Having looked strong in the Pyrenees, Pierre Rolland (Europcar) has faded a bit in the last few days at the Tour de France. Today he was again unable to follow the best.

"I tried to position myself before the most difficult slopes of the Col d'Allos but it was super fast," he told L'Equipe. "It was a crazy day, very fast early in the race, we ended up in a group of only forty riders when Quintana and Nibali accelerated. I tried to join the right breakaway of 25, without success. 

"Then I tried to restart, but I did not have good legs. On Allos, I exploded. I found myself with Mollema riding at the same pace as me and then I did ​​the descent with Bardet. I was lucky to have Romain (Sicard) on the last climb, he could help me until the last kilometer. 

"It was really hard, as I sensed the great champions have not said their last word. The really big teams have with teammates at the level of the leaders which is very impressive. I will try to move forward in the coming days, just like today. But there are seven to eight riders who are stronger than me."