Kévin Vauquelin
I had good legs throughout the stage, but the pace was a bit hard for me. I fought hard all day. With my team-mates from the ARKEA-B&B HOTELS team, we were always well placed at the front of the pack. We fought hard to be where we were. It was a good day. I couldn't see anything in the fog, so I gave it everything I had. That's what I said, I did it. It was one of the biggest stages of the Tour and to be where I am tonight is something I could never have imagined at the start of the year, or even at the start of this Tour de France. What's happened to me is nothing but positive. I'm happy with my level today. I've had one day after another and my legs are still there, so I'm not too far behind the leaders. It's a good step in my career. There's still a week to go, and no matter what happens next week, our Tour de France is a success.
Team ARKEA-B&B HOTELS has been at the front of the pack all day. We're filtering out the blows. We manage to fight. We would never have bet on that at the start of the year. We've all put in a lot of hard work and it's paying off. It's just too good. We finished 1st by team on a mountain stage. My team-mates are pushing me to the top. I'm only thinking of them in the last kilometre, because if I've got this far it's thanks to my team-mates. In fact, I think we're in a virtuous circle. When Arnaud Démare, who has won 97 races in the pros - and I have a bottle at home that dates back to when I started cycling - rides for you, puts his head into the wind, with no ulterior motive for his sprints the next day, that just shows the state of mind we have in this Tour de France.
