Everyone Thought An American Nicknamed Pit Bull Was Quitting The Tour De France But He Courageously Fought On

Quite the opposite: One almost quit.

One of the best hopes at this year's Tour de France for the U.S. was 25-year-old Andrew Talansky of Miami, Florida, who finished 10th in last year's race and looked to have a decent shot at finishing in the top five this year. But crashes have left Talansky with an injured back, and he was nearly forced to quit during Wednesday's hilly stage before making a courageous run to avoid being eliminated.

The worst came over the weekend when Talansky hit the deck in back-to-back stages. By the end of Monday's stage 10, Talansky was over 14 minutes behind the yellow jersey.

Even the official Tour de France Twitter account, among others, jumped the gun and said he had abandoned the race:

But this Pit Bull doesn't heel so easily.

Talansky spent time in conversation with his team car.

Announcers speculated they may have been trying to calm him down and try not to do too much.

A little more than three hours into stage 11, Talansky was 24 minutes behind the leaders. He had to maintain his pace all by himself as the last very rider on the road.

Here he is finishing Wednesday's stage solo - just in front of the "broom wagon," a van that drives ominously behind the end of the race to sweep up struggling riders who can no longer carry on:

Business Insider spoke with Elizabeth Talansky, Andrew's cousin, after the stage.

"As I was watching today's race I kept on thinking what a brave man he is," she told Business Insider. "I know how important the race and cycling is to him. He has been injured but continues to push through. He is not a quitter. That's what makes him a Pit Bull.