"We did a very good job until the last climb. Then some riders thought they could sprint all 19 kilometres of the climb and set a super high pace from the bottom. I attacked as soon as Decathlon stopped pulling, but it was a bit too early. I thought Jonas [Vingegaard] may have wanted to win the stage as I did, but he was just following my wheel. When Arensman attacked, I decided not to follow and set a defensive rhythm I felt comfortable with. Nobody else contributed to the chase, and Arensman was too strong for my comfort pace. We came close to overtaking him, but we didn’t and he deserved this win. I was pulling and counting down the kilometres left to Paris. I had to pull for nearly the whole climb, and came quite tired to the finish line.
It was a tough last three days and I’m happy that today is over. The Tour de France has begun to feel very long. With this weather today, and the ceremony after… I just want to go to the bus and take a good, hot shower. This is the Tour de France, and you never know what might come your way. We have to keep our focus for two more days."
