Jonas Vingegaard is still wearing the yellow jersey after the first Alpine stage of the 110th Tour de France. However, the lead over Tadej Pogacar remains small.
MJonas Vingegaard hugged daughter Frida and wife Trine Hansen in the yellow jersey, while Tadej Pogacar’s frustration about the slow companion motorcycles at the side of his partner Urska Zigart subsided. After the spectacular start to the Alps, the giants of the 110th Tour de France recharged their batteries with their loved ones. However, there was not much euphoria in either camp – the battle for overall victory is anything but decided.
Defending champion Vingegaard is just ten seconds ahead of his closest rival Pogacar. The Dane gained a second on the two-time Tour champion on the mountainous 14th stage in the Alps to Morzine. It was a points victory after several days, during which the cushion gradually melted – nothing more.
However, Vingegaard was “happy with how things went. Tadej put up a tough fight, but my team worked very well,” said Jumbo Visma captain Vingegaard: “It was a great stage.”
The two best riders in the peloton saved the big show for the finale. On the demanding final climb to the Col de Joux Plane, Pogacar launched the first attack with 3.7km to go. Unlike in the Pyrenees, at the Puy de Dome or in the Jura Mountains, Vingegaard closed the gap again.
The rivals watched each other. Another Pogacar attack literally got stuck in traffic – two escort motorcycles blocked the path. Vingegaard’s only attack of his own, on the other hand, was spot on: the Dane sprinted off Pogacar’s rear wheel for the bonus seconds at the top of the mountains classification. Pogacar made up for the disadvantage in the final sprint.
Tension for third place too
The duel for the last place on the podium in Paris also remains exciting. The day’s victory after 151.8 km went to Carlos Rodriguez from the Ineos Grenadiers team. The only 22-year-old Spaniard moved up to third place in the overall standings and is now one second ahead of the Australian Jai Hindley from the German team Bora-hansgrohe.
A top-class escape group of the day, which initially also included Nils Politt and Simon Geschke, had no chance of winning the stage due to the speed work of the Jumbo Express in the main field. Vingegaard’s teammates set an enormously high pace over long periods. Already on the penultimate mountain, Col de la Ramaz, even strong climbers like German champion Emanuel Buchmann (Bora-hansgrohe) fell behind. In the final, however, Vingegaard was isolated.
Mass crash shortly after takeoff
Shortly after the sharp start, the race was interrupted for around 25 minutes because of the biggest mass fall of this year’s tour so far. Affected drivers were treated, others changed the material, Pogacar, who had not fallen, sat on the sidewalk during the forced break and patiently waited for the restart.
With the exception of the Spaniard Antonio Pedrero (Movistar) and Louis Meintjes from South Africa (Intermarche-Circus-Wanty), all drivers were able to continue the race. More falls followed later. Among other things, it caught the former tour second Romain Bardet from France (dsm Firmenich), who got out with a concussion.
Another attack by Pogacar could be pending at the next mountain finish on Sunday. Three first-category climbs have to be conquered on the 179 km from Les Portes du Soleil to Saint-Gervais Mont-Blanc. The final ascent to the ski area at 1,372 meters is seven kilometers long and has a gradient of 7.7 percent.