logo
Tour de France stage 15: Wellens lands popular win, Pogacar's sportsmanship, and why did Alaphilippe celebrate on finish line?

Tour de France stage 15: Wellens lands popular win, Pogacar's sportsmanship, and why did Alaphilippe celebrate on finish line?

New York Times5 days ago
Belgian national champion Tim Wellens soloed to victory on stage 15 of the Tour de France on Sunday. The UAE-Emirates domestique attacked from a breakaway with around 40km to go on another chaotic and entertaining afternoon of racing.
The early part of the day was shaped by a crash inside the first 20km, an incident that brought down several riders, including white jersey Florian Lipowitz and Jonas Vingegaard, third and second on GC respectively.
Advertisement
That delay hastened a series of attacks, with more than half the peloton keen to get up the road. Tadej Pogacar attempted to use his influence to bring calm to the bunch and let his rivals catch up. Few listened to the yellow jersey.
Eventually a high-quality front group that included Mathieu van der Poel, Wout van Aert, Arnaud De Lie, Tim Wellens, Neilson Powless and Victor Campenaerts established themselves, not that it prevented more tumult in the chasing groups.
Van der Poel took maximum points at the intermediate sprint but that juncture was just a catalyst for more chaos as the fourth category Côte de Saint-Ferréol approached. Attacks in the peloton, including a Matteo Jorgenson effort that was pointedly shut down by Pogacar, saw them almost catch the break, which split up anyway as they reached the next climb, the third-category Côte de Sorèze.
By the time the race reached the Pas du Sant with around 55km to go, a front four of Quinn Simmons, Tim Wellens, Victor Campanaerts and Michael Storer were trying to fend off a chasing quartet of Carlos Rodriguez, Aleksandr Vlasov, Warren Barguil and Alexey Lutsenko. On tight, rural lanes, this was highly-enjoyable fare. The two groups coalesced with 44km remaining but moments later Wellens attacked and got clear, shortly before a long downhill towards Carcassonne.
Wellens is almost the perfect rider to capitalize on that terrain. His big engine has been deployed in the service of his team leader Pogacar for the entirety of this Tour; this was his chance to ride for himself.
🤩🇧🇪 @Tim_Wellens had plenty of time to enjoy this beautiful victory and his last kilometer!
🤩🇧🇪 @Tim_Wellens a eu tout le temps de savourer cette belle victoire et son dernier kilomètre !#TDF2025 pic.twitter.com/QHYGggmswt
— Tour de France™ (@LeTour) July 20, 2025
He reached the outskirts of Carcassonne with an advantage of more than one minute and 40 seconds, plenty of time to celebrate on the run-in to the finish line as he sealed a popular victory. Compatriot Campanaerts came in alone for second, while Julian Alaphilippe raised his arms after pipping Van Aert to third place, erroneously thinking he had won the stage. It was that sort of day.
Jacob Whitehead, Jordan Halford and Duncan Alexander analyse another spectacular stage.
Find all of The Athletic's Tour de France coverage here. Or follow Global Sports on The Athletic app via the Discover tab.
Tim Wellens' Tour de France had been excellent but understated. The Belgian national champion is arguably Pogacar's most important domestique — both a rouleur who looks after the yellow jersey on the flat, and a strong enough climber to set a punishing initial pace at the base of climbs.
Having spent several days in the polka dot jersey earlier in the Tour, those days appeared to be his only public recognition — his primary role now is as one of the world's best support riders.
Advertisement
But Wellens is a fine rider in his own right — the winner of two stages apiece in the Giro d'Italia and Vuelta a Espana. In Carcassonne on Sunday, he completed the Grand Tour set.
Wellens' history with the Tour has not always been smooth sailing. He described his 2015 debut performance for Lotto as 'really bad', while he had to retire two years later with heat and pollen-related issues — having refused to treat them with a therapeutic use exemption (TUE).
Eight years later, this was to be his greatest day. He began it in the same breakaway group as compatriot Victor Campenaerts, who has been playing Wellens' role for Vingegaard at Visma-Lease a Bike. But UAE Team Emirates would win this proxy war.
💥 The Belgian champion's decisive attack!
💥 L'attaque décisive du champion de Belgique !#TDF2025 pic.twitter.com/cIncKOiNAD
— Tour de France™ (@LeTour) July 20, 2025
Having refused to work on the day's final ascent, Wellens attacked fiercely on a false flat 42km from home, a similar distance out to his winning move in the Belgian national championships last month. By striking on a small road, followed by a large highway, Wellens was able to quickly build his gap — once achieved, his pure power on a slight downhill meant the chasing group never got close to catching him.
'How is he looking?' Pogacar asked his team car. 'How does Tim look? Now, you should reply — he looks fabulous.'
Crossing the line with a one minute and 28 second advantage over Campenaerts, Wellens began to celebrate from 800m out — veering to the side of the road to high-five fans. Julian Alaphilippe edged out Wout van Aert for third, breaking up a potential Belgian 1-2-3.
'Before the stage, Nils (Pollit) and I were laughing a little bit that we would go in the break,' Wellens said post-stage. 'Suddenly, there was a big crash, so we tried to block and wait for the rest.
Advertisement
'But people kept on attacking and then I followed one move and I was in the breakaway. Then on the climb it exploded again. On the last climb of the day, I felt really good, and I knew I had to go solo.
'I had the opportunity, I took it and I had the legs to finish it — but of course I would have traded my victory directly for a yellow with Tadej in Paris.
'I knew I had to enjoy the moment. I kept riding till the finish line because I wanted a big gap to fully enjoy it and maybe put my bike in the air after the finish — but I was so happy to win, I forgot to do it.'
UAE place a stuffed toy on the front of their bus after every podium — the driver will soon be unable to look out the window.
Jacob Whitehead
Julian Alaphilippe's third place, pipping Wout van Aert to prevent a Belgian 1-2-3, was France's first podium of this Tour. But that alone, surely, was too little for the former world champion's ecstatic celebrations?
Alaphilippe's day started badly — one of the riders worst-affected by the early crash, and appearing to significantly damage his shoulder. It was remarkable that he rose from the ground to not only rejoin the main bunch, but to bridge across to the day's breakaway.
Coming into the final kilometre, he was over 90 seconds down on stage winner Wellens and second-placed Campenaerts, but after miscommunication from his team, sprinted as if riding for the win. It would have been his first Tour triumph since 2021.
'His radio was not working after the crash,' Tudor DS Raffael Meyer said post-stage.
Punching the air, baring his teeth, Alaphilippe looked close to tears when he realised he had not won. Awkwardly, French TV coverage is hosted by his wife, Marion Rousse, who was forced to try and explain her husband's embarrassing mistake.
🇫🇷 #TDF2025
Looking at the photo, you'd think Wout finished second. In reality, he came in fourth today. 😬
The rider who did take second was Victor, delivering another strong performance but just missing out on the win. ✌🏼 pic.twitter.com/ThNHpDROyI
— Team Visma | Lease a Bike (@vismaleaseabike) July 20, 2025
'I managed to put my shoulder back together,' Alaphilippe said after the stage. 'I remembered how they did it at the hospital. I fought, I had good legs. The radio was't working after the fall, so like an idiot, I sprinted to try and win. But morale is good.'
Alaphilippe has had plenty of memorable days on the Tour before — and well, this is one of them.
Jacob Whitehead
The beauty of Grand Tours is that there is always a race within a race. Or in the case of stage 15 today, dozens of races within the same stage.
From a cursory glance at the GC standings, it might be tempting to think this year's Tour is petering out, what with Tadej Pogacar continuing his dominance. But, in part due to the Slovenian, Grand Tour stages are increasingly seeing riders attack from the moment the flag drops more akin to one-day racing.
Advertisement
None more so from Muret to Carcassonne, which featured three categorised climbs, a route hilly enough for breakaway specialists to mark it as a potential stage win and offering floundering teams a chance to salvage their tour, just as Thymen Arensman and INEOS Grenadiers did yesterday. Any hope that Jonathan Milan had of taking any points at the intermediate sprint were ruined by the mayhem that ensued from the moment the flag dropped.
There were multiple attacks from the off, with riders strewn across the route in multiple groups, even more so after an early crash disrupted the peloton.
The race was run at an astonishing average speed of 52.23kph for the first 70km, and it took a blue-chip combination of Victor Campenaerts (Visma–Lease a Bike), Michael Storer (Tudor Pro Cycling), Tim Wellens (UAE Team Emirates XRG) and Quinn Simmons (Lidl-Trek) to finally form the day's decisive breakaway.
The flamboyant Simmons has been one of the most combative riders in this year's race, but second place on stage six to Vire Normandie remains his best result. Steven de Jongh, his directeur sportif at Lidl-Trek, said before the stage. 'If big breakaways are going, Quinn is one of the riders who should be in them. He's really in the shape of his life, so if they are going, then I'm pretty confident that he will make it, especially if it's a big group.'
He was right, Simmons — once again — made that front group. But again he was outmanoeuvred by a cannier rival. A Tour de France of significant gaps is still being decided by marginal moments.
Jordan Halford
Five days ago, when Tadej Pogacar crashed with 6km of the sprint into Toulouse remaining, the remaining favourites had a choice.
They could put the hammer down and force Pogacar to lose time before the mountains — or sit up, ensuring he rejoined the bunch after a crash which was not predominantly his fault.
Advertisement
Since, several riders in the peloton have claimed credit for the decision to slow down, but the fact remains — a decision was made by Jonas Vingegaard, Remco Evenepoel, and then yellow jersey Ben Healy, et al, to allow Pogacar to rejoin. The next day, Pogacar destroyed the field on the ascent of the Hautacam to take yellow, and what appears to be an unassailable lead.
'Last time I do him a favour,' some members of the peloton might have thought.
But now, on stage 15, Pogacar had a chance to directly repay the bunch. Minutes into Sunday's stage, the likes of second-placed Vingegaard, third-placed Florian Lipowitz, and fourth-placed Oscar Onley were all caught in a large pile-up within the bunch.
Pogacar was virtually the only favourite to escape the chaos — and shortly afterwards, received the instruction from UAE Team Emirates to stop. 'Guys, Jonas crash, Lipowitz crash,' it said. 'If you can slow down the bunch.'
The yellow jersey did, eventually — and the peloton rode into Carcassonne otherwise uneventfully, content to let the breakaway enjoy their freedom.
Post-race, however, Pogacar expressed discontent with Visma's tactics during this period. Pogacar chased down an attack from Matteo Jorgenson, who was with the main bunch, but 22 minutes down on GC, and ordinarily would not have been of concern to the race leader.
'There was a crash, Jonas was involved, Lipowitz was involved, and we were trying to calm things down in the bunch and wait for the guys in the back. But what bothered me was that there were three Visma guys trying to go in the break again. They had Jonas at the back, chasing.
'Maybe it would have been fair if one went in, and the others stayed and waited, so I followed the third rider (Jorgenson) to try and get in the break.'
It's a flashpoint that may be worth keeping an eye on in the Tour's final week.
Jacob Whitehead
We're all guilty every October of scanning the following year's Tour de France route when it's released, and letting our eyes jump to the showpiece mountain stages. But perhaps, after the 2025 edition, everyone will be a bit more discerning. It's what Thierry Gouvenou deserves, after all.
📸 Postcard of the day : les four castles of Lastours
📸Carte postale du jour : les quatre châteaux de Lastours #TDF2025 pic.twitter.com/XiQmApFhw1
— Tour de France™ (@LeTour) July 20, 2025
The Tour's route designer spoke to The Athletic before this year's race and said that his aim was 'to find difficulties in every corner of France'. Sunday's stage 15 was a perfect example of him doing precisely that. What could have been a run-of-the-mill transition stage — effectively a functional route to get the race away from the Pyrenees and towards eastern France — was anything but.
Advertisement
Two category three and one category two climb were placed perfectly to coax the sort of furious racing we saw all day, and the narrow wooded lanes of the Pas du Sant, so typical of the Aude region, were the perfect atmospheric prelude to Tim Wellens' winning attack, shortly before the race emerged onto a wide main road like wild beasts spilling out of a forest.
Add Sunday's stage, then, to the growing list of great parcours in the 2025 Tour de France. Gouvenou not only knows virtually every inch of France, he also knows how to turn his country into a canvas for great bike racing.
Duncan Alexander
Tadej: Enjoy 😉
Tim: Will do 🥇
Congratulations from the boss / Les félicitations du patron 😎#TDF2025 pic.twitter.com/w5bsinuAPV
— Tour de France™ (@LeTour) July 20, 2025
The second rest day of this year's Tour comes on Monday, and the riders will savour it because on Tuesday it's...
The race resumes with a set-piece finish up Mont Ventoux. It's a flat day for 130km until the riders reach the town of Bedoin and commence what's generally accepted to be the hardest of the three routes up the 'Giant of Provence'. Iban Mayo's record ascent of 55:51 has stood since the 2004 Criterium du Dauphine, but is surely in danger of being toppled here.
For more cycling, follow Global Sports on The Athletic app via the Discover tab
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

England vs. Spain: How to watch the UEFA Women's Euro 2025 Final
England vs. Spain: How to watch the UEFA Women's Euro 2025 Final

Yahoo

time23 minutes ago

  • Yahoo

England vs. Spain: How to watch the UEFA Women's Euro 2025 Final

On Sunday, reigning champions England will face Spain at the 2025 UEFA Women's Euro final. The month-long tournament has taken place throughout Switzerland, and Sunday's match will be held in Basel at St. Jakob-Park. Spain, who defeated Germany 1-0 in the semifinals, is making their first appearance in a UEFA Women's Euro final. England earned their spot in the match after nabbing a 2-1 win over Italy on Tuesday in extra time. Kickoff for the 2025 UEFA Women's Euro Final is on Sunday at 12 p.m. ET on Fox. Here's everything you need to know to tune into England vs. Spain at the 2025 UEFA Women's Euro final. How to watch England vs. Spain at the 2025 UEFA Women's Euro: Date: Sunday, July 27 Time: 12 p.m. ET Location: Basel, Switzerland TV channels: Fox Streaming: DirecTV, Fubo and more What channel is England vs. Spain on? The UEFA Women's Euro final will air on Fox. How to watch England vs. Spain without cable: Fox is available on platforms including Fubo, DirecTV and Hulu + Live TV. How to watch the 2025 Women's UEFA Euro with a VPN: If you don't have Fox and don't want to add another streaming service subscription to your life, you could always try tuning in with the help of a VPN. In the U.K., matches will air for free on BBC iPlayer and ITVX. With a VPN, you can set your location to England and sign in to one of those channels to access a live broadcast of the 2025 UEFA Women's Euro final. 2025 Women's UEFA Euro Schedule: All times Eastern Sunday, July 27England vs. Spain: 12 p.m. (Fox) More ways to watch the 2025 UEFA Women's Euro:

Liverpool forward agrees sensational move
Liverpool forward agrees sensational move

Yahoo

time23 minutes ago

  • Yahoo

Liverpool forward agrees sensational move

A Liverpool forward has agreed a sensational move and rejected the club's new contract offer in the process. At this moment in time, Arne Slot's side are bracing themselves for the loss of several attackers. Darwin Nunez and Federico Chiesa are all but certain to depart for pastures new. LFC Kits Shop Now LFC x New Era Shop Now LFC Signed Merch Shop Now LFC x Titleist Shop Now Meanwhile, Luis Diaz's move to Bayern Munich seems to get closer and closer by the day. With three forwards out, it's understandable why Richard Hughes wants to bring in Alexander Isak, on top of having already secured the future of Hugo Ekitike. With Isak and Ekitike, Liverpool will have a formidable forward line. You'll still have Cody Gakpo, Florian Wirtz and Mohamed Salah to make up the 'fantastic five' in attack. Not to mention young Rio Ngumoha and potentially Jayden Danns also giving Slot's side options in the rotation. In another world, Ranel Young could have also been part of that conversation. Last season, the 19-year-old regularly trained with Slot's first team. He even made the first team squad on two separate occasions. First against Brighton in the EFL Cup, where Young sat on the bench. Then later against Plymouth in the FA Cup, where again Young was not able to get on the pitch. Those experiences should have pointed towards hope of a breakthrough for the youngster. Despite his contract expiring at the end of the season, Liverpool confirmed that they had made an offer to him and a number of other players. But Young has rejected that offer and he has now agreed a sensational move elsewhere. Remarkably, Young has gone from Liverpool to FK Usce. Yes, you heard that right, the Reds youngster has moved to Usce. This has been confirmed on the club's official Instagram page. Who are they? Last season they were competing in Serbia's third division and earned promotion to the Prva Liga, which is the second division of Serbia. That's where they will be competing this season, and they will be hoping Young will give them enough firepower to stay up and potentially even earn back to back promotions. It's a very rogue move for the Liverpool youngster. At the same time though, it's an opportunity to venture abroad and play regular first team minutes. At 19-years-old, that's what you will want to be doing and Young can now use this opportunity to build his career. A successful season in the Prva Liga can become a springboard to a much higher level. **👉 **Liverpool set to increase transfer budget by £200m 🔗

‘Galatasaray fans gave Osimhen something he never experienced' at Napoli
‘Galatasaray fans gave Osimhen something he never experienced' at Napoli

Yahoo

time23 minutes ago

  • Yahoo

‘Galatasaray fans gave Osimhen something he never experienced' at Napoli

Okan Buruk insists Victor Osimhen pushed to leave Napoli and because 'the Galatasaray fans gave him the kind of love he'd never experienced before.' The centre-forward is set to finally complete his permanent transfer to Galatasaray for €75m after the two clubs agreed on a payment structure and adequate financial guarantees. It comes after he spent last season on loan in Istanbul, where he scored 37 goals and provided eight assists in 41 competitive appearances. Osimhen only wanted Galatasaray Victor Osimhen Galatasaray (Photo by) 'We will complete the transfer very soon, I believe it will be finalised as soon as possible,' coach Okan Buruk told Tivibu Spor in Turkey, via Sports Digitale. There were more lucrative proposals on the table from Al-Hilal in Saudi Arabia, who Napoli would've preferred to sell to for immediate payment, but the player was determined to stay in Istanbul. Okan Buruk: 'Osimhen'i bekliyoruz. Osimhen'i ikna etmek çok önemliydi, bunu Galatasaray taraftarı yaptı! Biz aynı şeyi Icardi'de de görmüştük. Osimhen çok büyük paraları reddetti.' – Her Macerayı Hareketlendiren Mükemmel Bas @ankerturkiye @cigdemmgunal x @ErkutOzturk — Tivibu Spor (@tivibuspor) July 25, 2025 'Galatasaray fans gave Osimhen the kind of love he'd never experienced before. That is why I always believed that he would stay. He hasn't let us down either. 'Everyone put in a great deal of effort to secure this deal, starting from our President, but the most important part was done by the fans. They made Osimhen experience something special. 'We saw a similar outcome with Mauro Icardi's transfer here.' Napoli forward and Serie A star Victor Osimhen celebrates after scoring a goal during the UEFA Champions League round of 16 first Leg football match between Napoli and Barcelona at the Diego-Armando-Maradona stadium in Naples on February 21, 2024. (Photo by Tiziana FABI / AFP) (Photo by TIZIANA FABI/AFP via Getty Images) Osimhen was given a very warm welcome by Napoli fans when first arriving and became a hero when helping them to their first Serie A title in over 30 years, as well as being crowned Capocannoniere. However, after agreeing a new €10m per season contract, he told the club that he wanted to move on and struggled to find anyone ready to pay the €110m release clause. His move on loan to Galatasaray in September 2024 was because the other transfer markets had shut and he faced the prospect of sitting in the stands for at least six months.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store