Standard du Dauphine Stage 7

As the valley approached, the separator came back together.

There are 18 passengers up front, with the peloton at 2:20.

We may now have two clear races: for the stage win and the yellow jersey.

85 km to go

Jumbo-Visma drives the peloton at 2:00.

Riders pass through Valloire but don’t have time to stop for a coffee as many riders do when climbing the Galibier.

Luis Leon Sanchez (Bahrain victorious), Gregor Mullberger, Carlos Verona (Movistar), Bruno Armerel (Groupama-FDJ), Omar Goldstein (Israel Premier Tech), Kenny Elissonde (Trek-Segafredo), Victor Lafay (Cofidis) will soon join the attack. The front made it 18 passengers up front.

Keep racing.

Long fights always help the best hackers fill in the gaps, so Tom Scoggins (Trek Segafredo), Andres Ardella (UAE Team Emirates) and Andre Amador (Inios Grenadiers) join Mathieu Fabro (Bora Hansgrohe) and Pierre Roland (B&B-KTM Hotels) )) on top of the race.

In fact, Amador is walking away on his own as he speeds up.

We can count six different groups as the riders dive down the descent, passing the memorial to Marco Pantani, who recalls his solo attack in the rain over Gallibert from this side in 1998.

As we expected, Pierre Roland (B&B Hotels-KTM) was first on the Galibier, scoring 15 points for his efforts.

A quick descent of close to 20 km takes them to Valloire, then the twisting slope of the Col du Telegraaf, descending into the valley at Saint Martin de Maurienne.

They go over the top and begin a long, long descent to the valley road.

105 kilometers to go

There are several chase groups scattered on the road as the summit approaches.

Bruno Armirael (Grupama FDG), Andres Ardela (UAE Team Emirates), Victor Lafay (Covidis) and Laurence Hoes (Intermarche and Ante Jubert Matero) are trailing by 20 seconds.

Andrey Amador (Ineos Grenadiers), Carlos Verona (Movistar), Omer Goldstein (Israel Premier Tech), Dries Devenyns (Quick-Step Alpha Vinyl), Kenny Elissonde (Trek-Segafredo), Toms Skujins and Kevin Vermaerke (Team DSM) are 10 Two years behind.

The peloton is in 50 seconds as they let the renegade knights try to take over.

110 kilometers to go

The riders are only two kilometers from the summit now.

They are near Monumen Henri Desgrange, who remembers the first Tour de France organizer, and then the last hairpins on the climb.

They are climbing in the air.

Mathieu Fabro (Bora-Hansgrohe) and Pierre Rolland (B&B Hotels-KTM) lead by 20 seconds, there’s a nine-passenger chase group, then Ineos Grenadiers top the group in 30 seconds.

A group of two riders and then some stalkers formed as the road climbed and views appeared down the valley as every meter of the road climbed.

The Galibier is a true giant of the Alps and reaches a height of 2,642 meters.

The climb is officially 22.8 kilometers long and has written some legendary pages in the history of the sport.

These were early attacks.

Pierre Rolland (B&B Hotels-KTM) is back again. The veteran Frenchman is eager to take KOM points atop Galibier.

Meanwhile, other knights are suffering from the back of the peloton.

This is a short, intense and painful phase of a bad day.

Laurens De Plus (Ineos Grenadiers), Matteo Fabbro (Bora-Hansgrohe), and Toms Skujins (Trek-Segafredo) join Rolland.

Other riders try to cross as the incline increases.

115 km to go

Rolland now faces an even tougher 7.5km ascent to reach the legendary Galbier Peak.

Alize Roland!

As the riders geared up for the right wing and not the steep slopes of Galibier, Pierre Roland walked away on his own.

Other riders of the Group of 29 are trying to chase after him but this is also the case with the Peloton.

As the Dauphine climbs in the mountains, the riders swap bikes and test new equipment for the fast approaching Tour de France.

Patrick Fletcher is on the ground in France for motorcycling and watching the Enrique Mas Canyon Ultimate Climbing news.

Click below for all the details and photo gallery.

EXCLUSIVE: New cover of the new Valley Breakout at the Critérium du Dauphiné (Opens in a new tab)

Van Aert is part of a group of about 29 riders, who opened a 10-second gap.

We’re seeing attacks on the stage and public command, or both. Even Wout van Aert is on the move!

This shot from the Race Director’s car by Racing Radio Sepp Piquet shows how the Peloton is lined up.

Gruppo group. Nothing can escape our hands at the moment, with riders and teams chasing each other.

Ineos Grenadiers now sends two riders on the road but Jumbo quickly follows them.

125 km to go

The first attack of 12 passengers was captured but more attacks to come.

This is what soon-to-be riders face.

The ruthlessly placed average speed after just 5km also inspired challenging attacks and races. Ethan Hayter won the title beating Luis Leon Sanchez and Tom Scoggins who were looking to attack, not just the base points.

All passengers from QuickStep-AlphaVinyl, EF Education-EasyPost, TotalEnergies, Trek-Segafredo and Groupama-FDJ are active.

This is a bold start to the stage.

The first part of the theater is the gradual climb up to the Col du Lautaret before turning right onto the steeper Galibier slopes.

There are attacks already as the riders try to form a break for the day.

The day’s stage starts from Saint-Chaffrey and immediately climbs up to the Col du Galibier.

This is the “easiest” side of the alpine giant, and while it is only 5.1% in length, it is 23 km in length and rises to 2,642 meters, where oxygen is difficult to obtain.

Click below to read the full story of Chris Froome’s decision to give up racing.

Chris Froome drops the Dauphin standard due to illness (Opens in a new tab)

They have stopped!

138 riders started Stage 7. There were three non-starters: Jordi Meeus (Bora-Hansgrohe), Chris Froome (Israel Premier Tech) and Dylan Groenewegen (BikeExchange-Jayco).

So far, we’ve had a Dauphine where Wout van Aert could have won all six stages. He took two, and came painfully close to winning three more for Jumbo-Visma.

It’s tough to design a track for any race that limits Van Aert’s chances, and his victory over Mont Ventoux at last year’s Tour makes an overall win a likely scenario. His place at the top of the standings by more than a minute only adds to the speculation about the GC show.

It’s a great day for Wout van Aert and Jumbo-Visma.

Riders take off for 4km of neutral riding.

It would go into a short but very challenging stage which is why most of the riders were gearing up on the reels.

As the biking balloon rises, riders line up in the sun to start the stage.

Bonjour and welcome to our live coverage of Stage 7 of the Critérium du Dauphiné.

It is finally time to climb the high Alps.