Tom Dumoulin (Argos-Shimano) was part of the break in Tuesday’s eventful stage in the Tour de France, eventually finishing 6th on the day. In the breakaway group he was joined by teammate John Degenkolb and the fact that the team was able to place two riders in the breakaway was pleasing to Sports Director Addy Engels:

"We had another good day in the saddle today. Tom Dumoulin and John Degenkolb were able to get into the break today, but John couldn't follow the group over the tough early sections and came back to the peloton, so we had Tom part of the front group.

"You can make any plan you want for such a finish, but the result of the stage all came down to what happened on the final hill. Tom was just ahead of the second group when he reached the finish line to take sixth which is fantastic, a great result. 

"This was his limit for today's stage, and we can mark another successful stage for the team. Behind, everybody made it safely to the finish line. Tom Veelers had a difficult start but was able to come back and finished inside the time limit. We will have a look at tomorrow's Time Trial course tonight and make a plan for that."

Dumoulin also shared his sentiments after the stage, acknowledging that stage winner Rui Costa (Movistar) was the stronger rider on the day.

"I felt really good today, and there was a good opportunity to get in the break,” Dumoulin explained. “I knew who we had to watch, but I saw some opportunities for myself and for the break to go all the way.  During the race I felt good and was ready for the fight on the climb. At the bottom of the climb it exploded; I tried follow the first attack but came back to the bigger group saving it for further up." 

"During the ascent I felt better and better and was able to move up. Costa was definitely the strongest today, I hoped that we would claw our way back but unfortunately it didn't happen. Anyway, I'm really happy about my performance, another top ten after the TT, and sixth place [on a stage] at the Tour is nothing to be ashamed of. It's also really promising that I am still able to play a role so far into the Tour. Now I'm looking forward to the time trial tomorrow, and will try to recover as best as possible."