Bonjour!  Stage 21 – So here we are!  The last stage of this year’s race. It’s been amazing – Today’s stage is the final piece of the puzzle with celebrations for the GC riders and one last burst for the sprinters.  Where do they get their energy from?  I imagine that the mountain climbers just sit quietly at the back after their effort.  Paris was beautiful as ever – and possibly the only part of Europe not drenched in rain.  The sun sank perfectly behind the Arc de Triomphe, lighting the Champs-Élysées in gold. Caleb Ewan burst through, apparently from…

Bonjour!  Stage 20 – It was ‘all change’ at the top of the General Classification at the start of the day. After three weeks’ intense and astounding racing, the top three were now Egan Bernal, Julian Alaphilippe and Geraint Thomas, in that order. The last Alpine stage would determine the outright winner, with one last climb at the finish in Val Thorens. The weather still threatened but the day began well, Bernal changing his customary white, Combative shirt for the Yellow Jersey and Thomas aiming to swap places with Alaphilippe to take second place. It was a large group that…

Bonjour!  Stage 19 – WELL!  This was the stage of all stages!  The race changer for many reasons, but primarily for the remarkable ride of Ineos’s Egan Bernal – what a star he is! It’s hard to know where to begin really – the heartbreak of Thibaut Pinot’s retirement is a start. One of my favourites and vying with Alaphilippe for the Yellow Jersey, should he fail. Poor Pinot’s injury proved too much and his team mate William Bonnet put a consoling arm around the inconsolable Pinot as he stepped off the bike and out of the race. ,..  The…