Highlights - #FlecheWallonne 2023 - Vidéo Dailymotion

Tour de France™

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Transcript

00:00 [MUSIC PLAYING]

00:03 He is sparkling today with the way

00:09 that he's producing this performance for Soudal

00:12 Quick-Step.

00:12 Welcome to the 87th edition of La Fleche Wallonne.

00:18 It's been 40 years since we first hosted the race finish,

00:21 and its iconic mure has since become one of the most famous

00:24 climbs in cycling.

00:26 Today, 175 riders will tackle chapter two of the Ardennes

00:30 Classics, with Tadej Pogacar looking

00:32 to add to his brilliant solo win at Amstel Gold

00:34 and set up a potential treble at Liege-Bastogne-Liege.

00:38 The defending champion Dylan Turns is out with illness.

00:41 Record five-time winner Alejandro Valverde has retired.

00:44 And Julian Alaphilippe is saving himself for the weekend,

00:47 so plenty of big names missing.

00:49 The only formal winner on the start line is Mark Hearshey,

00:51 and he'll be working for his team leader, Pogacar.

00:54 Ben Healy and Tom Pidcock are also

00:56 riders to watch after making the podium at Amstel Gold.

00:59 Mike Woods has a very solid record here,

01:01 including third in 2020.

01:03 And there are plenty of other contenders,

01:05 including Sergio Higuita, Romain Bardet, Enric Mas,

01:08 Tish Bernout, Mikel Landa, and Nilsson Paulus.

01:11 Make no mistake, though, Pogacar is the overwhelming favourite.

01:21 194km to cover with over 3,000 metres of elevation gain.

01:25 The riders will go up the Cote d'Arref, the Cote du Cherav,

01:27 and the Muret de Ruy three times each.

01:29 And in all likelihood, it will come down to the final climb.

01:33 The last solo victory at Fleche Wallonne was 20 years ago,

01:36 although with Pogacar in arguably the form of his life,

01:39 anything is possible.

01:40 Eight riders got into the day's breakaway

01:45 without too much trouble.

01:47 Daryl Impey was up there for the second year running,

01:50 along with Laurence Nasson, Jakob Hinsgall, Georg Zimmermann,

01:54 Raoul Garcia-Piana, Johan Meens, breakaway specialist Yitze Bol,

01:59 and Soren Kroandersen, who also tried his luck

02:01 with a late attack last year.

02:02 A bit of a change of strategy, this, for the Dane,

02:08 winner of two Tour de France stages in 2020.

02:12 Meanwhile, the peloton were just happy to manage

02:14 the gap, which was slightly under four minutes.

02:16 UAE Team Emirates and the INEOS Grenadiers,

02:18 pacing on behalf of Pogacar and Pidcock.

02:21 The average speed, though, still over 45 kilometres an hour

02:27 in the early part of the race.

02:28 The peloton began to turn the screw as they headed onto the Muur

02:38 for the first time, bringing the gap down to under a minute.

02:42 Unfortunately, the race ended there for David Godou.

02:44 He was forced to abandon due to illness,

02:46 having already pulled out of Amstel Gold on Sunday.

02:49 Narsen was the first to be dropped from the front group.

02:57 The peloton, though, just keeping their powder dry

02:59 as they followed them up to the summits.

03:01 But the intensity was set to ramp up

03:04 as they hit the final two laps.

03:06 The breakaway eking out a few more seconds before Kroandersen

03:14 decided to go on the attack on the second climb of the Cote d'Arref.

03:19 The man from Alpecin de Koenig was clearly having a very good day.

03:23 Only Hinsgall and Zimmermann were able to stay with him.

03:26 With Garcia Piena in no man's land,

03:31 Kroandersen put in a second stinging attack,

03:34 and that was the end of Hinsgall's stint up at the front.

03:36 In the peloton, UAE were still working hard for Pogacar,

03:44 but the gap wasn't coming down just yet.

03:47 The two leaders heading back onto the Mure de Huy with over a minute in hand

03:50 as a few riders from the peloton decided to strike out,

03:53 including the former under-23 world champion,

03:55 Samuele Battistella.

03:57 The Italian pushing on, and he was joined by local boy,

04:05 Louis Fafaca, who lives in nearby Marneffe.

04:08 They eventually caught up with Kroandersen and Zimmermann

04:10 to make it four men at the front.

04:12 Their advantage, though, down to just 20 seconds,

04:15 with the favourites starting to think about that final climb.

04:17 The breakaway continuing to give it their all,

04:21 but it soon became obvious that it would once again come down to the Mure de Huy.

04:25 Zimmermann was the next to crack,

04:28 with other teams starting to give UAE a hand at the front of the peloton.

04:31 Fafaca and Kroandersen looked the strongest of the three riders out front,

04:38 and they gained a few precious seconds after a crash in the peloton.

04:42 That ended the hopes of Paulus, Kroon and Jesus Herrada.

04:45 UAE were clearly on a mission, though,

04:51 and they reeled in everybody except Fafaca on the Cote de Cherave.

04:54 The Soudal quick-step rider impressing on his home roads

04:58 and still going solo at the summit,

05:00 flying his way into Huy for a final assault on the Mure.

05:10 But the peloton would have him in their sights at the foot of the famous climb.

05:13 The road starting to rise as Woods moved towards the front,

05:17 Pagacar not far behind him.

05:19 Romain Barre then looked to launch down the right-hand side of the road,

05:24 but he couldn't squeeze through.

05:26 So who would make the decisive move on the Mure?

05:29 Round the turn, here's the important point in the Flesche Wallonne.

05:37 Bocchini is looking absolutely superb today,

05:40 but he's getting forked a little bit.

05:42 Pagacar moves up on the wheel.

05:44 Also up here trying to get into position is Maxime van Gils,

05:50 but it's Michael Woods who has the front of the peloton.

05:54 Only 300 meters to go now.

05:56 It's Woods, it's Bardet. Pagacar looks supreme.

06:00 It's Michal Landa behind Michal Landa.

06:03 Isaguirre's around, and here goes Tom Pidcock.

06:06 Pidcock makes his move.

06:08 Bardet kicks hard.

06:09 Bardet now goes.

06:10 It's Pagacar on his wheel.

06:12 Woods is tracking all the way up this climb.

06:15 Michal Landa, Giulia Ciccone.

06:18 Bardet is almost in slow motion in a massive gear.

06:22 And the tornado is about to strike.

06:24 Tornado tada!

06:26 Pagacar pounces and goes forward.

06:29 Is this the hammer blow?

06:31 No one is able to respond.

06:33 Pagacar has flown and coming back to him now.

06:37 Only one rider from Trek-Segafredo.

06:39 He glances across.

06:40 Has he got it?

06:42 Tadej Pagacar, a tornado has struck at the top of the Muur de Wee.

06:46 He's got enough.

06:47 Pagacar wins Fleche Wallonne.

06:49 He took the Amstel.

06:51 He takes the Fleche.

06:52 What a ride by Tadej Pagacar.

06:55 There is no stopping Tadej Pagacar at the moment.

06:58 That's three wins in a row for the Slovenian superstar

07:01 after the Tour of Flanders and Amstel Gold.

07:04 He has a staggering 12 victories in 2023,

07:07 having also enjoyed stage race success at Route de l'Elsalle and Paris-Nice.

07:11 He can now become just the third man to complete the Ardennes triple on Sunday

07:15 as he goes in search of a second crown at Liege-Bastogne-Liege.

07:19 Winning, I don't know, I think for everybody,

07:23 you don't get bored crossing the line first.

07:27 I really enjoy that and I'm really grateful that I have this moment now

07:33 with such a great shape.

07:35 I enjoy this moment while I can.

07:42 Pagacar taking win number 58 of his career ahead of Matthias Schjelmose

07:48 with Landa completing the podium ahead of Woods.

07:50 Ciccone made it two from Trek-Segafredo in the top five,

07:54 with a host of French and Belgian riders rounding out the top ten.

07:59 Focus now switches to La Doyenne,

08:01 where Pagacar will try to follow in the footsteps of Philippe Gilbert

08:04 and complete the Ardennes hat-trick,

08:06 but Remco Evenepoel is bound to have other ideas.

08:09 Do join us again on Sunday and thanks for watching.

08:12 (LIGHT MUSIC)

08:16 (MUSIC FADES)

08:19 (explosion)

Highlights - #FlecheWallonne 2023

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