[themaclad]

Belgium's Jasper Philipsen won stage 13 of the Tour de France as a crash marred the sprint finish to the line in Pau.

Last year's green jersey winner took his second stage victory of the 2024 edition for the Alpecin-Deceuninck team, pipping his compatriot Wout van Aert and Germany's Pascal Ackermann.

Slovenia's Tadej Pogacar remains in the overall leader's yellow jersey for UAE-Team Emirates, one minute six seconds ahead of Belgium's Remco Evenepoel, riding for Soudal-Quick Step.

Pogacar, in typically swashbuckling style, joined the sprint at the end of the stage, but his main rival and defending champion Jonas Vingegaard came home safely in the same time and remains just eight seconds adrift of Evenepoel in third.

Visma-Lease a Bike's Van Aert had looked set for victory when he was led out by his team-mate Christophe Laporte, but Philipsen surged clear.

"This was my best feeling so far in the Tour de France," said Philipsen. "We didn't have the best start. Some bad luck, but I'm happy we could turn it around.

"We are already with two stage wins, so it's not a bad Tour. I am really happy with my sprint."

Chaotic conclusion mars finale
Far from being a relaxed day on the relatively flat 165.3km drag from Agen, the presence of Adam Yates in the early 21-man breakaway ensured the peloton was put under significant stress.

A relentless pace was set in the chasing bunch by several of the leading teams to prevent the Englishman, riding in support of Pogacar, from gaining any ground in the general classification.

Crosswinds inside the concluding 60km only added to the strain as splits in the race emerged before a chaotic conclusion.

As Belgium's Maxim van Gils of Lotto-Dstny tried to force his way through as the sprint began, he shoulder-barged countryman Amaury Capiot of Arkea-B&B Hotels, resulting in several riders, including Cees Bol, falling heavily and causing a pile-up which forced Lotto's lead rider and team-mate Arnaud de Lie to stop.

With GC contender Primoz Roglic having pulled out of the race after falls on consecutive days it proved a timely reminder of the perils inside the peloton.

Meanwhile, Juan Ayuso also withdrew during the stage feeling unwell after testing positive for Covid.

The Spaniard had been inside the top 10 on GC but, more importantly, was viewed as one of Pogacar's key domestiques as the race heads into a brutal and crucial period in the Pyrenees.

On Saturday, the Tour takes in the iconic Col du Tourmalet on the mountainous 151.9km route from Pau to Saint-Lary-Soulan Pla d'Adet.

Tour de France stage 13 results
1. Jasper Philipsen (Bel/Alpecin-Deceuninck) 3hrs 23mins 09 secs

2. Wout van Aert (Bel/Visma-Lease a Bike) Same time

3. Pascal Ackermann (Ger/Israel-Premier Tech) "

4. Biniam Girmay (Eri/Intermarche-Wanty) "

5. Nikias Arndt (Ger/Bahrain Victorious) "

6. Tim Wellens (Bel/UAE Team Emirates) "

7. Clement Russo (Fra/Groupama-FDJ) "

8. Bryan Coquard (Fra/Cofidis) "

9. Tadej Pogacar (Slo/UAE Team Emirates) "

10. Soren Waerenskjold (Nor/Uno-X Mobility) "

Tour de France general classification
1. Tadej Pogacar (Slo/UAE Team Emirates) 52hrs 40mins 58secs

2. Remco Evenepoel (Bel/Soudal-Quick Step) +1min 06secs

3. Jonas Vingegaard (Den/Visma-Lease a Bike) +1min 14secs

4. Joao Almeida (Por/UAE Team Emirates) +4mins 20secs

5. Carlos Rodriguez (Spa/Ineos Grenadiers) +4mins 40secs

6. Mikel Landa (Spa/Soudal-Quick Step) +5mins 38secs

7. Adam Yates (GB/UAE Team Emirates) +6mins 59secs

8. Giulio Ciccone (Ita/Lidl-Trek) +7mins 36secs

9. Derek Gee (Can/Israel- Premier Tech) +7mins 54secs

10. Felix Gall (Aut/Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale) +9mins 18secs

[themaclad]

Oninous gteat ride by Ben Healy

Slovenia's Tadej Pogacar extended his overall lead in the Tour de France with a dominant victory on stage 14 in the Pyrenees.

UAE-Team Emirates' Pogacar, resplendent in the yellow jersey he has worn every day since stage four, powered up the Saint-Lary-Soulan Pla d'Adet summit finish, crossing the line 39 seconds ahead of defending champion Jonas Vingegaard of Denmark.

Vingegaard, of Visma-Lease a Bike, chased Pogacar up the final mountain climb after the Slovenian attacked aggressively with 5km to go, but could not hold on to his wheel.

Vingegaard did, however, move into second place in the overall general classification after Belgium's Remco Evenepoel lost time, finishing third on a stage which also included the legendary Col du Tourmalet climb.

Vingegaard now trails Pogacar by one minute 57 seconds, with Evenepoel a further 25 seconds back.

After two flat stages, the race headed back into the mountains, where the general classification contenders are set to battle it out over the weekend before enjoying a rest day on Monday.

UAE came into the 151.9km stage from Pau looking to maintain Pogacar's lead, which was 66 seconds over Evenepoel at the start of day, with Vingegaard eight seconds further back.

Ireland's Ben Healy was part of a breakaway group which led the way on the 19km ascent of the Col du Tourmalet, with Movistar's Spanish rider Oier Lazkano claiming the honour of being the first to summit.

Pogacar's team-mates set the pace at the front of the peloton, bringing the break back within reach of the leaders at the start of the day's third and final climb - to the Pla d'Adet ski resort.

With 7km to go, UAE sensed the opportunity to go for the stage win and extend Pogacar's lead and sent Adam Yates up the road to help bridge the gap.

Pogacar then launched an explosive attack to join Yates before passing Healy, with Vingegaard and Evenepoel battling to stay in touch.

But Pogacar raced clear to send his GC rivals a message as they prepare to spend another day in the mountains on Sunday.

Stage 14 result
1. Tadej Pogacar (Slo/UAE Team Emirates) 4hrs 1mins 52secs

2. Jonas Vingegaard (Den/Visma-Lease a Bike) +39secs

3. Remco Evenepoel (Bel/Soudal-Quick-Step) +1min 10secs

4. Carlos Rodriguez (Spa/Ineos Grenadiers) +1:19

5. Giulio Ciccone (Ita/Lidl-Trek) +1:23

6. Santiago Buitrago (Col/Bahrain Victorious) Same time

7. Adam Yates (GB/UAE Team Emirates)

8. Felix Gall (Aut/Decathlon-AG2R-La Mondiale) +1:26

9. Matteo Jorgenson (USA/Visma-Lease a Bike) +1:29

10. Derek Gee (Can/Israel-Premier Tech) Same time

General classification standings after stage 14
1. Tadej Pogacar (Slo/UAE Team Emirates) 56hrs 42mins 39secs

2. Jonas Vingegaard (Den/Visma-Lease a Bike) +1min 57secs

3. Remco Evenepoel (Bel/Soudal-Quick Step) +2mins 22secs

4. Joao Almeida (Por/UAE Team Emirates) +6mins 1sec

5. Carlos Rodriguez (Spa/Ineos Grenadiers) +6mins 9secs

6. Mikel Landa (Spa/Soudal-Quick Step) +7mins 17secs

7. Adam Yates (GB/UAE Team Emirates) +8mins 32secs

8. Giulio Ciccone (Ita/Lidl-Trek) +9mins 9secs

9. Derek Gee (Can/Israel- Premier Tech) +9mins 33secs

10. Matteo Jorgenson (USA/Visma-Lease a Bike) +9mins 18secs

[themaclad]

The only thing that is coming home is Tadej doing Giro/Tour double, only Covid can stop him now

Tadej Pogacar took a huge step towards reclaiming the Tour de France title as he produced another superb ride to secure a second straight stage win.

As the race headed into the Pyrenees this weekend, the two big mountain stages were seen as a chance for Pogacar's general classification rivals to potentially close the gap on the race leader.

But the two-time champion soloed to victory on stage 14 and followed that up by dismissing his competition on a gruelling climb to the stage 15 finish in Plateau de Beille.

Pogacar, 25, left Jonas Vingegaard behind to claim his 14th stage win by one minute eight seconds, while Remco Evenepoel crossed almost three minutes down in third.

Vingegaard, the two-time defending champion, now trails the Slovenian by three minutes nine seconds, while Evenepoel is five minutes nine seconds off the overall lead in third.

Sunday's 197.7km mountain stage from Loudenvielle promised to be one of the toughest days on the Tour.

It featured four category one climbs, with a hors categorie climb - the toughest - to finish, and 4,831 metres of elevation gain - 9% of this year's total.

It was also hotter, and Pogacar admits he usually struggles in the heat, so in a bid to hit back after Saturday's win for UAE Team Emirates, Vingegaard's Visma-Lease a Bike team pushed the pace for most of the day.

The Dane's team-mate Matteo Jorgenson led the peloton up a brutal final climb, before handing over to Vingegaard to try to crack Pogacar.

They caught the breakaway group with about 9km remaining and Vingegaard, who was seriously injured in a crash three months ago, was out of his saddle with about 5km left.

The Dane glanced back to see if that effort had had any impact on Pogacar and that was a signal to the race leader that, in fact, it was Vingegaard who was at his limit.

Like on Saturday, Pogacar sensed the opportunity to hit the front and he continued to go clear to claim his third stage win on this year's Tour and give himself a commanding lead heading into Monday's rest day.

British sprinter Mark Cavendish, the Tour's all-time stage record-holder with 35, made the cut-off time with less than two minutes to spare to keep alive his hopes of securing a final stage win in his farewell to the race.

Stage 15 result
Tadej Pogacar (Slo/UAE Team Emirates) 5hrs 13mins 55secs

Jonas Vingegaard (Den/Visma-Lease a Bike) +1min 8secs

Remco Evenepoel (Bel/Soudal-Quick Step) +2:51

Mikel Landa (Spa/Soudal-Quick Step) +3:54

Joao Almeida (Por/UAE Team Emirates) +4:43

Adam Yates (GB/UAE Team Emirates) +4:56

Santiago Buitrago (Col/Bahrain Victorious) +5:08

Carlos Rodriguez (Spa/Ineos Grenadiers) Same time

Richard Carapaz (Ecu/EF Education-EasyPost) +5:41

Felix Gall (Aut/Decathlon-AG2R-La Mondiale) +5:57

General classification after stage 15
Tadej Pogacar (Slo/UAE Team Emirates) 61hrs 56mins 24secs

Jonas Vingegaard (Den/Visma-Lease a Bike) +3mins 9secs

Remco Evenepoel (Bel/Soudal- Quick Step) +5:19

Joao Almeida (Por/UAE Team Emirates) +10:54

Mikel Landa (Spa/Soudal-Quick Step) +11:21

Carlos Rodriguez (Spa/Ineos Grenadiers) +11:27

Adam Yates (GB/UAE Team Emirates) +13:38

Giulio Ciccone (Ita/Lidl-Trek) +15:48

Derek Gee (Can/Israel-Premier Tech) +16:12

Santiago Buitrago (Col/Bahrain Victorious) +16:32

[themaclad]

Bit of a boring day with great scenery though, Bini crash near the ends brings the green jersey back into play

Belgium's Jasper Philipsen sprinted to his third stage victory at the 2024 Tour de France after Biniam Girmay suffered a late crash on stage 16.

Philipsen's Alpecin-Deceuninck team dominated in the closing stages in Nimes before the 26-year-old broke clear to the line.

Eritrean Girmay was unable to contest the sprint after falling inside the final kilometre and subsequently saw Philipsen reduce his lead in the green jersey competition to 32 points.

Mark Cavendish, who broke the Tour stage wins record two weeks ago, crossed the line in 17th position in the final sprint stage of his Tour de France farewell before a mountainous conclusion to this years' race.

Tadej Pogacar retained the leader's yellow jersey and protected his lead of three minutes nine seconds over two-time defending champion Jonas Vingegaard.

Remco Evenepoel remains in third position, five minutes nine seconds off the overall lead.

A relatively quiet stage 16 always looked destined to end in a bunch sprint, with a solo attack by Thomas Gachignard, of Total Energies, providing the only action at the front of the race until the French 23-year-old was caught with 25km remaining.

With this the final opportunity for the sprinter’s teams to claim victory before the race returns to the Alps, a frenetic finale unfolded.

As Alpecin-Deceuninck raised the pace, Girmay's misfortune left nobody able to challenge Philipsen as he added to his victories on stages 10 and 13.

Girmay, who became the first black African to win a Tour de France stage with the first of his three successes on stage three, was escorted to the line by his Intermarche-Wanty team-mates.

He must now aim to recover quickly as Philipsen challenges for the green jersey, which appeared to be out of reach before the start of the Tour's final week.

"I was feeling good. I had a good rest day and I feel like my shape has improved during this Tour de France. Every stage win is really hard to get, we can be proud," Philipsen said.

On the points competition, he added: "Everything is possible, but Biniam is climbing really well. I just hope he's fine because he doesn't deserve to lose like this."

Stage 17 on Wednesday is a 177.8km mountain stage from Saint-Paul-Trois-Chateaux to Superdevoluy in the southern alps.

Tour de France stage 16 results
1. Jasper Philipsen (Bel/Alpecin-Deceuninck) 4hrs 11mins 27secs

2. Phil Bauhaus (Ger/Bahrain Victorious) same time

3. Alexander Kristoff (Nor/Uno-X) "

4. Sam Bennett (Ire/Decathlon-AG2R) "

5. Wout van Aert (Bel/Visma-Lease a Bike) "

6. Pascal Ackermann (Ger/Israel Premier Tech) "

7. Bryan Coquard (Fra/Cofidis) "

8. Soren Waerenskjold (Nor/Uno-X Mobility) "

9. Ryan Gibbons (SA/Lidl-Trek) "

10. Danny van Poppel (Ned/Bora–Hansgrohe) "

General classification after stage 16
1. Tadej Pogacar (Slo/UAE Team Emirates) 66hrs 7mins 51secs

2. Jonas Vingegaard (Den/Visma-Lease a Bike) +3mins 9secs

3. Remco Evenepoel (Bel/Soudal- Quick Step) +5:19

4. Joao Almeida (Por/UAE Team Emirates) +10:54

5. Mikel Landa (Spa/Soudal-Quick Step) +11:21

6. Carlos Rodriguez (Spa/Ineos Grenadiers) +11:27

7. Adam Yates (GB/UAE Team Emirates) +13:38

8. Giulio Ciccone (Ita/Lidl-Trek) +15:48

9. Derek Gee (Can/Israel-Premier Tech) +16:12

10. Santiago Buitrago (Col/Bahrain Victorious) +16:32

[themaclad]

Carapaz won fairly easily seeing off Simon Yates on the last hill, sprinters falling by the wayside at a rate of knots

Richard Carapaz completed the set of victories in cycling's Grand Tours by winning stage 17 of the Tour de France.

Carapaz had won stages at the Giro d'Italia and the Vuelta a Espana, as well as Olympic road race gold, but earned his first Tour de France stage triumph with a superb solo victory in the Alps.

The Education-EasyPost rider also becomes the first man from Ecuador to win a stage at the Tour.

Behind Carapaz, who beat Britain's Simon Yates into second, Tadej Pogacar was 27th, but increased his general classification lead over Jonas Vingegaard by two seconds - it now stands at three minutes and 11 seconds.

The Slovenian, seeking a third overall victory in the race, made a surprise attack late on only to be caught by last year's winner Vingegaard, but beat his rival in a sprint for the line to increase his general classification lead slightly.

Remco Evenepoel, third overall, finished the stage in 26th, 10 seconds ahead of Pogacar and 12 clear of Vingegaard.

It means that in the general classification standings, Evenepoel now trails Vingegaard by just under two minutes.

Tour de France 2024 - stage-by-stage guide and results
Published
1 day ago
Although Evenepoel earned the biggest advantage on time among the leading contenders, the stage only strengthened Pogacar's position as favourite for the race.

When he kicked on the penultimate climb, he built a lead of at least 10 seconds over Vingegaard before the Dane was dragged back in touch with the help of a team-mate.

A hectic stage was lead by a four-rider breakaway until the final stages when first Yates attacked from a chasing large group as the race returned to the mountains.

He moved into the lead on Col du Noyer but Carapaz came through, pushed on beyond him and pulled clear on the descent to win by 37 seconds.

Carapaz became the first Ecuadorian to wear the yellow jersey after moving into the overall lead on stage three but subsequently faded from contention for the overall race.

Still his first Tour stage victory takes his tally of Grand Tour wins to seven, after three each in the Giro and Vuelta.

Eritrea's Biniam Girmay recovered from his crash on Tuesday to finish within the peloton as he chases a historic green jersey win.

Girmay, who became the first black African to win a Tour stage earlier in the race, beat Jasper Philipsen in an intermediate sprint to increase his lead in the points classification by a point.

Thursday's 18th stage follows another hilly route before two days in the mountains, which will effectively decide the race.

Tour de France stage 17 results
Richard Carapaz (Ecu/EF Education-Easy Post) 4hrs 6mins 13secs

Simon Yates (GB/Jayco Alula) + 37secs

Enric Mas (Spa/Movistar) + 57secs

Laurens de Plus (Bel/Ineon Grenadiers) +1min 44secs

Oscar Onley (GB/DSM-Firmenich Post NL) Same time

Guillaume Martin (Fra/Cofidis) +2:36

Magnus Cort (Den/Uno-x Mobility) +2:38

Wout Poels (Ned/Bahrain Victorious) +2:39

Jordan Jegat (Fra/Total Energies) Same time

Alex Aranburu (Spa/Movistar)

General classification after stage 17
Tadej Pogacar (Slo/UAE Team Emirates) 70hrs 21mins 27secs

Jonas Vingegaard (Den/Visma-Lease a Bike) +3mins 11secs

Remco Evenepoel (Bel/Soudal- Quick Step) +5:09

Joao Almeida (Por/UAE Team Emirates) +12:57

Mikel Landa (Spa/Soudal-Quick Step) +13:24

Carlos Rodriguez (Spa/Ineos Grenadiers) +13:30

Adam Yates (GB/UAE Team Emirates) +15:41

Giulio Ciccone (Ita/Lidl-Trek) +17:51

Derek Gee (Can/Israel-Premier Tech) +18:15

Santiago Buitrago (Col/Bahrain Victorious) +18:35

[themaclad]

Is Vic there? He was yesterday, seems a top bloke as well

Belgium's Victor Campenaerts emerged from a breakaway trio to clinch victory on stage 18 of the 2024 Tour de France.

Campenaerts, Michal Kwiatkowski and Matteo Vercher remained clear heading into the closing stages of the 179.5km route from Gap to Barcelonnette.

The Lotto–Dstny rider, 32, hit the front with 100 metres to go and looked like he had something to spare as he rolled in for his first-ever Tour stage win.

The yellow jersey group came more than 13 minutes later, with the general classification rivals bunched together, so Tadej Pogacar maintained his overall race lead of three minutes 11 seconds.

Defending champion Jonas Vingegaard is second, with Remco Evenepoel five minutes nine seconds off Pogacar in third.

The race concludes with two more mountain stages and then an individual time trial on Sunday, so Thursday's stage was seen as the last chance for the riders and teams not in GC contention to grab a breakaway win.

For most of the day there was a breakaway group of more than 30 riders, including Ineos Grenadiers riders Kwiatkowski and Geraint Thomas, the 2018 champion.

The stage featured five category three climbs and the lead group began to split going up the penultimate climb, with Thomas attacking on the descent.

Kwiatkowski claimed Ineos' first stage win of last year's Tour and the Pole was looking to repeat the feat as he was the first to summit the day's final categorised climb.

On the descent, with about 35km to go, he was joined by Campenaerts and Vercher to form a leading trio, and they worked together to stay clear of the chasing pack.

Tour debutant Vercher then attacked with one kilometre to go, but they soon came back together and Campenaerts timed his attack perfectly, sweeping into the lead and staying clear to celebrate victory.

"I’ve been dreaming about this for a very long time," said an emotional Campenaerts, who recently became a father.

"I had a very difficult time [with Lotto-Dstny], but I became a father and it was like, only blue skies. The support I have from my girlfriend is incredible. She is the hero in this story.

"I will be leaving the team but I'm so happy that we can finish off with maybe the highlight of my career."

Stage 18 result
Victor Campenaerts (Bel/Lotto-Dstny) 4hrs 10mins 20secs

Matteo Vercher (Fra/TotalEnergies) Same time

Michal Kwiatkowski (Pol/Ineos Grenadiers)

Toms Skujins (Lat/Lidl-Trek) +22secs

Oier Lazkano (Spa/Movistar) Same time

Bart Lemmen (Ned/Visma-Lease a Bike)

Krists Neilands (Lat/Israel-Premier Tech)

Jai Hindley (Aus/Red Bull Bora-hansgrohe)

Wout van Aert (Bel/Visma-Lease a Bike) +37secs

Michael Matthews (Aus/Jayco-AlUla) Same time

General classification after stage 18
Tadej Pogacar (Slo/UAE Team Emirates) 74hrs 45mins 27secs

Jonas Vingegaard (Den/Visma-Lease a Bike) +3mins 11secs

Remco Evenepoel (Bel/Soudal- Quick Step) +5:09

Joao Almeida (Por/UAE Team Emirates) +12:57

Mikel Landa (Spa/Soudal-Quick Step) +13:24

Carlos Rodriguez (Spa/Ineos Grenadiers) +13:30

Adam Yates (GB/UAE Team Emirates) +15:41

Giulio Ciccone (Ita/Lidl-Trek) +17:51

Derek Gee (Can/Israel-Premier Tech) +18:15

Santiago Buitrago (Col/Bahrain Victorious) +18:35

[themaclad]

Pog's not real contest now over

[themaclad]

Tadej Pogacar continued his dominance at the Tour de France as he won his fourth stage and substantially extended his overall lead.

The Slovenian attacked in the Alps with nine kilometres to go, making up almost three minutes to catch and pass stage leader Matteo Jorgenson of the United States.

His yellow jersey rivals Jonas Vingegaard and Remco Evenepoel were unable to respond and ultimately lost one minute and 42 seconds to the Giro d'Italia winner.

Pogacar's lead over defending champion Vingergaard now stands at an imposing five minutes and three seconds with two stages remaining.

Simon Yates finished third, with Jorgenson holding off the Briton to claim second.

Tour de France 2024 - stage-by-stage guide and results
Published
14 hours ago
Tour de France: Pogacar wins stage 19 to extend lead - reaction
After his win Pogacar, 25, described the stage as "100% perfect" and added he could "enjoy tomorrow" after extending his lead in the yellow jersey.

The two-time winner raced conservatively until the final climb into the resort of Isola 2000, where his blistering attack was too much for both his rivals around him and those up the road.

"We were here training for a whole month between the Giro and Tour," he added. "I knew this climb super well. I was speaking with team-mates in the training camp how we wanted to race and we did it exactly how we wanted."

Two stages stand between Pogacar and a third Tour de France title.

On Saturday, the peloton stays in the mountains and finishes on the Col de la Couillole. The tour ends with a time trial into Nice on Sunday.

But such is Pogacar's dominance this season, it seems as if Friday's stage 19 may go down as the day the 2024 tour was won.

He won the Giro d'Italia in May and could become the first man since Marco Pantani in 1998 to win the two tours in the same year.

Tadej Pogacar
IMAGE SOURCE,GETTY IMAGES
Image caption,
Tadej Pogacar is hoping to become the first man to win the Tour de France and Giro d'Italia in the same year since Marco Pantani in 1998

Stage 19 results
Tadej Pogacar (Slo/UAE Team Emirates) 4hrs 4mins 3secs

Matteo Jorgenson (USA/Visma-Lease a Bike) +21secs

Simon Yates (GBR/Team Jayco AlUla) +40secs

Richard Carapaz (Ecu/EF Education - EasyPost) +1min 11secs

Remco Evenepoel (Bel/Soudal- Quick Step) +1min 42secs

Jonas Vingegaard (Den/Visma-Lease a Bike) Same time

Joao Almeida (Por/UAE Team Emirates) +2mins 00secs

Mikel Landa (Spa/Soudal-Quick Step) Same time

Wilco Kelderman (Ned/Visma-Lease a Bike) +2mins 52secs

Derek Gee (Can/Israel- Premier Tech) +3mins 27secs

General Classification after stage 19
Tadej Pogacar (Slo/UAE Team Emirates) 78hrs 49mins 20secs

Jonas Vingegaard (Den/Visma-Lease a Bike) +5mins 03secs

Remco Evenepoel (Bel/Soudal- Quick Step) +7mins 01sec

Joao Almeida (Por/UAE Team Emirates) +15mins 07secs

Mikel Landa (Spa/Soudal-Quick Step) +15mins 34secs

Carlos Rodriguez (Spa/Ineos Grenadiers) +17mins 36secs

Adam Yates (GB/UAE Team Emirates) +19mins 18secs

Derek Gee (Can/Israel- Premier Tech) +21mins 52secs

Matteo Jorgenson (USA/Visma-Lease a Bike) 22mins 43secs

Giulio Ciccone (Ita/Lidl-Trek) +22mins 46secs

[themaclad]

Tadej Pogacar continued his fairytale Tour de France with a fifth stage win to further extend his dominant lead with just one day remaining.

The Slovenian, riding for UAE Team Emirates, sprinted away from defending champion Jonas Vingegaard inside the final 500 metres on the Col de la Couillole.

The two-time winner extended his advantage over the Visma–Lease a Bike rider by seven seconds and now leads the general classification by five minutes and 14 seconds.

Pogacar has become the first rider to win five stages at a single Tour de France since German sprinter Marcel Kittel in 2017.

Sunday's time trial in Nice is the final stage of this year's tour, and Pogacar is likely to put even more time into his rivals.

Richard Carapaz crossed the line in third, having already collected enough points to secure the King of the Mountains jersey earlier in the stage.

Green jersey holder Biniam Girmay safely finished inside the time cut and is set to become the first black African to win the tour's points classification, boasting an unassailable lead over his rival sprinters.

Britain's Mark Cavendish, who is racing in his last Tour de France and also beat the cut, crossed the line in tears supported by three team-mates.


Unlike on Friday, where Pogacar attacked early on the way to victory, on Saturday he was able to keep his nose out of the wind as Soudal Quick-Step set the pace hoping to leapfrog their rider Remco Evenepoel into third, above Vingegaard in the overall standings.

But with five kilometres to go, Vingegaard countered an Evenepoel attack and only Pogacar could follow the two-time champion as the pair quickly cut the breakaway group's lead.

Leaders Carapaz and Enric Mas - the last two from the day's initial break - were caught just outside the final three kilometres and though Carapaz initially followed, the pace in the sweltering heat was too high.

Pogacar, who is hoping to become the first man since Marco Pantani in 1998 to win the Giro d'Italia and Tour de France in the same year, easily outsprinted Vingegaard at the finish, avenging his second-place finish on stage 11.

The 25-year-old is at the peak of his powers - and is dominating men's road cycling this summer. He adds his five stage victories at this year's Tour to the six stages he won in May's Giro.


Stage 20 results
Tadej Pogacar (Slo/UAE Team Emirates) 4hrs 4mins 22secs

Jonas Vingegaard (Den/Visma-Lease a Bike) +07secs

Richard Carapaz (Ecu/EF Education-Easy Post) +23secs

Remco Evenepoel (Bel/Soudal- Quick Step) +53secs

Enric Mas (Spa/Movistar) +1min 07secs

Joao Almeida (Por/UAE Team Emirates) +1min 28secs

Matteo Jorgenson (USA/Visma-Lease a Bike) +1min 33secs

Mikel Landa (Spa/Soudal-Quick Step) +1min 41secs

Adam Yates (GB/UAE Team Emirates) +1min 43secs

Romain Bardet (Fra/DSM-firmenich PostNL) +1min 52secs

General classification after stage 20:
Tadej Pogacar (Slo/UAE Team Emirates) 82hrs 53mins 32secs

Jonas Vingegaard (Den/Visma-Lease a Bike) +5mins 14secs

Remco Evenepoel (Bel/Soudal- Quick Step) +8mins 04sec

Joao Almeida (Por/UAE Team Emirates) +16mins 45secs

Mikel Landa (Spa/Soudal-Quick Step) +17mins 25secs

Adam Yates (GB/UAE Team Emirates) +21mins 11secs

Carlos Rodriguez (Spa/Ineos Grenadiers) +21mins 12secs

Matteo Jorgenson (USA/Visma-Lease a Bike) 24mins 26secs

Derek Gee (Can/Israel- Premier Tech) +24mins 50secs

Giulio Ciccone (Ita/Lidl-Trek) +25mins 48secs

[themaclad]

Of course Pogacar wins the time time, suspect we are seeing one of the true greats of cycling

Personal highlights Potrait of De Gaulle cut into a fied, Matt Stephens on the motorbike in the race magnificent and the pictures from the drone ina gorge in teh mountains abouve Nice truly stunning
Full report tomorrow