Pogacar retakes Tour de France lead in crushing mountain win
French president Emmanuel Macron was on hand at the mountaintop finish to congratulate the Slovenian Team UAE rider.
Olympic champion Remco Evenepoel dug deep after being dropped on the first of three climbs to claw back level, before eventually losing 3min 35sec on the day's 180.6km ride from Auch, finishing seventh.
In the overall standings Pogacar now leads the Tour de France by 3min 31sec over Denmark's Vingegaard while Evenepoel is third at a daunting 4min 45sec.
Pogacar said after the race his team had been secretly targeting this stage for some time.
"THe plan was to win this stage," he said.
"I'm super happy to take time and win on this particular climb," said the 26-year-old who fell heavily on stage 11.
"You don't know how your body reacts after a crash. It wasn't so bad. The team did a super job," he said.
The champion had kind words for Irishman Healy, who had a bruising day himself.
"Healy tried, he showed big spirit. It was hard for everybody today," said Pogacar.
He also dedicated this win to Italian junior cyclist Samuele Privitera who died aged 19 following a fall at this week's Tour of the Aoste Valley-Mont Blanc
"I was thinking of him in the final kilometre. This sport can be so hard. It's so sad," Pogacar said.
Friday's stage 13 could shake up the standings again as it is an unforgiving individual time trial, mainly uphill, that the Slovenian has been looking forward to.
"The race isn't over, just look at the next few stages and then there's next week too," said Pogacar.
Pogacar also took over the polka dot king of the mountain jersey while Jonathan Milan has the green sprint jersey and Evenepoel the best under-25's white jersey.
Overnight leader Healy took a beating on his second day defending the yellow jersey. The EF rider slipped off the pace on the first climb while doggedly trying to limit his losses.
Having described his time in yellow as a "whirlwind", Healy is now eleventh, over 13 minutes behind Pogacar.
There were three mountains on the menu Thursday as the peloton entered the Pyrenees with the first the Col de Soulor climb with 11.8km at 7.3 percent.
A shorter Col de Borderes 3km ascent at 7.7 percent preceded Pogacar's awesome attack on the fabled Hautacam, 13.6km at 7.8 percent.
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France 24
2 hours ago
- France 24
Four-time Tour de France winner Pogacar - greatest cyclist of his generation
On his swaggering romp across France on his way to a fourth Tour de France title on Sunday, one could still catch glimpses of the boy desperate to beat his brother in the hills outside Ljubljana. But now, at 26, Pogacar has learned to curb some of his gung-ho instincts, which not only lifted him to success at times, but were also behind his rare defeats. In 2024 he won the Giro d'Italia, the Tour de France and the world title, a feat known as cycling's Triple Crown and won only by Merckx in 1974 and Stephen Roche in 1987. Pogacar's dominance of the current scene is without doubt, but the kangaroo courts of social media are asking another question, one that will forever dog cycling -- is he for real? Pogacar, a proven combative all-rounder capable of taking on mountain climbs as easily as flat sprints, has never tested positive at any time in his career. "I'm a good boy from a good family, taking no short cuts in life," he told AFP. He does indeed appear to be surrounded by a good family, a school teacher mother and a furniture designer father who live in the same village in the hills outside the Slovenian capital where he grew up. He shares a home with his fiance and fellow cyclist Urska Zigart in Monaco when their programmes allow, while his firm friend and off-season traing partner cyclist Michael Matthews of Australia is a near neighbour. "He hasn't changed, he's such a humble guy. He just wants to have fun and enjoy his riding," Matthews said. Pogacar is credited with having recreated that family spirit at his Team UAE, with whom he signed a 54-million-dollar six-year contract last November, according to Italian sports daily La Gazzetta dello Sport. 'No pretences' Teammate Pavel Sivakov told AFP that Pogacar was easy to deal with and a constantly positive personality. "He's always super relaxed and easy to work with. Mentally he's always focused on the positives. We know he's always going to deliver whatever he can. He's humble and good for the atmosphere in the team," said Sivakov. While most agree there is something boyish about Pogacar, there are signs he has grown up. "This is my sixth Tour de France now, I miss the white jersey," he told reporters, referring to the jersey worn by the best-placed rider aged 26 and under. In taking on his great rival, the two-time Tour de France winner Jonas Vingegaard, Pogacar has galvanised his team and forced them to control the peloton, leading to accusations of arrogance. "There's a difference between arrogance and trying to win a Tour de France," retorted the man who psyches himself up by listening to Slovenian rapper Drill. He still rides a bike with a sticker of the Incredible Hulk on it, joking: "He's the one you shouldn't make angry." Fellow Slovenian Matej Mohoric, himself a junior world champion and elite rider for the Bahrain Victorious team, said this week that Pogacar was a true great. "He was born with a machine inside him, and he was born with the brain to use that machine," Mohoric said. There will always be doubters, but during his victorious charge across France, Pogacar was already scanning the horizon for the next win. "Unlike a lot of cyclists I haven't booked any holidays, so maybe I'll race the Vuelta," he said of the Spanish Tour, which starts on August 23. He will also be in the Rwandan capital Kigali in September to defend the world road race title.
LeMonde
3 hours ago
- LeMonde
Tour de France 2025 : le classement général complet à l'issue de la 21e et dernière étape
Grandissime favori au départ de cette 112 e édition, Tadej Pogacar a remporté son quatrième Tour de France dimanche 27 juillet, à l'issue d'une 21 e et dernière étape perturbée par la pluie, qui a vu le Belge Wout van Aert s'imposer sur les Champs-Elysées. Tadej Pogacar (Slovénie ; UAE Team Emirates-XRG) : 76 h 00 min 32 s Jonas Vingegaard (Danemark ; Visma-Lease a Bike) + 4 min 24 s Florian Lipowitz (Allemagne ; Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe) + 11 min 0 s Oscar Onley (Royaume-Uni ; Picnic-PostNL) + 12 min 12 s Felix Gall (Autriche ; Decathlon-AG2R La Mondiale) + 17 min 12 s Tobias Johannessen (Norvège ; Uno-X Mobility) + 20 min 14 s Kévin Vauquelin (France ; Arkéa-B & B Hotels) + 22 min 35 s Primoz Roglic (Slovénie ; Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe) + 25 min 30 s Ben Healy (Irlande ; EF Education-EasyPost) + 28 min 2 s Jordan Jegat (France ; TotalEnergies) + 32 min 42 s Ben O'Connor (Australie ; Jayco-AlUla) + 34 min 34 s Thymen Arensman (Pays-Bas ; Ineos Grenadiers) + 52 min 41 s Jhonatan Narvaez (Équateur ; UAE Team Emirates-XRG) + 1 h 4 min 36 s Sergio Higuita (Colombie ; XDS-Astana) + 1 h 8 min 19 s Simon Yates (Royaume-Uni ; Visma-Lease a Bike) + 1 h 17 min 30 s Guillaume Martin-Guyonnet (France ; Groupama-FDJ) + 1 h 18 min 7 s Sepp Kuss (Etats-Unis ; Visma-Lease a Bike) + 1 h 20 min 24 s Gregor Mühlberger (Autriche ; Movistar) + 1 h 28 min 17 s Matteo Jorgenson (Etats-Unis ; Visma-Lease a Bike) + 1 h 29 min 28 s Cristian Rodriguez (Espagne ; Arkéa-B & B Hotels) + 1 h 36 min 15 s Valentin Madouas (France ; Groupama-FDJ) + 1 h 39 min 46 s Xandro Meurisse (Belgique ; Alpecin-Deceuninck) + 1 h 43 min 46 s Warren Barguil (France ; Picnic-PostNL) + 1 h 48 min 9 s Adam Yates (Royaume-Uni ; UAE Team Emirates-XRG) + 1 h 48 min 41 s Aurélien Paret-Peintre (France ; Decathlon-AG2R La Mondiale) + 2 h 12 min 52 s Raul Garcia Pierna (Espagne ; Arkéa-B & B Hotels) + 2 h 15 min 58 s Aleksandr Vlasov (Russie ; Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe) + 2 h 16 min 15 s Victor Campenaerts (Belgique ; Visma-Lease a Bike) + 2 h 20 min 36 s Marc Soler (Espagne ; UAE Team Emirates-XRG) + 2 h 21 min 1 s Emanuel Buchmann (Allemagne ; Cofidis) + 2 h 21 min 34 s Einer Rubio Reyes (Colombie ; Movistar) + 2 h 21 min 56 s Ilan Van Wilder (Belgique ; Soudal-Quick Step) + 2 h 23 min 14 s Callum Scotson (Australie ; Decathlon-AG2R La Mondiale) + 2 h 25 min 40 s Romain Grégoire (France ; Groupama-FDJ) + 2 h 25 min 58 s Harrison Sweeny (Australie ; EF Education-EasyPost) + 2 h 27 min 58 s Clément Berthet (France ; Decathlon-AG2R La Mondiale) + 2 h 32 min 50 s Tim Wellens (Belgique ; UAE Team Emirates-XRG) + 2 h 38 min 24 s Simone Velasco (Italie ; XDS-Astana) + 2 h 41 min 31 s Frank Van Den Broek (Pays-Bas ; Picnic-PostNL) + 2 h 45 min 44 s Santiago Buitrago (Colombie ; Bahrain Victorius) + 2 h 45 min 48 s Valentin Paret-Peintre (France ; Soudal-Quick Step) + 2 h 47 min 5 s Michael Storer (Australie ; Tudor) + 2 h 50 min 51 s Clément Venturini (France ; Arkéa-B & B Hotels) + 2 h 52 min 39 s Harold Tejada (Colombie ; XDS-Astana) + 2 h 54 min 34 s Quentin Pacher (France ; Groupama-FDJ) + 2 h 56 min 0 s Alex Baudin (France ; EF Education-EasyPost) + 2 h 56 min 15 s Neilson Powless (Etats-Unis ; EF Education-EasyPost) + 2 h 58 min 52 s Joseph Blackmore (Royaume-Uni ; Israel-Premier Tech) + 2 h 59 min 4 s Pascal Eenkhoorn (Pays-Bas ; Soudal-Quick Step) + 3 h 0 min 25 s Bruno Armirail (France ; Decathlon-AG2R La Mondiale) + 3 h 3 min 12 s Ewen Costiou (France ; Arkéa-B & B Hotels) + 3 h 6 min 35 s Michael Woods (Canada ; Israel-Premier Tech) + 3 h 6 min 59 s Axel Laurance (France ; Ineos Grenadiers) + 3 h 10 min 10 s Tiesj Benoot (Belgique ; Visma-Lease a Bike) + 3 h 10 min 19 s Alexandre Delettre (France ; TotalEnergies) + 3 h 12 min 28 s Julian Alaphilippe (France ; Tudor) + 3 h 13 min 20 s Andreas Leknessund (Norvège ; Uno-X Mobility) + 3 h 14 min 44 s Geraint Thomas (Royaume-Uni ; Ineos Grenadiers) + 3 h 14 min 57 s Quinn Simmons (Etats-Unis ; Lidl-Trek) + 3 h 17 min 36 s Thomas Gachignard (France ; TotalEnergies) + 3 h 23 min 14 s Mathis Le Berre (France ; Arkéa-B & B Hotels) + 3 h 25 min 28 s Jasper Stuyven (Belgique ; Lidl-Trek) + 3 h 26 min 11 s Mathieu Burgaudeau (France ; TotalEnergies) + 3 h 26 min 18 s Markus Hoelgaard (Norvège ; Uno-X Mobility) + 3 h 26 min 29 s Emiel Verstrynge (Belgique ; Alpecin-Deceuninck) + 3 h 28 min 1 s Jenno Berckmoes (Belgique ; 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Tudor) + 3 h 53 min 18 s Brent Van Moer (Belgique ; Lotto) + 3 h 53 min 19 s Clément Champoussin (France ; XDS-Astana) + 3 h 53 min 27 s Kaden Groves (Australie ; Alpecin-Deceuninck) + 3 h 53 min 29 s Pavel Sivakov (France ; UAE Team Emirates-XRG) + 3 h 54 min 19 s Krists Neilands (Lettonie ; Israel-Premier Tech) + 3 h 54 min 25 s Laurence Pithie (Nouvelle-Zélande ; Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe) + 3 h 54 min 44 s Dylan Teuns (Belgique ; Cofidis) + 3 h 55 min 48 s Kasper Asgreen (Danemark ; EF Education-EasyPost) + 3 h 58 min 25 s Alexey Lutsenko (Kazakhstan ; Israel-Premier Tech) + 3 h 59 min 52 s Clément Russo (France ; Groupama-FDJ) + 4 h 1 min 44 s Damien Touzé (France ; Cofidis) + 4 h 1 min 48 s Toms Skujins (Lettonie ; Lidl-Trek) + 4 h 4 min 16 s Tobias Lund Andresen (Danemark ; Picnic-PostNL) + 4 h 6 min 51 s Marco Haller (Autriche ; Tudor) + 4 h 9 min 24 s Jonas Rickaert (Belgique ; Alpecin-Deceuninck) + 4 h 11 min 17 s Matteo Trentin (Italie ; Tudor) + 4 h 12 min 31 s Matis Louvel (France ; Israel-Premier Tech) + 4 h 13 min 1 s Mauro Schmid (Suisse ; Jayco-AlUla) + 4 h 14 min 0 s William Barta (Etats-Unis ; Movistar) + 4 h 20 min 7 s Gianni Vermeersch (Belgique ; Alpecin-Deceuninck) + 4 h 22 min 29 s Fred Wright (Royaume-Uni ; Bahrain Victorius) + 4 h 22 min 52 s Gianni Moscon (Italie ; Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe) + 4 h 30 min 56 s Anthony Turgis (France ; TotalEnergies) + 4 h 31 min 58 s Ivan Romeo Abad (Espagne ; Movistar) + 4 h 33 min 49 s Jake Stewart (Royaume-Uni ; Israel-Premier Tech) + 4 h 36 min 37 s Connor Swift (Royaume-Uni ; Ineos Grenadiers) + 4 h 40 min 30 s Pablo Castrillo Zapater (Espagne ; Movistar) + 4 h 42 min 51 s Paul Penhoet (France ; Groupama-FDJ) + 4 h 44 min 44 s Niklas Märkl (Allemagne ; Picnic-PostNL) + 4 h 46 min 23 s Mick Van Dijke (Pays-Bas ; Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe) + 4 h 46 min 50 s Vincenzo Albanese (Italie ; EF Education-EasyPost) + 4 h 48 min 20 s Samuel Watson (Royaume-Uni ; Ineos Grenadiers) + 4 h 50 min 14 s Thibau Nys (Belgique ; Lidl-Trek) + 4 h 50 min 42 s Ivan Garcia Cortina (Espagne ; Movistar) + 4 h 53 min 18 s Edoardo Affini (Italie ; Visma-Lease a Bike) + 4 h 54 min 53 s Alberto Dainese (Italie ; Tudor) + 4 h 56 min 31 s Tim Naberman (Pays-Bas ; Picnic-PostNL) + 5 h 0 min 3 s Luke Plapp (Australie ; Jayco-AlUla) + 5 h 2 min 34 s Eduardo Sepulveda (Argentine ; Lotto) + 5 h 2 min 54 s Robert Stannard (Australie ; Bahrain Victorius) + 5 h 3 min 30 s Mattéo Vercher (France ; TotalEnergies) + 5 h 6 min 33 s Pascal Ackermann (Allemagne ; Israel-Premier Tech) + 5 h 9 min 57 s Matej Mohoric (Slovénie ; Bahrain Victorius) + 5 h 10 min 13 s Lewis Askey (Royaume-Uni ; Groupama-FDJ) + 5 h 10 min 40 s Jonas Rutsch (Allemagne ; Intermarché-Wanty) + 5 h 11 min 7 s Jarrad Drizners (Australie ; Lotto) + 5 h 11 min 17 s Magnus Cort Nielsen (Danemark ; Uno-X Mobility) + 5 h 11 min 51 s Silvan Dillier (Suisse ; Alpecin-Deceuninck) + 5 h 14 min 12 s Biniam Girmay (Érythrée ; Intermarché-Wanty) + 5 h 14 min 55 s Pavel Bittner (République tchèque ; Picnic-PostNL) + 5 h 17 min 44 s Sean Flynn (Royaume-Uni ; Picnic-PostNL) + 5 h 18 min 13 s Davide Ballerini (Italie ; XDS-Astana) + 5 h 20 min 22 s Amaury Capiot (Belgique ; Arkéa-B & B Hotels) + 5 h 22 min 38 s Luke Durbridge (Australie ; Jayco-AlUla) + 5 h 23 min 21 s Hugo Page (France ; Intermarché-Wanty) + 5 h 24 min 23 s Stian Edvardsen-Fredheim (Norvège ; Uno-X Mobility) + 5 h 26 min 41 s Elmar Reinders (Pays-Bas ; Jayco-AlUla) + 5 h 28 min 50 s Laurenz Rex (Belgique ; Intermarché-Wanty) + 5 h 29 min 16 s Arnaud De Lie (Belgique ; Lotto) + 5 h 29 min 35 s Vito Braet (Belgique ; Intermarché-Wanty) + 5 h 32 min 4 s Sébastien Grignard (Belgique ; Lotto) + 5 h 33 min 48 s Alexis Renard (France ; Cofidis) + 5 h 34 min 56 s Jonathan Milan (Italie ; Lidl-Trek) + 5 h 35 min 35 s Bert Van Lerberghe (Belgique ; Soudal-Quick Step) + 5 h 36 min 47 s Tim Merlier (Belgique ; Soudal-Quick Step) + 5 h 37 min 19 s Guillaume Boivin (Canada ; Israel-Premier Tech) + 5 h 37 min 44 s Dylan Groenewegen (Pays-Bas ; Jayco-AlUla) + 5 h 38 min 24 s Phil Bauhaus (Allemagne ; Bahrain Victorius) + 5 h 39 min 29 s Luka Mezgec (Slovénie ; Jayco-AlUla) + 5 h 40 min 8 s Arnaud Démare (France ; Arkéa-B & B Hotels) + 5 h 40 min 35 s Benjamin Thomas (France ; Cofidis) + 5 h 41 min 16 s Kamil Gradek (Pologne ; Bahrain Victorius) + 5 h 43 min 51 s Roel Van Sintmaartensdijk (Pays-Bas ; Intermarché-Wanty) + 5 h 44 min 11 s Fabian Lienhard (Suisse ; Tudor) + 5 h 46 min 0 s Jordi Meeus (Belgique ; Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe) + 5 h 48 min 25 s Edward Theuns (Belgique ; Lidl-Trek) + 5 h 51 min 25 s Simone Consonni (Italie ; Lidl-Trek) + 5 h 51 min 40 s
France 24
3 hours ago
- France 24
Supreme Pogacar wins Tour de France for fourth time
Wout van Aert won the final-day cliffhanger on the cobbled roads of Montmartre, but Pogacar was spared any late challenge when rain forced organisers to neutralise times to avoid potential accidents. Pogacar said he was "speechless" after his victory. Runner-up Jonas Vingegaard was unable to contend with him, but Pogacar winner praised the Dane for having helped him improve over the years. "I spoke to Jonas today. We've been racing each other for five years now and we have raised each other to a higher level," Pogacar said. The 25-year-old Slovenian gamely tried for the stage win anyway before Belgian Van Aert pulled away on the last climb. "Once they neutralised the GC (general classification) times I was relaxed enough and decided to go for the win," said Pogacar. The winner was clearly enjoying himself as he played to the delighted crowds, racing to the head of the peloton near the Moulin Rouge cabaret at the foot of the climb. Despite the rain, spectators packed Montmartre to follow his progress up and down the narrow lanes of the popular tourist spot in his leader's yellow outfit. Van Aert produced a well-timed attack to drop Pogacar and charge to the Champs-Elysees finish line, for his second last-day stage win there. Pogacar was fourth on the day but after wins in 2020, 2021 and 2024, he again proved untouchable in the world's greatest bike race. Vingegaard, the champion in 2022 and 2023, suffered two shocking off-days and ended second overall, 4min 24sec adrift. "We came out fighting in the first week and after stage five I felt I had the legs to win. It was clinched in the second week," Pogacar said at the Paris finish. Breakout German star Florian Lipowitz took third on his debut, rounding out the podium a distant 11 minutes off the pace in third. Turning the screw Defending his title Pogacar, embarked from the start in Lille clear favourite and won four stages along the way. In the first week, he struck on rolling runs in the north and west at Rouen and the Mur de Bretagne. He then turned the screw on the slopes of the Pyrenees on week two with his rivals as good as vanquished. Vingegaard suffered on the stage five time trial, and again in week two at the Hautacam mountain, leaving the Dane in shock as his form abandoned him. In need of a massive turn around in the Alps to overturn a four-minute deficit, Vingegaard was game enough to go all in on stage 18, producing a brave 71km attack as Pogacar sat on his rival's wheel. A barnstorming first week of the Tour revealed a raft of emerging stars. Lipowitz was given a run for his money for third place by 22-year-old Scot Oscar Onley, whose steady ride propelled him to fourth overall. Ireland's Ben Healy bagged a stage win and a two-day stint in the yellow jersey. Adding a heroic near-miss on Mont Ventoux was enough to earn Healy the prize for combativity, voted for by the public. The return of Dave Brailsford from his role at Manchester United to Ineos Grenadiers was overshadowed by the team's Italian powerhouse Filippo Ganna falling early on stage one. He was withdrawn due to concussion. Having previously masterminded seven Tour de France wins, Brailsford dug in and the team's Dutch climber Thymen Arensman pulled off heists in the Pyrenees and the Alps with well-executed attacks to win two stages. Another Dutch rider, Mathieu van der Poel, lit up the first week, sealing a stage two win and twice wearing the yellow jersey. France's sole and unexpected stage win came on the lunar-like summit of Mont Ventoux thanks to Valentin Paret-Peintre. The 2025 Tour, however, will be remembered mainly for Pogacar's all-round dominance.
