The Tour de France is not just about the big stars and the fight for the yellow jersey. Hugo Houle’s win in Foix, in the baking heat of a Pyrenean afternoon, a story of resilience in the context of profound loss, trumped any drama that Tadej Pogacar or Jonas Vingegaard could provide as the stalemate between them continued.
Instead the day belonged to the 31-year-old Houle from Quebec, of the Israel-Premier Tech team, who made stage 16 the biggest win of his career and then immediately paid tribute to his brother, Pierrik, who was killed by a hit-and-run driver while out running a decade ago.
