Georg Preidler was part of the early break, as Warren Barguil finished 23rd on stage 12 in the Tour de France and is now 11th in the GC. Joaquim Rodriguez won the stage.

Stage 12 was the final part of the Pyrenees trilogy and promised to be a real spectacle with 195km and four large climbs, including a mountaintop finish on the Plateau de Beille.

22 riders formed the early break, including Georg Preidler. On the third climb of the day, the Port de Lens, the group split up and in first instance Georg Preidler was in the lead with two others. Towards the summit he dropped and in the wet and slippery descent he was unable to follow the chase group. In the meantime,Team Sky was controlling the break but without the aim of catching them, as no serious threats for the GC were in the front.

In the pouring rain two leaders, started the ascent of the Plateau de Beille first, followed by the chasing group at 1′ and the bunch at more than 11′. At the time the bunch started the final climb Georg Preidler was swallowed up again.

Team Sky showed their dominance once again in the mountains to thin out the bunch, as Warren Barguil had to let go this group with 10km to go. He rode his pace up to finish 23rd.

Joaquim Rodriguez (Team Katusha) won the stage after an attack from the initial chasing group. Christopher Froome (Team Sky) remains the overall leader as Warren Barguil is now 11th overall.

After crossing the line, Warren Barguil said: “I was hoping to get some time back on my competitors for the GC, but I had a bad day and was on the limit. For some time I was afraid of an off-day, but that didn’t happen fortunately.

“I did my best to limit my losses. The injuries from my crash took energy out of me, and I don’t have the legs of last year’s Vuelta yet. For now I hope to recover and to have good legs again in the Alps.”

About his day in the break Georg Preidler said: “It was a hard day and I feel quite tired at the moment. On the penultimate climb I bridged the gap to the two leaders, but suddenly the man with the hammer came by. I was completely out of energy and suffered from what felt like a hunger knock.

“After some gels and energy drink I felt OK again, and the bunch caught me just before the final climb, where I supplied Warren [Barguil] and Simon [Geschke] with bottles.

“During the stage I realized that we would be able to survive until the finish. There were some good riders out there, but on the climbs I felt strong and you never know what may happen.

“Tomorrow is a new day and I hope for an easy one, as it was a huge effort for me today and I’ll need to recover first.”