Simon Clarke

Simon Clarke has landed the biggest victory of his career in a day of cobbles, chaos and carnage that left several other Australians bleeding.

So much happened in 10-15 minutes that it was difficult to see the overview.” I’m a bit sad and disappointed because there wasn’t a lot else I could have done today.” “I can’t say enough about how hard hatted he is, and he won that stage with his head. There were a million cars in between, too many motorbikes, and TV cameras everywhere. A mob of photographers and camera crews swarmed around van der Hoorn, indicating he had won. “The race started to split all up, and then it was really hard to chase back.

Veteran Aussie Simon Clarke claimed a breakthrough win at the Tour de France, but it was agony for gun sprinter Caleb Ewan.

Visible for his polka-dot jersey and handlebar moustache, Magnus Cort-Nielsen was once again in the thick of the action finishing fifth and retaining the King of the Mountains shirt he took in his native Denmark on stage two. “I had no bad luck, felt good and played it intelligently at the end when I knew I wouldn’t catch the leaders,” he said. “I sat back in the slipstream, waited and waited and went for the line at the last second.” The race goes to his native Belgium on where he can parade through 60km of roads there in the yellow jersey. Van Aert fell early and hurt a shoulder and was almost run over by his own team car, but rallied to cling on to his overall lead by 13sec from Powless of EF. The 35-year-old Australian Clarke used a bike throw on the line in a razor thin victory over Taco van der Hoorn after Native American Neilson Powless launched a sprint in a bid for the yellow jersey but fell just short.

Six months ago Simon Clarke was preparing for life after pro racing. Now he's a stage winner at the world's biggest race. by Matt de Neef.

“I think you’ve seen all year I’ve come out every race swinging because I just try to make the most of every opportunity.” The team had taken a gamble on him, and he’d delivered their first ever Tour de France stage win. Clarke fought his way up the road and settled in for a long day in a strong breakaway. But then the confirmation came, and with it the celebrations. Just when it looked like Powless was riding to victory, Boasson Hagen finally gave in and punched away in pursuit as the chasers rounded a final left-hander with 800 metres to go. It was the sort of bike throw you might see in a racing textbook. In the sprint that followed, the exhaustion of all involved was clearly evident. After racing the Critérium du Dauphiné in June, Clarke was selected for Israel’s Tour de France team as a rider for the breakaways. As carnage unfolded on the road behind – ending the GC hopes of some and the race entirely for others – and as his breakaway group thinned down, Clarke held firm. He delivered on that promise, hitting the ground running in his first races for Israel-Premier Tech. Exhaustion, joy, and sheer disbelief – it was all there as a team staffer patted him heartily on the back, reminding him to breathe. Caught in the crossfire of NextHash’s undignified exit from the sport, early retirement looked the most likely option for the 35-year-old.

Simon Clarke (Israel-Premier Tech) took an incredible victory from the breakaway on stage 5 of the Tour de France as many GC favourites had a disastrous day ...

But the stage was far from over, as Pogačar crossed the line with Stuyven 51 seconds later and awaited his rivals. Neilson Powless (EF Education-EasyPost) found himself in a tricky position, knowing full well that he had a chance of taking yellow, but he was riding to the line with three superior sprinters. Chaos reigned on stage 5 as the peloton took on 157 kilometres and 11 cobbled sectors on the way to Wallers-Arenberg. A six-man group got away fairly early on after a short but more aggressive battle for the breakaway than we’ve seen so far this race.

Belgium's Wout van Aert of Jumbo retained his overall leader's yellow jersey despite a nasty fall, but his teammate Primoz Roglic lost around two minutes to ...

“That’s part of why I dug so deep,” he said. Visible for his polka-dot jersey and handle-bar moustache, Magnus Cort-Nielsen was once again in the thick of the action finishing fifth and retaining the King of the Mountains shirt he took in his native Denmark on stage two. “I had no bad luck, felt good and played it intelligently at the end when I knew I wouldn’t catch the leaders,” he said. “I sat back in the slipstream, waited and waited and went for the line at the last second,” he said. The race goes to his native Belgium on Thursday where he can parade through 60km of roads there in the yellow jersey. Clarke, used to riding as a support rider for others, dropped to the ground after the finish line as he struggled to contain his emotions.

Veteran Australian claims third Grand Tour win in drawn-out breakaway sprint.

So I let him pass, I waited and waited and I went for the line at the last minute. "It was a long one," he said with a grin. And everybody was contributing in the break, too," he reasoned.

Clarke was left in tours after edging the final sprint, but it was an awful day for other leading Australians Jack Haig, Ben O'Connor and Caleb Ewan.

I was cramping in both legs and I just lined up the biggest throw I could possibly do and I just prayed it was enough. “I still can’t believe I got it on the line there. It was an amazing result for Clarke, who wondered if he had reached the end of his career last winter when he was left without a team.

Simon Clarke, who didn't have a team after last winter, says he waiting for the other cyclists to panic which they did near the end.

I am appreciating the situation I am in, and I am making the most of the situation. The team gave him a chance and honestly I think the chance has been repaid 10-fold,” Zak told Sydney Morning Herald. I still can’t believe I got on the line. The last one km of the stage saw four riders including Clarke and Hoorn aiming for the top spot with Norwegian Edvald Boasson Hagen and American Neilson Powles. Clark gave a final push near the end to edge out Hoorn in a photo finish. “I mean after the winter when I had no team to then have these guys (Israel-Premier Tech team) ring me up and say we will give you a chance, just gives you a reality check to make the most of every opportunity. The Melbourne cyclist, who was competing in his seventh Tour de France, and has won two stages at Vuelta a Espana in the past, had been left with no contract after his tenure with team EF ended.

The Australian plays it cool as breakaway takes victory on the cobbles at the Tour de France.

“He got a gap and I thought maybe it’s the move, fortunately Edvald decided to chase him down and I managed to sit back and stay in his slipstream and bide my time for the sprint. He was one of six riders that made it up the road early on and survived as the group thinned out to just four by the finish line. Clarke sat in Boasson Hagen’s wheel until Van der Hoorn jumped out into the wind inside the last 400 meters. “I had information that they were coming but if they caught us, they would have to ride super-fast. With 30 kilometers remaining, the breakaway had just two minutes and a late surge by Tadej Pogačar and Jasper Stuyven inside the final 20 kilometers saw it come down to around 40 seconds. As you’ve seen all season, I’ve tried to repay them with as many points as possible and to get the first victory for them in the Tour de France is very special.

Cycling veteran Simon Clarke has landed the biggest victory of his career in a day of cobbles, chaos and carnage that left several other Australians ...

So much happened in 10-15 minutes that it was difficult to see the overview.” I’m a bit sad and disappointed because there wasn’t a lot else I could have done today.” “I can’t say enough about how hard-hatted he is, and he won that stage with his head. There were a million cars in between, too many motorbikes, and TV cameras everywhere. A mob of photographers and camera crews swarmed around van der Hoorn, indicating he had won. “The race started to split all up, and then it was really hard to chase back.