Colombian cyclist Santiago Buitrago finished third in Stage 16 of the Tour de France, which took place between Montpellier and Mont Ventoux on Tuesday, July 22nd. Frenchman Valentin Paret-Peintre (Soudal Quick-Step) won the stage, beating Irishman Ben Healy (EF Education-EasyPost).
Tuesday’s stage was marked by constant attacks from the start in Montpellier and, above all, by an exciting uphill finish on the challenging Mont Ventoux.
After multiple escape attempts, the final stretches of the route were the ones that decided the stage’s protagonists. On the climb, Frenchman Valentin Paret-Peintre, Irishman Ben Healy, and Colombian Santiago Buitrago maintained a steady pace that allowed them to maintain a gap of just over 40 seconds over their pursuers Tadej Pogacar and Jonas Vingegaard.
Although Valentin and Ben battled for victory in the final sprint, with the Frenchman taking the win with a time of four hours, three minutes, and 19 seconds, the Colombian finished third, four seconds behind. Fourth place went to Ilan Van Wilder (+0:14), fifth to Pogacar (+0:43), and sixth to Vingegaard (+0:45).
Sergio Higuita was the second-best Colombian of the stage, finishing 21st, +3:45 behind the winner. The Antioquian rider is also the best Colombian in the overall standings, placing 19th, +54:57 behind leader Tadej Pogacar (58:24:46). With this stage’s result, Santiago Buitrago is 46th overall, 1:58:59 behind him.
Stage 17, which will take place this Wednesday, July 23, will take place between Bolléne and Valence. The route covers 160.4 kilometers and includes two fourth-category passes. The first is the Col du Pertuis (kilometer 66.3) and the second is the Col de Tartaiguille (kilometer 117).
Tour de France (2.UWT)
Results Stage 16 | Montpellier – Mont Ventoux (171,5 km)
| 1 | Valentin Paret-Peintre | Soudal Quick-Step | 4:03:19 |
| 2 | Ben Healy | EF Education-EasyPost | m.t. |
| 3 | Santiago Buitrago | Bahrain Victorious | 0:04 |
| 4 | Ilan Van Wilder | Soudal Quick-Step | 0:14 |
| 5 | Tadej Pogacar | UAE Team Emirates-XRG | 0:43 |
| 6 | Jonas Vingegaard | Team Visma | Lease a Bike | 0:45 |
| 7 | Enric Mas | Movistar Team | 0:53 |
| 8 | Julian Alaphilippe | Tudor Pro Cycling Team | 1:17 |
| 9 | Primoz Roglic | Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe | 1:51 |
| 10 | Florian Lipowitz | Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe | 1:53 |
Ranking General
| 1 | Tadej Pogacar | UAE Team Emirates-XRG | 58:24:46 |
| 2 | Jonas Vingegaard | Team Visma | Lease a Bike | 4:15 |
| 3 | Florian Lipowitz | Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe | 9:03 |
| 4 | Oscar Onley | Team Picnic PostNL | 11:04 |
| 5 | Primoz Roglic | Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe | 11:42 |
| 6 | Kévin Vauquelin | Arkea-B&B Hotels | 13:20 |
| 7 | Felix Gall | Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale Team | 14:50 |
| 8 | Tobias Halland Johannessen | Uno-X Mobility | 17:01 |
| 9 | Ben Healy | EF Education-EasyPost | 17:52 |
| 10 | Carlos Rodríguez | INEOS Grenadiers | 20:45 |
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