Among the major absentees from the Tour de France, Julian Alaphilippe is having a blast at the Tour of Slovakia.
After much hesitation, Julian Alaphilippe has finally decided to skip the Tour de France, preferring to concentrate fully on his preparation for the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. A choice he does not regret, as he is currently enjoying the Tour of Slovakia.
Winner of the 3e step ahead of his teammate Paul Magnier, the double world champion did not hide his joy at the finish line. “The guys did a fantastic job today (Friday) and in the finale I felt it was a good opportunity to try something and surprise others. I pulled out all the stops and I’m happy I was able to achieve this. The fact that we finished first and second makes things even better,” declared “Alaf” in comments relayed by Cyclism’-.
Alaphilippe: “I’m not thinking about the general at the moment”
A success, the second of the season for him after his victory in the Giro, which allows Marion Rousse’s companion to occupy second place in the general classification this Saturday morning, 10 seconds behind the Dane Anders Foldager. I made a nice jump in the standings after this victory, but I’m not thinking about the general classification at the moment,” assured the Soudal-QuickStep puncher, and added: “ We’ll continue to take it day by day and see where we are on Sunday. »
This Saturday, during the 4e stage of the Tour of Slovakia, Julian Alaphilippe attacked on the final climb and now finds himself 2 seconds behind the new general leader, Mauro Schmid, on the eve of the 5e and last stage of this Tour of Slovakia.
