Tadej Pogacar has further solidified his position in the Tour de France, winning stage 19 on Alpe d’Huez and extending his overall lead to more than seven minutes. The defending champion’s performance on the legendary climb was described as inevitable, despite earlier rumours of illness within his UAE Emirates XRG team.
Pogacar completed the climb in 35 minutes and 26 seconds, breaking Marco Pantani’s 1997 record by over a minute. He expressed happiness about breaking the record, noting that it was a significant win for his team. This victory marks his fifth stage win in the current Tour de France.
Dominant Climb and Team Effort
The Slovene rider appeared in good health as he ascended the 13.8-kilometre climb, a location known for dramatic finishes in the Tour. With one final mountain stage remaining, Pogacar’s overall victory in Paris seems increasingly likely. The adage that the Tour is won on the Alpe appears to hold true once more, as Pogacar overtook the day’s breakaway with three kilometres left to the finish, after they had held a lead of almost four minutes with 25km to go.
His sports director, Matxin Fernández, was visibly emotional following the performance. Pogacar noted the strong team spirit and the significance of the win for everyone involved. The atmosphere on the climb was described as “crazy,” with an estimated 500,000 spectators, some of whom had arrived days in advance.
The decisive acceleration from Pogacar came 12km from the summit, leaving his closest rivals behind. He briefly joined forces with teammate Adam Yates before setting off alone with 10km remaining. This solo effort culminated in his victory, further highlighting his dominance in the race.
Rivals and Teammate Support
The impact on Pogacar’s rivals was substantial, with Remco Evenepoel of Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe being the least affected, remaining in second place overall. However, any hopes of challenging for the final victory are considered to be diminished. Evenepoel and Pogacar’s teammate, Isaac del Toro, are currently the only riders within 10 minutes of the race leader.
A large breakaway group of over 40 riders formed early in the stage, including past stage winners such as Richard Carapaz and Thymen Arensman. Pogacar’s teammate, Adam Yates, who had been ill earlier in the week, showed a strong recovery, leading the breakaway before assisting Pogacar on the final climb. Yates, whose career includes a Tour stage win, provided a “moral boost” to Pogacar, who was pleased to have him back in form.
Yates, 33, has been a loyal domestique to Pogacar since 2023 and is contracted for two more seasons. His tenacity, despite falling ill and vomiting after stage 16, was noted. Lenny Martinez of Bahrain-Victorious finished six seconds behind Pogacar, with Richard Carapaz of EF Education-Easypost finishing a further three seconds back in third. Sepp Kuss of Visma-Lease a Bike secured fourth place, 1 minute 14 seconds behind Pogacar, after being part of the strong breakaway group.
Carapaz’s combative riding earned him the polka-dot King of the Mountains jersey, taking it by one point from Pogacar. The peloton will face Alpe d’Huez again on Saturday for the mountainous ‘queen’ stage, which includes an additional 2,000 metres of climbing.
Source: theguardian.com
As CasinoNews's Sports News Writer, Mason Leclair reports on the CFL, golf and combat sports for readers across the country. He moved from regional papers into digital sport. He holds a degree in Journalism from Carleton University. Mason lives in Ottawa, where he follows the PGA Tour and mixed martial arts. “Get the facts down first, then add the context.”
