Jon Izaguirre Wins Tour De France Stage Twenty

Last updated : 23 July 2016 By CNS Sport

Jon Izaguirre of Movistar has won stage twenty of the 103rd Tour De France on a day where Chris Froome left himself with a finish into Paris to record his third Tour De France victory.

The penultimate stage of this year's race with a 146.5km stage in the mountains in the Haute Savoie department between Megieve and Morzine.

Not since 1919 has the lead of a Tour De France changed on the penultimate day on a road race, so Chris Froome went into the stage knowing that as long as he finished with his fellow GC contenders the race was his.

The stage came after a minute's silence to mourn those killed in Munich and saw Chavanel (Direct Energie), Edet (Cofidis), Vakoc (Etixx), Kelderman (Lotto-Jumbo) and Benedetti (Bora) break before they were joined by Imanol Erviti (Movistar), Ben Gastauer and Alexis Gougeard (AG2R-La Mondiale), Jasper Stuyven (Trek), Pierre Rolland (Cannondale), Roy Curvers (Giant),  Rui Costa (Lampre-Merida), Tony Gallopin (Lotto-Soudal), Fabrice Jeandesbosz (Direct Energie),  and Michael Matthews (Orica). 

That group extended to 37 riders and they went 1.10 clear before Thomas De Gendt went away and took the points on the col des Aravais.

The rain came down as Michael Matthew took the intermediate sprint at Le Grand Bornand ahead of Sagan and De Gendt.

The lead of the group which now contained Thomas De Gendt (Lotto-Soudal), Sergio Henao (Sky), Ion Izagirre and Nelson Oliveira (Movistar), Vincenzo Nibali and Jakob Fuglsang (Astana), Peter Sagan and Roman Kreuziger (Tinkoff), Ben Gastauer, Cyril Gautier and Alexis Gougeard (AG2R-La Mondiale), Wilco Kelderman and George Bennett (Lotto-Jumbo), Frank Schleck and Jasper Stuyven (Trek), Jarlinson Pantano (IAM), Pierre Rolland, Tom-Jelte Slagter and Dylan van Baarle (Cannondale), Patrick Konrad (Bora), Ilnur Zakarin (Katusha), Rui Costa (Lampre-Merida), Tony Gallopin (Lotto-Soudal), Sylvain Chavanel and Fabrice Jeandesbosz (Direct Energie), Julian Alaphilippe (Etixx), Nicolas Edet (Cofidis), Warren Barguil (Giant Alpecin), Chris Juul-Jensen and Michael Matthews (Orica).was at 2.54.

Onto the Colombiere and De Gendt took the points again as the gap started to increase going out to 6.20 before Sagan started to set the pace on the front of lead group.

With 51kms to go, De Gendt was first over the top of the Ramaz with a lead of 31 seconds on the two chasing.

De Gendt decided he had enough and dropped back so Alaphilippe and Pantano took over the duties on the front.

Suddenly up came Jon Izaguirre and the trio went over the hors category Col du Joux Plane. With Pantano taking a corner wide, the Movistar rider picked his moment and away he went to win the stage in 4.06.45, some 19 seconds ahead of Jarlinson Pantano and 42 seconds ahead of Astana's Vincenzo Nibali.

Dan Martin attacked out of the Froome group to finish ninth with Romain Bardet tenth, some 4.12 down and Froome came over the line knowing that his job had been done and all he had to was survive the procession into Paris and take the 2016 title.

Speaking about his win, Izaguirre said: "I wanted to do the best descending that I could. I tried to go full gas and I managed to get it right. Today went really well. The victory is very good for Movistar today, and finally we have something to celebrate at this Tour de France. We came to the Tour with a dream to win the yellow jersey, but a stage victory and a podium in Paris - that’s still good.”