Waerenskjold had started the last stage with only 2 seconds ahead of the Czech Mathias Vacek (Lidl-Trek) and 6 seconds over the Spaniard Alex Aranburu (Movistar), but he managed to secure victory by gleaning the bonuses for the first of the three sprints of the ‘Golden Kilometer’. Vacek and Aranburu had to settle for 2nd and 3rd places on the podium.
“It was another tiring and stressful day,” said the eventual winner after the race. “My leader’s jersey was under pressure. I absolutely wanted to win this ‘Golden Kilometer’ sprint and I managed to do it just ahead of Aranburu and Vacek. This sprint cost us so much energy that the other two were out of action. After that, I could no longer let myself be surprised because the final victory was not yet achieved. I was watching Vacek, but I could not lose sight of Aranburu either.
Waerenskjold dedicated his final victory to his teammates. “They defended my position perfectly. In the sprint, I had some problems with my chain and I saw Vacek leave. Fortunately, he did not take any more bonus seconds and the final victory was therefore acquired. I finished 2nd in the Tour of Belgium last year and now I am winning the Tour de France with confidence, but there will be other riders at the start. I will now enjoy this final victory a little. , concluded Waerenskjold.
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