador crashed on a downhill section the 161.5km stage from Mulhouse to the summit of La Planche des Belles Filles but remounted his bike and rode for more than 10km before abandoning the race. He was later diagnosed with a broken tibia.
“Sorry for @albertocontador. To then try and ride on with fractured tibia ... What a fighter!,’’ Porte tweeted after the stage.
Porte was one of the few men in the peloton to escape the harrowing 10th stage not just unscathed but also in a better position than when he started the day finishing seventh overall.
Sorry for @albertocontador. To then try and ride on with fractured tibia... What a fighter!
— Richie Porte (@richie_porte) July 14, 2014Another was Italian Vincenzo Nibali who climbed back into the yellow leader’s jersey in the Vosges mountains to move more than two minutes clear of his nearest rival _ Porte.
Frenchman Tony Gallopin, who wore the jersey at the start of the 161km stage, cracked early as the majority of the peloton battled in a stage boasting seven climbs.
“I don’t recall ever suffering like that on a bike before. On days like this, it goes beyond suffering. Honestly, I couldn’t make the most of it,” Gallopin said.
“I tried to hold on. You have to respect the yellow jersey, I couldn’t give up. I gave everything I had but the climbs were so tough right from the start. It was four hours of suffering.”
For Porte it was four hours which helped establish him as a contender for the overall honours.
“Richie looked strong,’’ said teammate Geraint Thomas after the stage. “He was fighting for the wheel and was motivated.
“All we said to him at the bottom was to get stuck in and go as deep as he could and see where he ended up.
“Obviously, being the leader in Team Sky brings with it a certain pressure, but we didn’t put any on him within the team and we’re happy to ride and get stuck in for him. Whatever will be will be.”
Thomas also suffered in the stage with bruising and cuts to his left elbow with Italian Michele Scarponi hitting a crash barrier and flying off his bike into a spectator. Scarponi suffered lacerations but the spectator was uninjured.
Originally published as Tour de France 2014: Richie Porte ‘sorry’ for Alberto Contador’s withdrawal as Australian storms into second place
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