So close. Lennard Kämna (Bora-Hansgrohe) came within less than 200 metres from taking the second Tour de France stage of his career at La Planche des Belles Filles on Friday, but finally his breakaway victory bid was steamrollered by the race's overall battle as if it had never happened.
Part of the day-long break of seven, with half the brutally steep final climb left to tackle, Kämna was still ahead of the race, but his advantage was ebbing away fast.
He managed to make it onto the uphill gravel section still ahead and with some 20 seconds in hand, and it briefly seemed as if he could add a second Grand Tour summit finish win to his victory on Mount Etna in the Giro d'Italia.
But the 25-year-old German all-rounder was unable to maintain stay ahead as Jonas Vingegaard (Jumbo-Visma) and Tadej Pogačar briefly duelled on the summit and finally he had to settle for fourth.
Kämna was more philosophical about his near-miss than overly downbeat as he talked to a small group of reporters after the finish. The bunch had never let the break gain a huge advantage, he pointed out, and then the collaboration in the group had never been to great either.
Then on the climb, as his strength ebbed and flowed and the team car kept him constantly informed of the gaps, he wavered between thinking he could stay away and that he would be caught.
"I think we did everything we could, but we lost it by 10 seconds. I thought if I had two minutes [at the foot of the climb] I could probably do it, but then we only had 1:30 or 1:20 or something, so I thought it was going to be tight.
"I felt really good and then I could do a fast rhythm but afterwards I had to let it go."
As for how he felt about such a narrow defeat, Kämna said simply "shit happens, eh? What can you do?"
Although he also has a German National Time Trial title to his name, with multiple wins and near-successes coming from long breakaways had helped strengthen Kämna's reputation for a man to watch in the early moves.
Nor is it only about personal glory, either. In the Vuelta a Andalusia early this year, although Kämna won a solo victory, the way he and his teammates took turns at attacking meant any of them could have won.
And in a much bigger arena at the Giro d'Italia this May, his willingness to drop back from the break and give Jai Hindley vital support mid-way up the Marmolada effectively provided the platform for the Australian to make his own blistering charge away, this time to overall victory.
"I think I can them pretty well because I know how to recover well when I'm in the breaks," he said, "and riding the Giro was a good preparation here for sure as well. In the Alps I'll have a few more chances to try for something, at least I very much hope so."
