Tadej Pogacar of Slovenia has claimed his fifth Tour de France title, matching the record for most wins in the endurance event. The UAE Team Emirates-XRG rider finished the final stage on Paris’ Champs-Elysees within the peloton, joining a select group of cyclists with five victories.
The final stage of the three-week Grand Tour saw the Netherlands’ Mathieu van der Poel of Alpecin-Premier Tech take first place. He secured the win after a rapid charge to the finish line on the cobbled streets of the French capital, narrowly beating his teammate Jasper Philipsen of Belgium.
Pogacar’s Dominance and Record-Equalling Feat
Pogacar’s latest victory marks his third consecutive Tour de France win. His performance included a record-breaking ascent of Alpe d’Huez on stage 19, where he secured another dominant victory. This was one of his five stage wins during the race, showcasing his explosive launch and consistent pace against rivals.
His career now includes 127 wins in eight years as a professional, encompassing major races such as the Tour of Flanders, Giro d’Italia, Milan-San Remo, Road World Championships, Giro di Lombardia, and Liege-Bastogne-Liege. Pogacar described his achievement as “something you wouldn’t even maybe write in a story book,” expressing gratitude to his family and team.
The Slovenian’s success has led many to consider him among the greatest cyclists of all time, potentially surpassing the achievements of Belgian legend Eddy Merckx. Despite his dominance, some fans reportedly booed Pogacar during the Tour, with some feeling that his performances reduce the competitive edge of the sport.
Jonas Vingegaard, who won the Tour in 2022 and 2023, abandoned this year’s race after breaking his collarbone on stage 15. This incident led to scrutiny of the International Testing Agency (ITA), which had conducted an anti-doping test on Vingegaard at 2am. Other riders, including Pogacar, also underwent early morning tests, which the ITA stated were due to “exceptional circumstances.”
Pogacar’s closest rival in the overall standings was Belgium’s Remco Evenepoel of Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe, who finished six minutes 26 seconds behind. Third place was secured by Pogacar’s teammate, Isaac del Toro of Mexico, who also won stage two. Pogacar notably aided Del Toro, 22, on the ‘queen’ stage to Alpe d’Huez, sacrificing a potential victory to help consolidate Del Toro’s podium position.
Del Toro also claimed the white jersey for the best young rider, ahead of France’s Paul Seixas, 19, of Decathlon-CMA CGM. Seixas is seen by many as a future rival to Pogacar.
Dramatic Final Stage and Jersey Winners
The final stage, typically a ceremonial ride for overall contenders, was altered by organisers ASO to include a cobbled climb over Montmartre hill. This change encouraged stronger riders to compete for the stage victory.
On Sunday, Mathieu van der Poel launched an attack with 11km remaining, alongside Pogacar. They led through the narrow lanes over Montmartre and past Sacre-Coeur, where fans experienced close encounters with the speeding riders. Pogacar eventually faded, allowing Van der Poel to maintain his lead and cross the finish line, adding this prestigious victory to his list of wins in one-day races like Paris-Roubaix and the Tour of Flanders.
The final stage was shortened from 133km to 89km due to the redeployment of emergency services to tackle wildfires in south-west France. This marks the third stage in this year’s Tour affected by wildfires or a heatwave.
In other classifications, Ecuador’s Richard Carapaz of EF Education-Easypost secured the king of the mountains’ polka dot jersey. He achieved this after winning stage 18 and Saturday’s stage 20, having topped the race’s highest point first after 5,450km of climbing.
The green points jersey was awarded to Denmark’s Mads Pedersen of Lidl-Trek, who demonstrated tenacious riding on climbs not typically suited to his strengths, accumulating mid-stage points and winning stage four. He outpaced several sprinters, including Jasper Philipsen, who won stage 17, and Tim Merlier of Belgium, who won three bunch sprint stages.
Britain’s Tom Pidcock of Pinarello-Q36.5 finished ninth in the general classification. His former team, now known as Netcompany Ineos Cycling, did not record a stage victory in 21 attempts. Fellow Briton Adam Yates, 33, showed resilience after falling ill on stage 16 and later assisting Pogacar on a climb during stage 19.
The final stage results saw Mathieu van der Poel finish in 1hr 58mins 49secs, with Jasper Philipsen in second place with the same time, followed by Mads Pedersen.
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Source: bbc.co.uk
