Ben O'Connor
«I have no regrets.»
«It was another crazy day. Everyone raced this stage as if it were a classic, even though we're in the third week of the Tour de France. The pace was hellish. I'm really happy to be back in contention in this edition after experiencing some more difficult days. In the last kilometre, I took a chance because I knew it would be difficult to win in a sprint. It didn't work, but at least I have no regrets. I've been feeling much better these last few days. Felix's victory in Courchevel really freed us up. Now there's one big mountain stage left on Saturday to finish the job together and ride proudly to the Champs-Élysées on Sunday.»
The information
O'Connor secures a fourth podium finish in this Tour de France for the AG2R CITROËN team
Ben O'Connor's third place finish on stage 19 of the Tour de France gives the AG2R CITROËN team its fourth podium finish since the start of this 110th edition.
The Australian climber had already taken third place in the 10th stage in Issoire.
For his part, Felix Gall won the 17th stage in Courchevel and also took third place in the 5th stage in Laruns.
The AG2R CITROËN team also achieved six top 10 finishes in the 2023 Tour de France, with Clément Berthet coming fifth at the summit of Puy-de-Dôme and Felix Gall seventh at Morzine-Les Portes du Soleil during stage 14.
8
The figure
At the end of stage 19, Felix Gall remains eighth in the overall standings. «There is still a big battle ahead with the finish at Markstein to achieve our goal of finishing in the top 10 of this Tour de France,» explains Vincent Lavenu, manager of the AG2R CITROËN team. Felix is also second in the best climber classification, just six points behind the leader. We need to maintain the same mindset with the lads riding aggressively and without any complexes."
