Oscar Onley 's performance on stage 19 of the Tour de France was truly at the limit. The young British rider from the Picnic-PostNL team finished exhausted, struggling even to speak to journalists, but he achieved a remarkable result that puts him just 22 seconds off the Grande Boucle podium.

After being dropped on the Col de la Madeleine, Onley didn't panic. With perfect strategy, the team kept their leader waiting until he could rejoin, aided by teammates Warren Barguil and Frank van den Broek on the descent. Once back in the main group, the 22-year-old Scot managed to keep pace with the phenomenal Pogačar and Vingegaard.

'It was incredibly hard, I don't even have the words,' Onley declared upon arrival, still exhausted from the effort.

'Visma imposed a frantic pace and I gave everything I had.'

Sports director Matt Winston praised his rider's performance:

"I'm really pleased with how the guys rode today. Oscar managed his nutrition perfectly and was fantastic in the finale, finishing fourth on the stage and just 25 seconds off the podium."

Thanks to this performance and the difficulties of third-placed Florian Lipowitz (Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe), Onley now has a concrete chance of conquering the final podium and the white jersey of best young rider.

A result that would be historic for British cycling.

'I'm not sure what the exact gap is,' commented an exhausted Onley, 'but tomorrow (today for those reading this) we'll give everything we've got to try and get on the podium.'