Yesterday’s Stage 16 (168km – Vaison-la-Romaine to Gap) near miss between Alberto Contador and Chris Froome on the final descent of Col de Manse seems to be attracting some tenuous comparisons to the drama between Lance Armstrong and Joseba Beloki ten years previously. Whilst the Texan/Spaniard encounter of 2003 left Beloki with multiple fractures and saw Armstrong going very much ‘off road’, yesterday’s action was more mundane (though certainly with potential for worse consequences) when Contador’s aggressive attack saw him slip wide on a bend, forcing Froome to take evasive action and momentarily unclip. Contador was certainly risking all in his hell-for-leather approach but as Sunday’s effort on Mont Ventoux proved it seems futile attaching Froome and his wingman Richie Porte on ascents.
Froome was certainly flustered by the interaction post-race but remained in trademark analytic mood, saying, ‘It was quite a dangerous descent and a bit careless of Alberto Contador to attack like that. He was really pushing the limits around the corners and pushed himself too far when he crashed in front of me. I went off the road a little bit and had to correct myself, unclip, and get back going again…’ Taking to social media later he tweeted: ‘Almost went over your head @albertocontador.. Little more care next time?’
As a reminder of just how much more dramatic the Armstrong/Beloki incident was, take a look at the video below…
