Indeed, during the 17th stage scheduled for this Wednesday, Philipsen tried to surprise his main rival by slipping into the breakaway, without success. Worse, during the intermediate sprint, he was overtaken by the Eritrean who now has a 33-point lead. Problem: the points that remain to be taken between now and the finish are very small.
Indeed, it is certain that neither rider will take an additional point this Wednesday. Everything will be decided in the next two stages while Philipsen cannot hope to recover a single point in the last two. There remains an intermediate sprint on Thursday and a finish that will certainly be for the breakaways. The problem is all the greater because Girmay has shown himself to be stronger than his rival when the road rose a little and he follows him like his shadow when the latter wants to break away from the peloton. The only real possibility would be the intermediate sprint of the 19th stage but the presence of the Eritrean behind him would not allow him to make a real difference.
Unless he abandons, a scenario that is no longer really credible given Girmay’s physical condition, he should therefore keep his jersey until the end.
Follow the 17th stage live
