Pogacar wins fifth Tour as Van der Poel takes stage

ByMatt Warwick

BBC Sport Senior Journalist

Slovenian Tadej Pogacar won the Tour de France for a record-equalling 5th time.

The 27-year-old UAE Team Emirates-XRG rider crossed the enactment connected Paris' Champs-Elysees successful the peloton to articulation Jacques Anquetil, Eddy Merckx, Bernard Hinault and Miguel Indurain arsenic the sport's astir palmy antheral riders.

The three-week Grand Tour's last signifier was won by the Netherlands' Mathieu van der Poel of Alpecin-Premier Tech aft a frantic complaint to the enactment connected the French capital's celebrated cobbles successful which helium pipped Denmark's Mads Pedersen by inches.

Pogacar's triumph means helium is positioned by galore arsenic the top cyclist of each time, superseding the achievements and presumption of Belgian fable Merckx.

It besides marks Pogacar's 3rd Tour triumph successful succession and includes a record-breaking ascent of the iconic Alpe d'Huez connected signifier 19, erstwhile helium sealed different ascendant victory.

It was the past of 4 signifier wins successful a contention successful which Pogacar utilized his explosive motorboat and umatchable metronomic gait to spot disconnected his rivals, who for immoderate clip person had virtually nary answer.

Pogacar has won astir each large contention successful the sport, including the Tour of Flanders, Giro d'Italia, Milan-San Remo, Road World Championships, Giro di Lombardia and Liege-Bastgone-Liege.

Pogacar was booed by immoderate fans during the Tour, arsenic his performances are often truthful acold up of immoderate of his peers that immoderate consciousness frustrated the athletics is losing its competitory edge.

He present has 126 wins successful an eight-year elite nonrecreational career.

"Victory is truly special," said Pogacar. "Thank you to each the fans and my team.

"But the biggest acknowledgment goes to each my household who enactment maine each my life. My parents - without them I would not beryllium lasting present 5 times already.

"Seven Tours and 7 times connected the podium, and 5 wins, is thing you wouldn't adjacent possibly constitute successful a communicative book, and it's unbelievable for me.

"It's a magnificent podium with immoderate unthinkable champions to combat with.

"It's a shame Jonas [Vingegaard] crashed retired this clip and galore others. I anticipation they person a speedy betterment and adjacent twelvemonth we combat again."

The celebrated last stage, which for the wide contenders is an unchallenged formality, typically becomes a level clump sprint.

Last twelvemonth organisers ASO introduced a circuit which takes connected a cobbled ascent implicit the city's celebrated Montmartre hill, changing the parcours capable to promote the heavier, much almighty riders to situation for victory.

On Sunday it was powerhouse classics fable Van der Poel who took triumph aft charging distant with 11km remaining with Pogacar.

Pogacar and Van der Poel led done the picturesque and constrictive lanes implicit Montmartre and past Sacre-Coeur, wherever immoderate fans had their mobile phones knocked retired of their hands arsenic the riders squeezed past astatine speed, earlier Pogacar began to slice aft 3 weeks of dominance and showing nary weakness.

Van der Poel, whose spot and staying powerfulness let him to propulsion retired gaps successful gruelling one-day races, conscionable managed stayed up of a chasing battalion which included respective sprinters and was rapidly closing, earlier helium collapsed disconnected his motorcycle and laic nether a barrier, breathing heavy for respective minutes.

Van der Poel added this prestigious triumph connected the celebrated cobbles to galore of the sport's biggest one-day races, specified arsenic aggregate victories successful Paris-Roubaix and the Tour of Flanders.

He said: "We person a saying successful Dutch that it has to travel for your toes. I don't cognize wherever this came from, but not from my toes."

The signifier was reduced from 133km to 89km aft the redirection of exigency services to assistance tackle wildfires successful south-west France.

The 1 rider who has breached Pogacar's stranglehold of cycling's biggest contention successful the past was Denmark's Vingegaard, who won successful 2022 and 2023.

But this twelvemonth the 29-year-old Visma-Lease a Bike rider abandoned aft breaking his collarbone connected a casual right-hand crook connected signifier 15.

The mistake was precise dissimilar Vingegaard's adjacent cleanable method and execution arsenic a rider, and attraction soon turned to scrutiny of the International Testing Agency (ITA), which had awoken Vingegaard astatine 2am to transportation retired an anti-doping test.

Other riders had the aforesaid treatment, including Pogacar astatine 5am, but the ITA said determination was "exceptional circumstances" to instrumentality the nighttime tests, which are uncommon and necessitate further permission.

It is not known erstwhile the trial results volition beryllium published.

Pogacar's lone different existent rival was the much-improved Belgian Remco Evenepoel of Red Bull-Bora-Hansgohe, who finished six minutes 26 seconds down overall.

Third spot went to Pogacar's Mexican team-mate Isaac del Toro, who won signifier 2 acknowledgment mostly to Pogacar's babysitting gait successful the lead-up to the line.

It would not beryllium the lone clip Pogacar would assistance Del Toro, 22, sacrificing his ain imaginable triumph connected Saturday's brutal 'queen' signifier to Alpe d'Huez to consolidate Del Toro's spot connected the podium.

Del Toro's achromatic jersey for the champion young rider came astatine the disbursal of France's caller 19-year-old prima Paul Seixas of Decathlon-CMA CGM. Seixas looked stronger than Del Toro astatine times connected the climbs but faded substantially connected Saturday.

Many deliberation Seixas volition beryllium a rival to Pogacar successful the future.

In the twelvemonth erstwhile Britain's four-time Tour victor Chris Froome retired, his erstwhile squad - present known arsenic Netcompany Ineos Cycling - failed to grounds a signifier triumph successful 21 attempts.

Ex-Ineos rider Tom Pidcock of Pinarello-Q36.5 won connected Alpe d'Huez 4 years agone and returned to this contention having achieved overmuch with a caller squad built wholly astir him.

The 26-year-old did not negociate to triumph a stage, but helium and his squad volition beryllium satisfied with Pidcock's accordant battling riding, which earned him ninth successful the wide classification to physique connected 3rd spot successful past year's Vuelta a Espana.

Fellow Briton Adam Yates, 33, showed large tenacity aft falling sick connected signifier 16 and spending 2 days riding astatine the backmost of the tract earlier helping gait Pogacar up a ascent for victory connected signifier 19.

One of the astir entertaining riders successful the contention was Ecuador's Richard Carapaz of EF Education-Easypost. He toiled earlier successful the contention earlier coming into large signifier to assertion the king of the mountains' polka dot jersey.

He won signifier 18 and Saturday's stage 20 aft topping the race's highest constituent archetypal and aft 5,450km of climbing.

The greenish points jersey was awarded to Pedersen of Lidl-Trek, aft tenacious riding connected climbs helium is not typically beardown connected to hoover up mid-stage points, alongside winning signifier four.

He bushed a fig of sprinters to the jersey, including Japser Philipsen of Alpecin-Premier Tech. Philipsen won signifier 17 and chap Belgian Tim Merlier of Soudal-Quick Step won three clump sprint stages.

Tour de France signifier 21 results

1. Mathieu van der Poel (Ned/Alpecin-Premier Tech) 1hr 58mins 49secs

2. Jasper Philipsen (Bel/Alpecin-Premier Tech) aforesaid time

3. Mads Pedersen (Den/Lidl-Trek)

4. Max Kanter (Ger/XDS-Astana)

5. Olav Kooij (Ned/Decathlon-CMA CGM)

6. Matej Mohoric (Slo/Bahrain-Victorious)

7. Rick Pluimers (Ned/Tudor Pro-cycling)

8. Anthony Turgis (Fra/Total Energies)

9. Milan Fretin (Bel/Cofidis)

10. Clement Russo (Fra/Groupama-FDJ United)

Tour de France wide classification aft signifier 21

1. Tadej Pogacar (Slo/UAE Team Emirates-XRG) 73hrs 56mins 26secs

2. Remco Evenepoel (Bel/Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe) +6mins 26secs

3. Isaac del Toro (Mex/UAE Team Emirates-XRG) +9mins 42secs

4. Paul Seixas (Fra/Decathlon-CMA CGM) +11mins 56secs

5. Lenny Martinez (Fra/Bahrain-Victorious) +13mins 2secs

6. Mattias Skjelmose (Den/Lidl-Trek) +14mins 59secs

7. Juan Ayuso (Spa/Lidl-Trek) +17mins 48secs

8. Richard Carapaz (Ecu/EF Education-Easypost) +20mins

9. Tom Pidcock (GB/Pinarello-Q36.5) +29mins 28secs

10. Jordan Jegat (Fra/Total Energies) +33mins 21secs