In writing his name into the history books on stage three as the first black African to win a stage of the Tour de France, Biniam Girmay wasn’t just ticking a box that should have been filled-in much earlier, but instead starting his path to sporting stardom.
On stage eight, another day of frequent rain showers, Girmay, resplendent in the green jersey as the leader of the points classification, outsprinted Jasper Philipsen and Arnaud De Lie in Colombey-les-Deux-Églises to win his second stage of the race, a tally that very few, if any, would have predicted before the race got underway.
The uphill finish certainly fitted the Intermarché-Wanty man’s characteristics, but yet again the Eritrean got the better of other fastmen, who were tipped to dominate sprint days.
“I couldn’t believe it in Turin as it was really an opportunity for the fast sprinters and the biggest guys, so to win in front of them, and also for my first Tour de France victory, was something I couldn’t believe at the time,” Girmay said afterwards. “Today we planned it really well and I knew I could do a good sprint.”
A third of the way through the 2024 edition, Girmay, a 24-year-old born at 2,300m of altitude in a country that had never before produced Tour de France stage winners, is the race’s new sprint king and has a lead of 88 points in the points classification.
Will he hold green all the way to the race’s finish in Nice in two weeks’ time? “If we continue going like this, it will be perfect,” Girmay said. “But there are still two weeks to go, lots of mountain stages, and so for me personally I try to finish safely, but I don’t have any pressure to go crazy.”
Speaking to Cycling Weekly 24 hours before his latest triumph, Girmay said that “if no one guy continues winning [the sprints], it can be good for me, and the way I am sprinting gives me confidence. I will try to give everything to keep this jersey.”
Girmay’s idol as he was making his way through the sport was Peter Sagan, a seven-time winner of the Tour’s points classification, often achieved by winning intermediate sprints on rolling and mountainous days. The Eritrean, however, won’t be emulating his hero’s tactics. “He was better on the climbs so he always collected intermediate points there, but we will see – maybe I will do that in the last week,” Girmay said.
“It’s best if we let them go [a breakaway] because they [intermediate sprints] don’t count a lot of points. I need to be really close to the top three in every single sprint at the end to keep the jersey, otherwise if I am a bit far back from the top-three I will lose a lot of points.”
It’s a strategy that is paying dividends so far. Following his success in Turin, Girmay finished second on stage six, upgraded from third after Philipsen’s relegation, and won again two days later. “From my childhood it was a dream to win a stage of the Tour de France, so the first time was the best one, and the second time was more relaxed,” Girmay added. “Now is the time to enjoy my victory and I am so happy in the green jersey. I have no pressure.”
He predicted that tables, bottles and TVs would be thrown and broken in Eritrea after his historic triumph on Monday, so what about this time? “More and more happiness, celebrations and people having fun,” he said. “To win in the green jersey today blows their mind. They will be happy.
“Since Turin I almost didn’t open my phone because there are a lot of messages. I can’t imagine now to see [the celebrations] after winning a stage in the green jersey. It will be absolutely crazy.”
His teammate Mike Teunissen said that Girmay “is slowly getting there” when asked if he now ranks as one of the peloton’s best sprinters, but admitted that neither he nor his team expected him to be as successful in the Tour as he has been. “Definitely not,” the Dutchman said. “But all the sprints we have done he has shown a really good level, and today especially the finish suited him perfectly. We had all the confidence and he showed up with a really nice win.”
Girmay made his Tour debut in 2023, his best result being third on one stage, but the Eritrean, who won a stage of the 2022 Giro d’Italia, didn’t make his mark on the race as some had hoped for. “I think last year was a learning experience for him,” Teunissen said. “It really was not easy, but that experience gave him some morale and less stress to bring to this one.
“Bringing Gerben [Thijssen, fellow sprinter, to the Tour] was a good move from the team as Biniam feels less pressure. On the first stage he showed up and sprints and wins, and now he has the confidence and today he does it again. Hopefully he can do even better in the next stages.”
