Tourist
Tadej Pogacar celebrates the 100th victory of his career and his first stage win at the Tour de France 2025. In the fight for yellow, however, his rival Jonas Vingegaard remains on his heels before his time.
Behind the finish line, Tadej Pogacar grinning the congratulations from his teammates. They celebrated their captain for his first stage victory on the fourth day of the Tour de France And the 100th victory of his career. “I will never forget my first victory, but 99 victories later it still feels super good to be the first to drive over the finish line“, said Pogacar.
He had won the anniversary victory in a final that was made for the Slovenian: on a winding course through a residential area above the city center of Rouen. “Today it was like a classic”said Pogacar, “With a lot of adrenaline in the final.”
Sportschau Tourfunk, July 8th, 2025 7:52 p.m.
Pogacar’s attack does not surprise anyone
The Slovenian loves exactly such scenarios. Which is why one could have written down the end of this stage before. If you had bet on an attack by Pogacar on the last climb of the day – divided into two parts with a straight street each and an average of 10.6 percent slope spread to 800 meters – you would only have got your bet back.
Nobody had been surprised by the most very much Jonas Vingegaard and his team Visma-Lease a bike. The Dutch team had therefore put itself at the top of the field in a departure ten kilometers before the finish line to be prepared. “I think we had the perfect control”Vingegaard’s teammate Tiesj Benoot later not announced without pride.
Vingegaard on the limit – Pogacar too
Last but not least, this pride should stir that Vingegaard, like two days earlier, had made it again not to be shaken up by Pogacar on a terrain that the Danes is significantly less than his adversary. “It was probably the best performance over a minute that I have ever shown”said Vingegaard.
Even when he had to tear a gap briefly because he had walked a bit across his border on the steep ramp, he drove the hole back on the hole very easily because Pogacar also got on the point where it could no longer go on. In the sprint of the eight -member top group, Vingegaard then drove behind the finish line behind Pogacar and the man in the yellow jersey, Mathieu van der Poel, which cost him six seconds on Pogacar because of the time bonifications.
Eight seconds separate Pogacar and Vingegaard before the time trial of the fifth stage in the overall ranking. The duel of the two takes place at eye level. “The tour is still very fresh. At the moment I’m not looking at the classification”Pogacar claimed, who had probably hoped to create a somewhat more lavish second pad on Vingegaard on the explosive classic stages in the first few days.
Larger distances in time trial
At the latest after the time trial on the 5th stage in Caen Pogacar will take a closer look at the classification. Because there will be bigger distances for the first time on this tour in the fight against the clock.
As “Race of truth” Pogacar described the time trial after his stage victory in Rou: “This will be the first test of how good every driver is in shape.” 33 largely flat kilometers on straight roads will have to master the drivers around Caen, which rather disadvantages the lightweight Danes. “Of course this is not ideal for Jonas, but the route is the way it is – we have to accept it”said Vingegaard’s sporting director Grischa Niermann.
Does Evenepoel come back into play?
In Caen, it will also be clear whether Remco Evenepoel, the third year’s third year, can reduce its almost one minute -standing decree to Pogacar or even convert it into a lead. As a world champion and Olympic champion in time trial, he rolls on Wednesday when the big favorite for the stage win from the starting ramp.
“You can’t write it down. That is the perfect time trial for him”Pogacar said and announced that it yourself goes full throttle in the fight against the clock: “And then we will see where I stand. ” Not to rule out that he is on the podium in the yellow jersey afterwards – or Jonas Vingegaard.