Alexander Kristoff: "I know that feeling of watching a Norwegian winning"

“I still believe Milan-San Remo is a bigger win. It's a one-day classic. Here at the Tour there are twenty one stages. But I've always dreamt of winning a stage at the Tour de France, so it's the second biggest win of my career today. I knew this morning there was a possibility to win. Yesterday, I took it easy because I wanted to be in full capacity today. I saved my legs. I tried absolutely nothing yesterday and I still felt good in the climbs today. I never reached my limits. However, I was a bit nervous before the sprint. I was afraid of being boxed in. In fact, I lost my team-mates Luca Paolini and Alexander Porsev. Many teams tried to go to the front but I realized that Matteo Trentin had the best lead out, so I took his wheel. That was a good move. I started my sprint exactly where I wanted. I did the right thing. I hope it's crazy in Norway tonight and it's party time in the whole country. It's funny to hear that some people cried because I didn't cry. It's a good feeling though. I can imagine my family, my friends and other people being happy. I've been in Norway watching the Tour de France so many times so I know that feeling of watching a Norwegian winning and I'm the only Norwegian in the Tour de France this year. This is the biggest race. It's THE race that everybody knows.”

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