Lotto-Soudal sprinter André Greipel kept alive his record of winning at least one stage in every Tour de France he has entered with a win on the Champs Elysées Sunday, July 24, 2016, beating Katusha’s Alexander Kristoff and Tinkoff’s Peter Sagan by a few inches in front of roaring crowds in the heart of Paris.
Greipel’s Lotto-Soudal squad set up a perfect four-rider leadout for him with 1400 meters to go; Sagan, seeing this, immediately latched onto the Lotto sprinter’s wheel. Katusha squeezed into the Lotto train, and coming into the final few hundred meters, it was Katusha’s Alexander Kristoff leading Greipel and Sagan.
Kristoff launched his sprint at about 300 meters; Greipel waited a moment then followed. The big Austrian was too strong for his Norwegian rival, but it was world champion Peter Sagan who nearly snatched away the win at the line. Sagan waited perhaps a second too long; he came around Greipel but was a few inches late to the line.
When asked how he felt, the powerful Austrian, known as “The Gorilla,” replied, “I cannot describe it. I am just super proud that it all worked out on the last day and also with the team: how they believed in me during the last three weeks. They always kept tying, trying, trying but I never could succeed. Now we have won two stages with Thomas De Gendt and me on the Champs Elysées.
“We had a good plan this morning. With the headwind, I just tried to stay calm with the whole team, and once we hit the front, we hit the front. We were one guy too short, but I chose the wheel of Kristoff, which was the best today. I am really happy that I could finish it off and get another stage win in the Tour de France.”
