Team Sky’s Boasson Hagen Soloes to Stage 17 Victory
7/20/11 - Edvald Boasson Hagen won his and Team Sky's second stage of the 2011 Tour de France with a superb solo attack near the end of the 17th stage from Gap to Pinerolo. Boasson Hagen said, “It was a really great day today. I felt a bit disappointed yesterday to not win. I really wanted the win today and I did everything I could to get into the break again. My team-mates did a great job to help me get into it. It was really hard to get away in the group as riders were chasing behind. Finally we made it away and I was feeling great the whole day. I really wanted to win so I got some extra power from that and also from all the Norwegian fans out on the course. It’s so nice to win. We did the route in training earlier on this year and I was thinking about this stage. I had a plan and everything was perfect. The race goes into some really hard stages now so I will try to save my legs for the time trial (on Saturday)."
BMC Racing Team's Cadel Evans crept 27 seconds closer to the overall lead Wednesday at the Tour de France thanks to an epic pursuit and some wayward riding on a technical descent by some of the riders in front of him. Evans remains second overall but moved to within 78 seconds of maillot jaune wearer Thomas Voeckler (Team Europcar). The former world road champion did not concede any time on the top riders immediately behind him in the overall standings, despite a few harrowing moments on the fast run-in off the Col de Pramartino. "There were more corners, it was drier and all shadowy, which made it hard to see," Evans said, comparing the descent to that of Stage 16 where he also gained time. "I certainly didn't want to take any risks, but there was a little bit of leeway there at the bottom and we had the numbers. Voeckler ran off the road twice in front of me. It makes you take things a bit more cautiously." Tomorrow’s Stage 18 will tackle the Col du Galibier.
