Frank van den Broek was the perfect teammate for Romain Bardet. His total dedication allowed the Frenchman to Team dsm-firmenich PostNL to win the first act of the Tour de France and the yellow jersey, as a bonus. The 23-year-old Dutchman was rewarded with the green jersey, the white jersey and the combativeness prize, after almost 200 kilometers at the front. And he put his efforts at the service of his leader. Member of the original breakaway, Frank van den Broekwinner of the Tour of Türkiye this year, waited The bard when the latter launched his offensive 50 km from the finish. The tandem will join up with the rest of the escapees, before taking off in the lead. In the finale, when the peloton became (very) threatening, van den Broek sacrificed himself to start the sprint for the first wearer of the yellow jersey.
His teammate Romain Bardet won the stage and the Yellow!
“I told myself it could do it”
“I just don’t have the words, confessed Frank van den Broek at the microphone ofEurosport After the race, a big smile from ear to ear. We had a plan to try to win this weekend. We were good from the start and managed to take the breakaway. On the last climb, I was really at my limit. But seeing the gap with the peloton, I said to myself that it could do it. So that made things very difficult in the last few hundred meters. I saw the peloton, they were right behind us, and my legs were so sore. Maybe I’ll realize it in a few hours. But this is impossible.”
He adds to the microphone of NOS: “I wanted to go for the polka dot jersey, but I didn’t have the punch against the other guys. The last few days I wasn’t feeling well, I think it was the excitement of my first Grand Tour . There I’m dead, my legs are completely empty, but riding in white is super cool!
