[intense music playing]
[Madiot]The Granon stage.
It's a blank slate.
The mountain is the Tour legend.
[music continues]
On a mountain ascent, pain shows you who you are.
That's the reality.
And if you're able to go the extra mile, suffering and sacrificing,
then you might have a chance of winning.
TOUR DE FRANCE: UNCHAINED
ATTACK, COUNTERATTACK
STAGE 7
[commentator] It's the 7th stage of the Tour,
between Tomblaine and La Super Planche des Belles Filles.
And the first time at high altitude in the Vosges mountains.
[crowd yelling]
Today, it's stage seven. It's supposed to be like 27 degrees. It'll be hot.
And it can be mega, mega steep.
Wout, how was your final day in yellow?
Painful.
It was definitely not, uh, how we hoped things would unfold.
Yeah.
THE DAY BEFORE
STAGE 6
[commentator] Wout van Aert is about to lose his yellow jersey
to the reigning champion, Tadej Pogačar.
[Chainel] He has a team fully supporting his mission.
There are no interim goals within Team Emirates.
It's all for Pogačar.
[commentator] And Pogačar gains his first victory in this Tour de France.
GENERAL CLASSIFICATION YELLOW JERSEY
The yellow jersey now sits on the shoulders of Tadej Pogačar.
[announcer] Pogačar!
[commentator] Pogačar has really shown he wants to stay king of the Tour.
But who can dethrone him?
Be ready that Pogačar wants to go for the stage again.
Most likely, there will be 20, 25 guys coming to the last kilometre,
and then it will explode there.
[Niermann] When we come to the mountains,
you'll see what suffering means, and how hard it is.
But we truly believe that we are strong enough as a team
to compete, um, on every terrain.
- Good? - Yep.
- I'll take some, too, Wes. - Yep.
[Chennaoui] Jumbo-Visma are desperate to win the Tour de France,
but they've had serious bad luck.
STAGE 5
[on radio] Oh, Roglič crashed!
Accident with Roglič. Roglič has had a crash!
Primož Roglič in the crash.
[woman] A catastrophe for the Jumbo-Visma formation.
[Chainel] The cobblestone stage was a disaster.
Roglič was injured.
And now all the pressure falls on the shoulders of a kid, Jonas Vingegaard,
who has never won a stage in the Tour.
[intense music playing]
[Plugge] Vingegaard. He doesn't realise how good he is.
And maybe he's starting to realise that,
but it's a guy, we say,
"If he sees his bike, he's already riding fast,
he doesn't have to train."
[Vingegaard] The goal is to win the Tour de France.
So it would be a disappointment for us to finish second again.
Of course, there's nervousness.
But I'll just try to do my best. And we'll see.
[crowd cheering]
[Vingegaard] It's amazing to see my partner and daughter.
They support me the whole way.
I would never have been able to do this without them.
[spraying]
It's amazing. It's his first Tour de France.
[horn honking]
[Vingegaard] I started cycling because
I was having kind of a hard time in playing football.
I was not so physical. People were a bit hard on me.
- [director] Hi, Jonas. - Hello.
- Here it's celebration time. - Yes.
- Funny moment. Ten seconds. - Okay.
- Looking at the camera. - [clears throat] Yes.
[Vingegaard] Ever since I started cycling, I was dreaming
of being a professional cyclist and doing the Tour de France.
Okay.
But the first eight, nine years, I was actually not so good at cycling.
Living in Denmark, it's not the best place to be a good climber.
There's not a lot of mountains.
I was working at the fish factory.
Jumbo called my old sports director.
They were talking about another rider on the team that I was on.
And he said, "Maybe you have a look at Jonas."
He said I had some potential.
Of course, you have to dream, but at that moment,
yeah, no one knows what it can be.
[helicopter blades whirring]
[announcer and crowd] Six, five, four, three, two, one...
[announcer] They're off!
[commentator] It's the 7th stage of the Tour de France
and the first test for the climbers
as they reach high altitude for the first time.
The pace has been high since the start of the stage.
Almost at the climb now. Come on, we fight there. Come on.
[Niermann] You need to be there where it hurts, and where the hectic is.
And not everybody, not everybody is capable of doing that.
[Vingegaard] The yellow jersey, it is the jersey everybody wants.
[commentator] And there's Pogačar,
the yellow jersey surrounded by his teammates.
Everything is possible for him.
[Vingegaard] When your legs are hurting, you have to keep riding,
try to not think about the pain, try to ignore it.
Rafał Majka gives way as if saying to Pogačar,
"Go for it, mate, it's down to you."
Come on, Primož, Jonas, fight.
How do you say it? You also kind of like the pain.
[Niermann] Jonas, fight for the line, huh, come on.
Come on. Huh? Come on, Jonas. We can do it. Come on! Come on!
[commentator] We've reached the section with the steepest incline.
And an attack! Jonas Vingegaard attacks.
- Go! Go! - Come on, go!
[banging]
Vingegaard in the lead, front of Pogačar. Lennard Kämna is about to be overtaken.
- Come on! - Come on! Go!
Less than 50 metres to the finish line,
and Vingegaard still in the lead with the yellow jersey on his tail.
Go!
[crowd cheering]
Come on Jonas. Come on Jonas. Go! Go! Go!
[commentator] Tadej Pogačar, the final push for the Slovenian
who is trying to take the lead in the very last metres.
Victory for Tadej Pogačar!
Damn it! I can't believe it.
Fuck!
[Vingegaard] I actually thought I was going to win.
[sharp inhale]
Yeah, I... I was feeling great.
But then, in the end, he just came with, I don't know, with 50 metres to go,
and I couldn't answer.
- [Niermann] You went a little bit early? - I went too early.
But I didn't know, I mean...
I thought... I saw the sign 250 to 200, and I was like,
"Okay I feel good. I try."
Super fucking stupid.
[Millar] Cycling, as a whole, is very psychological.
There isn't a kind of an ultra-endurance sport
that's at a professional level like cycling, where it's also tactical.
Most ultra-endurance sports are individual.
They're not team tactics. You're not playing chess on the road.
It's war games, basically.
STAGE 8
[commentator] So far, Tadej Pogačar has no need to worry.
The last climb, I... I kind of liked it.
- [reporter] Enjoy the podium. Thank you. - Thank you so much.
[Chainel] Tadej Pogačar is the clear favourite.
How can he be beaten?
That is definitely what all the teams are asking themselves.
STAGE 9
[commentator] For now, no one can question his place
at the top of the general classification.
[Chainel] When you wear the yellow jersey,
you're in first place, you're the leader, the captain.
You're king of the world. But you're also everyone's target.
STAGE 10
[dramatic music playing]
[commentator] Pogačar sprints to break away from Jonas Vingegaard.
Pogačar easily retains his yellow jersey.
To beat Tadej Pogačar, you'd have to go beyond pain, beyond suffering.
You'd have to dig really deep inside yourself
to find something to destabilise him psychologically,
then go in for the kill.
[reporter] Were you very impressed by the performance of Pogačar?
Of course, he looks strong, but yeah, I also believe in myself
and I believe my strength is in the high mountains.
So, hopefully, I can be up there with him.
[commentator] Tadej Pogačar is king of the Tour, who can challenge him?
[Chainel] Vingegaard is weaker against the clock and not as technically good.
And he's never actually secured a major Grand Tour victory.
The only team that might benefit from this squabble
is INEOS Grenadiers.
It's the most professional team,
and above all, the team with the biggest budget.
[rider] G., mate,
I'd get a grand for that, I reckon. [chuckles]
What do you reckon? I'd get a grand, maybe two for that.
eBay immediately.
[Cummings] Do what you can, when you can, with what you've got. That's all we ask.
Mandela said that. It's quite cool, I think.
[Vaughters] INEOS... [sighs]
It's like this massive
bowling ball just rolling down the road that's just, like,
you know, smashing houses and cars.
To beat them, you can't stand in front of them and take them on head-on-head,
you have to sneak around the back of the massive bowling ball
and stick a stick of dynamite underneath it, or something.
[Chainel] Geraint Thomas is a tough guy. He has years of experience.
[announcer] So, the first three in general classification.
And the podium goes to, and there he is, Geraint Thomas.
[reporter] Geraint Thomas, you've won the Tour de France.
[Thomas] I can't believe it. It's, uh, it's insane.
- Biggest emotion of your life? - Uh, yeah... [laughs emotionally]
Um...
The last time I cried was when I got married. [chuckles]
And, uh...
I don't know what's happened to me. I've, uh...
[exhales]
You've just won the Tour de France.
[Thomas] I still find it weird now.
If I think back to myself, running home from school when I was 12,
if you'd have told me then that I'd actually win the Tour...
Uh...
Yeah, I don't know what I'd do.
I'd definitely, I'd probably laugh, actually.
- [reporter] What are plans of your team? - [Thomas] Try and, uh...
Be right up there in the mix and get the best result possible. Uh...
A lot can happen, so, uh, yeah, we'll see what we do.
Geraint Thomas has won the Tour de France, that's true,
but he's 36 years old now. It will be hard for him to compete
with the 20-25 year-old kids, the rising stars.
He's clearly part of the old generation.
[Chennaoui] I think a lot of people have been writing Geraint Thomas off,
writing his career off.
That he's not going to be a serious contender,
that he's not a realistic podium contender.
[Cummings] Geraint has a shot, we've seen him do it before.
He's perhaps not the favourite,
but it's a bike race, and anything can happen.
Obviously, I'd love to try and, uh,
reduce that gap to Jonas and Pogačar.
But there's a lot of other guys in the race as well. You know?
Can't just get solely focused on them, and you get overtaken from behind as well,
so it's just taking it as it comes, seeing what we can do as a team.
As I've got older, I've sort of learned to...
take it a bit steady at times.
I think the main thing I've learned is when to take the risks.
It's... I wouldn't say I take less. Um...
My wife definitely doesn't think I take less.
[woman] You gonna show where your ramps are? Yeah?
- [girl] They're this way. - They are, aren't they?
- [girl] You come down here. - Yeah.
We're going that way.
- [man] How do you feel watching racing? - I find it stressful.
GERAINT THOMAS' WIFE
And... you've had your fair share of crashes.
- Mmm. - Um...
There was one that kind of sticks out.
I was watching, and you just basically went off the side of a cliff.
And I was actually working for S4C at the time,
the Welsh language program and, um, yeah...
I just... I started crying on air,
because nobody knew what happened to you, so...
Since that point I was like, "I just can't really watch it."
Um... So, yeah.
It was a good crash, that one, because there was nothing wrong with me,
but it was really dramatic and I...
- You didn't half play up to it. - Yeah.
Scrambling back up the side of the mountain.
Basically, there was this netting thing that stopped me falling any further,
which was pretty good, obviously.
I climbed back up and got back on my bike. I only lost 30-odd seconds or something.
Like, how fast do you go downhill?
I do over 100 K an hour, sometimes.
[Sara] So, yeah.
[Thomas] Constantly 80, 90 K an hour, probably on average.
One person makes a little mistake and...
everybody's down, so...
Yeah, I just-- I'd rather...
Most... most wives I know, or girlfriends, they do watch it.
Whereas, I'd just rather find out. You'll text me at the end of the day.
If something happened, someone'll let me know.
Yeah. Come on, then, show me the way.
[Millar] Geraint Thomas, he's in the twilight of his career.
There's no doubt.
I mean, he's at that age, he's had a long career, a great career.
EX RIDER
He is the underdog.
Max, we go this way?
This does feel like the last chance saloon for him to prove himself
and to show the world what he is, because he is a great, great rider.
[tense music playing]
[commentator] It's the queen of stages today in Les Hautes-Alpes.
[Chainel] Getting through the mountains is obligatory.
This is where you see
who wants to win general classification, who wants to win the Tour de France.
You have to like suffering.
If you don't suffer, you won't progress.
ROGLA - WIN - GO!
GENERAL CLASSIFICATION YELLOW JERSEY
[Chennaoui] Tadej Pogačar, looking strong in the yellow jersey,
this is his time to be able to exploit
this very obvious weakness that we're seeing within Jumbo-Visma.
The mountains are the perfect hunting ground for him.
[Vaughters] I still think Pogačar's the strongest rider in the race, but...
it's probably the best chance today
for Jumbo-Visma to try to
play the team card to sort of dupe him.
Whether Jumbo are actually aggressive and confident enough to do that,
I don't know. I haven't seen that yet.
I hope all of you are ready for a really big day.
Stage 11, Albertville-Col du Granon.
It's super, super hard,
especially the last seven and a half kilometres.
Most important, what we want to do, putting pressure on UAE,
make them work and attack the yellow jersey.
Jonas, you follow Pogačar
and attack him in the final kilometres when he's worn out.
Hopefully, today we really...
First, kill his team, and then get him to work.
That last climb will be so hard and so long. It will be very, very hot.
Cooling, hydration, nutrition will be crucial.
[Vingegaard] I don't think you can beat Tadej Pogačar alone.
You definitely need your team.
[Van Aert] To win a mountain stage, you always need help.
The plan is definitely to... to try and win a stage with Jonas.
I think for Jonas, if you stay with Pogačar,
really stay calm, because the last climb is so hard.
Yes.
You're always one step ahead if you're in his wheel,
and you can still kill him on the last climb up.
[Niermann] At the moment it's still there.
[Plugge] Jonas is really a strong climber.
Not so many riders can maintain a high pace
for five minutes or for ten minutes, uphill.
You know, while climbing,
which is needed to create a gap and to maintain that gap.
That's his main weapon.
[Niermann] Let's go. Good luck.
[Millar] The thing is, with stage 11, it's the sort of stage that Tadej Pogačar
will have seen and been excited about.
And that's what everyone's terrified about Tadej Pogačar because
the more sadistic it is, the more he looks forward to it.
Because he is...
as much as he's a masochist, he's a sadist as well, the way he races.
To challenge him, we're gonna have to do something
that is courageous.
And also, it's gonna be a roll of the dice because
you don't wanna poke the bear.
And Tadej Pogačar, if you poke him, he's gonna react.
[Niermann] Pogačar is looking pretty amazing,
but we are still quite close behind.
Today is the day, and we have a chance,
and we want to attack Pogačar today.
Yeah, we have to go for it.
[crowd cheering]
One, two, three. Hello, everyone, testing Radio Tour.
Good luck for today. Big day.
[commentator] They're off! The 11th stage of the Tour de France,
the stage full of dangers, with four climbs,
and perhaps the toughest pass of the 2022 Tour de France.
[Madiot] Télégraphe. Galibier.
And Granon. 151 kilometres in total.
[journalist] If you had to sum up today in one sentence, what would it be?
[groans]
"Welcome to hell."
- [intense music playing] - [wind whistling]
[commentator] And this is the Lacets de Montvernier ascent.
3.4 KM ASCENT ALTITUDE: 782 M
[Piquet] The peloton is still being led by the UAE Emirates team.
The yellow jersey, Tadej Pogačar.
Tell me
[rider] Primož is asking when are we going to attack Pogačar?
- Yeah. - He's said he's feeling really good.
[Niermann] Primož, I say it's really up to you, follow your instincts,
and let the others know what you do.
[cheering]
When I saw Pogačar, I asked him a question.
"If you were a Jumbo-Visma rider, how would you attack Tadej Pogačar?"
He said, "I wouldn't attack him."
[laughs]
11.9 KM ASCENT ALTITUDE: 1,566 M
[Cummings] I suspect Jumbo may try
to anticipate the race a little bit earlier than the final.
So, we need to be ready on, uh, Télégraphe.
[commentator] Yellow jersey peloton reaches the top of Col du Télégraphe,
with Primož Roglič attacking.
[crowd cheering]
Acceleration from Primož Roglič on the descent.
Come on, now we try, huh. Now we try.
The goal is to isolate Pogačar from his team.
We want to keep Pogačar by himself
and really try to make him use extra energy.
[tense music playing]
[Piquet]Tadej Pogačar, the yellow jersey, asks for support on the radio.
The yellow jersey is isolated, trapped between three Jumbo-Visma.
You are with four guys with Pogačar, also Thomas is there.
Everybody else drop for the moment.
[Piquet] Five riders on the descent.
Three Jumbo-Visma riders, including Roglič,
Pogačar, the yellow jersey, and Geraint Thomas.
[cheering]
[commentator]Tadej Pogačar looks around. Just 59 kilometres from the finish line,
Pogačar has no teammates at his side.
Pogačar, he will not give up and settle, uh, settle for second,
because he's trying to keep the yellow jersey.
So, I think tiring out Pogačar is our best option.
[commentator] A huge attack from Jonas Vingegaard!
[dramatic music playing]
Geraint Thomas tries to keep close.
[Niermann] If your opponent is alone,
then you can start attacking one after the other.
[commentator] Geraint Thomas giving the space.
And attack now from Roglič. Pogačar straight away onto the wheel.
Another attack of Roglič.
Jumbo-Visma are trying to rip this Tour de France apart.
Pogačar goes across.
And there he goes!
He says, "Right, if you're gonna try and get rid of me,
then I'm gonna rip your legs off!"
Tadej Pogačar attacks hard.
Tries to get rid of Roglič, tries to get rid of Vingegaard.
He may well have got rid of Geraint Thomas,
who is hauling his way back!
Vingegaard gets ready. He's on the wheel, and we're not even
halfway up the Col du Galibier.
[Vaughters] Races aren't only won like a marathon.
You have to have the pain tolerance of a marathon runner.
But then you also...
have to be lucid enough... because this isn't a sport
of just pushing yourself. This is also a chess game on wheels.
You have to be reading the race.
Should I save my energy for the next hill, or is this the hill?
You have to be constantly thinking.
And you've got to be absolutely willing to risk everything.
[commentator] It's Jonas Vingegaard's turn to attack.
Tadej Pogačar makes the effort to catch back up to Vingegaard,
with Geraint Thomas on his wheel.
They’re neck and neck.
It’s been years since we’ve seen anything like this on the Tour de France.
[Piquet] Primož Roglič accelerates.
One after the other,
the Jumbo-Visma riders are trying to destabilise Pogačar.
This is really hurting him, huh?
Doing a great, great job. Come on Jonas, Primož. Come on.
[commentator] For now, Pogačar is holding his own,
but for how long will he be able to stand up against
the Jumbo-Visma steamroller?
Just like a boxer who's been hit, you can see him wavering.
Oddly, in that situation, you no longer feel tired.
You want to end it.
You want to smash him,
hit him harder and harder until you knock him out.
It's exactly the same in cycling.
- Take the water, huh? - Take the water.
You must take the water. Good job, man.
Ice.
Take a shower. Take a shower, huh?
- [Niermann] Ice, ice for Jonas. - [driver] Ice, Jonas.
- Ice. - Take some ice.
[Pogačar] Get me water.
Pogi was begging for water now.
Pogi was begging for water, huh.
You really have him under pressure now. You really have him under pressure now.
Cycling over the Alps is some of the most gruelling,
and some of the hardest, cycling you'll ever do.
The mountains are hellish.
It's slow. It's long. It's hot.
You're suffering through the whole race. At times, it feels never ending.
To win in the mountains, bottom-line is, you've got to be one of the best climbers.
That's no mean feat.
[helicopter blades whirring]
[commentator] The yellow jersey team is regrouping on the descent.
Pogačar needs to gather his strength
before the day's final ascent, Col du Granon.
A climb that is likely to be brutal.
[tense music playing]
11.3 KM ASCENT ALTITUDE: 2,413 M
[wind blowing]
[announcer] The highest finish in this 2022 Tour,
an altitude of over 2,400 metres.
A worrying reprieve on this highly challenging stage,
with the Télégraphe, the Galibier,
and finishing with the fearsome Col du Granon.
[Roglič] On altitude in the mountains, you discover some kind of new feelings.
You have to be physically super ready.
[commentator] Primož Roglič takes the lead from the start of the Col du Granon climb.
The ten toughest kilometres of the Tour de France 2022 have begun.
Suffering is unavoidable. It's at the heart of racing.
You have to suffer,
and you have to be able to get through what other people can't.
Looks like Primož Roglič seems to be in trouble. He's falling behind.
Roglič is dropped.
Primož Roglič is dropped from the yellow jersey group now.
[commentator] Pogačar and Vingegaard are now neck and neck.
You have to try to find your competitors' weaknesses.
I know when Tadej is feeling good.
Maybe he is suffering.
- He doesn't look good, huh? - Who?
- Pogačar. He looks like shit. - No.
[crowd cheering]
Come on, Jonas, you can do it, steepest part now.
And it's really hard all the way from here to the finish. Come on.
[Vingegaard] This is my chance.
Now I just have to go flat out to the finish line.
[commentator] And another attack by Jonas Vingegaard.
The Danish rider turns to look,
and this time Pogačar can’t respond. The yellow jersey is on the ropes.
Come on, Jonas! Come on! Pogačar's not reacting.
I said, Pogačar is not reacting.
He's not reacting. Come on. You're the best.
Vingegaard closes the gap.
They’re killing each other!
[commentator] Vingegaard already has a 39-second lead over Pogačar.
Pogačar doesn't have the strength to respond.
And the yellow jersey can't match the acceleration of Geraint Thomas.
[Thomas] Being able to perform at altitude
is one of the key things to win the Tour.
It's just if you can put up with the pain.
[commentator] Jonas Vingegaard leading alone.
Vingegaard is going through so much pain
to try and secure the yellow jersey for the first time.
- Come on, Jonas! Come on! Come on! - Come on, Jonas!
[loud cheering]
[Chainel] The red zone is very simple.
It's all the signals your body sends you to tell you to stop.
[dramatic music builds]
It burns. You're out of breath.
Your brain is telling you to stop.
You just have to be able to keep going past the signals your body is sending you.
Your head hurts, your neck hurts.
Then there's the psychological pain, mental pain.
[Vingegaard] I have to keep fighting,
to keep believing in myself.
Don't be afraid of the pain.
Keep pushing yourself.
[loud cheering]
[dramatic music playing]
[commentator] It's Jonas Vingegaard's day of glory
as he wins the stage and the yellow jersey.
[both whooping]
So, so, so proud of you, little one.
- [mellow music playing] - [camera shutters clicking]
Great job.
[man] Jonas!
[commentator] And Geraint Thomas crosses the finish line!
Tadej Pogačar is in trouble.
He lost close to three minutes in the Col du Granon ascent.
[Vingegaard] This is what I dreamt of.
A stage in the Tour and, uh...
now the yellow jersey is incredible.
Fuck!
- Super hard. - Yeah.
[indistinct dialogue]
[Niermann] For Jonas, it was amazing.
That was the moment where we thought, "Okay, but this might really happen."
"We might be able to beat Pogačar and win the Tour de France."
[Vingegaard] It's very emotional to take the stage.
I won it for my family, for my girlfriend, and for my daughter.
Thank you, sweetheart. I love you so much.
[Thomas] Yeah, obviously, uh...
Jumbo were on one today.
Incredible ride by them, really. They outnumbered us.
They used it.
And, uh, we expected it, but...
Wow.
Hey man, what a ride.
- Thanks. - Congrats.
To beat Tadej Pogačar on stage 11, you'll have to do something very special.
And that's exactly what Jumbo-Visma did.
And not just Jonas Vingegaard,
but what the team did.
It was perfect.
We made a plan from the start of the day, and, uh...
we wanted to make it super hard.
But I'd never have done that without my teammates.
I really have to thank all of them.
They were all incredible, strong today.
And I would never have done this without them.
[cheering]
The yellow jersey is something you achieve in the Tour
that brings the team a lot of joy and credit.
It's a little nugget of gold.
'Cause if you stay on that cloud of victory too long,
the next day is a disaster.
Because the peloton doesn't wait for you. The peloton keeps going, and it's cruel,.
Because it keeps moving forward.
[Thomas] I just didn't expect that.
- What, you mean... - Pogačar, cracking like that.
- Yeah. - Yeah.
Same can happen to Vingegaard.
I need to snap him at some point.
[Cummings laughs]
[intense music playing]
GENERAL CLASSIFICATION YELLOW JERSEY
[commentator] Jonas Vingegaard is the new leader of the Tour de France.
How long will he hold on to the yellow jersey?
NEXT ON TOUR DE FRANCE: UNCHAINED
Winning the Alpe d'Huez is every rider's dream.
Sometimes you want those younger riders given that opportunity.
An American rider on top of Alpe D'Huez, that's prime-time, baby.
[man] This is gonna be the stage where I can do it.
Come on!
[commentator] A rider has pulled away from the peloton.
He's descending at extreme speed.
[Vingegaard] The goal is to win the Tour de France.
There's a crash in the peloton!
[commentator] One of the main domestiques of Jonas Vingegaard
has abandoned the Tour de France.
Fuck it!
[intense synth theme music playing]