Pogacar wins fifth Tour de France as teen Seixas seals stunning fourth place
Tadej Pogacar claimed his record-equalling fifth Tour de France title on Sunday, while Mathieu van der Poel won the final stage. 19-year-old Paul Seixas became the youngest rider in the race since 1937, finishing fourth overall.
Pogacar's Fifth Triumph
Tadej Pogacar secured his fifth Tour de France victory on Sunday, equalling the record held by Jacques Anquetil, Eddy Merckx, Bernard Hinault, and Miguel Indurain. The 27-year-old Slovenian had effectively sealed the title in the previous mountain stages finishing on Alpe d'Huez. He won five stages and wore the yellow jersey since stage six in the Pyrenees.
Pogacar now has 26 career stage wins, fourth all-time behind Mark Cavendish (35), Merckx (34), and Hinault (28). He also surpassed both Indurain and Chris Froome in days spent in yellow with 70, trailing only Hinault (75) and Merckx (96).
Dramatic Final Stage
Mathieu van der Poel won a sensational 21st stage around Paris. The stage was shortened to 88.7 km due to wildfires in the southwest. Van der Poel and Pogacar broke away on the final climb up Montmartre, and after a fierce sprint finish, Van der Poel won by half a wheel length in a photo finish ahead of teammate Jasper Philipsen and Mads Pedersen.
Historic Tour
Olympic champion Remco Evenepoel finished second overall, nearly 6.5 minutes behind, with Mexican Isaac Del Toro in third. Dane Pedersen won the green jersey points competition. Richard Carapaz of Ecuador took the polka dot King of the Mountains jersey, while Del Toro claimed the white jersey for best young rider. Carapaz was also voted most combative rider.
French legend Julian Alaphilippe, a two-time world champion, announced this was his final Tour. The 34-year-old famously held the yellow jersey for 14 days in 2019.
This Tour was historic in several ways. It was only the third time in 113 editions (after 1926 and 1999) that no Frenchman won a stage. More remarkably, it was the first time in 302 Grand Tours (including the Giro d'Italia and Vuelta a España) that no rider from France, Italy, or Spain won a stage. Instead, winners came from Slovenia, Mexico, Ecuador, and Denmark, showing cycling's expansion beyond its traditional Western European base.
The entire peloton set a new record for the fastest road stage: stage 11 from Vichy to Nevers was ridden at an average speed of 50.9 km/h, beating the 1990 record of 50.35 km/h. Del Toro became the first Mexican on a Tour podium, and 19-year-old Paul Seixas, finishing fourth, became the youngest rider since Adrien Cento in 1937.
