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Times
3 days ago
- Sport
- Times
Tim Wellens surprises Victor Campenaerts to win his first Tour stage
The Tour de France rolled into Carcassonne for the 13th time on Sunday. Unlucky 13 for Visma-Lease a Bike. They came into the race believing they could win it, convinced theirs would be the strongest team. Everyone thinks they have the prettiest wife, Arsène Wenger once said. Visma got two of their strongest into the 24-rider breakaway that had the 15th leg of the Tour to themselves. Their great rivals UAE Emirates XRG had one. There was one outcome Visma did not want. Which was the one they got. Tadej Pogacar's friend and team-mate Tim Wellens broke clear of his fellow escapees 42km from the finish and soon disappeared from view. They would not see him again until after the race. Visma's Victor Campenaerts was second and their other contender Wout van Aert was fourth. Such is the determination to protect Pogacar, UAE's equipiers do not often leave him. On this occasion, Wellens embodied the Oscar Wilde principle that man can resist anything except temptation. There were good reasons why Wellens went for it. Having had trouble with his bike the day before, he was left behind on the Col du Tourmalet and could not contribute to the team effort. That left him feeling unusually fresh as the race left Muret for their journey to Carcassonne. One hundred kilometres from the finish, the attacks were so numerous that soon they were uncontrollable. Wellens went with the flow. Once part of the escape, he was able to play the Yellow Jersey card: with my boss leading the race, how can I be expected to contribute to the pacesetting? Campenaerts noticed Wellens in their group and sighed. 'We said today we wanted to go for the stage. It was a good situation with Wout and me in the breakaway, but Wellens… We have a good relationship outside of cycling, but in the races, he's the guy that you don't want to have in the breakaway.' Wellens then played the rider Campenaerts believes him to be. 'He's smart, he's sneaky,' Campenaerts said. 'He knows how to play it. He wasn't allowed to do any pulls. He was sitting on, but he was very strong. He didn't miss any decisive moments, and he did a perfect move on the highest point of the course. 'Of course, second is not what we race for, so it's a bit disappointing, but it is what it is. Wellens was really strong, and he didn't stroll this victory.' After the stage, the stage winner and the Yellow Jersey are obliged to do video conferences with journalists. As Wellens and Pogacar are team-mates, they opted for a duet. The race leader was content to let his team-mate bask in the limelight. Pogacar was asked why he chased down Matteo Jorgenson's attack at the time the breakaway was forming. He explained that when word came through that Jonas Vingegaard had been held up by a crash, he tried to get everyone to slow down so his No1 rival and others could safely return to the peloton. 'But the attacks to join the breakaway continued. Visma already had two riders in the break and when Matteo went, I thought you don't need a third rider in the group, so I went after him.' Pogacar's feeling was that Visma's riders should not have been attacking when their team leader was trying to rejoin the peloton. Visma's strategy though has changed. They still say their No1 priority is Vingegaard's pursuit of the Yellow but that has evolved as Pogacar's lead has stretched to more than four minutes. Now they want to play on two fronts, with stage wins a new priority. Do not, though, feel sorry for Campenaerts and Van Aert meeting Wellens on the wrong day. What sympathy you have got, save it for Julian Alaphilippe, who punched the air after winning the sprint for third place into Carcassonne, believing that he was sprinting for first. 'He had a crash at the beginning of the race,' Raphael Meyer, the Tudor sports director, said. 'He had pain and a dislocated shoulder. He was seen by the doctor and he still has some pain. He's going for x-rays.' Alaphilippe pressed his right shoulder back into its socket and carried on. In the crash, he also damaged his earpiece and had no contact with the team car for the rest of the stage. Joining the lead group after Wellens and Campenaerts had gone clear, he mistakenly thought he was in a group sprinting for victory. All the favourites were in a group 6mins 7secs down on Wellens which was a good place for Oscar Onley to be. He has now got the second rest day to consider the final push to Paris. He sits in fourth place overall, in position to emulate Robert Millar's fourth place in the 1984 Tour. For a 22-year-old in his second tour, Onley has been a revelation in the race so far. So too have been the size of the crowds. The Tour organiser Christian Prudhomme said the crowds at Lille for the opening weekend were the greatest since Yorkshire in 2014, which were the greatest of all. An hour before the finish at Carcassonne I met two Welshmen, Glenn Seaborne and his son Louis. What tempted them to leave Ebbw Vale for the southwest of France? 'Five years ago,' Glenn said, 'I was talking with Louis, who was 16 at the time, and he said he'd been watching the Tour de France and would love to spend a few days at the race. I said, 'We'll do it.'' Glenn had played rugby for 30 years, a semi-professional as an adult. Louis is a football goalkeeper, but once the kid mentioned the Tour, Dad decided it really would happen. After Glenn finished rugby, he became a bike rider. A year after that first conversation, he bought an old Volkswagen and converted it into a camper van. It was all part of a plan. Last year, they made their first trip to the Tour. Four stages. They loved every minute. This year, they've come for 16 days. 'We left home last Thursday week, drove three hours from Ebbw Vale to Portsmouth, took the ferry from there to Bilbao. Thirty-six hours. Then drove to Carcassonne from there. This time we'd brought our bikes and on Saturday we climbed the Col du Tourmalet together, reached the top and then went back down, had a bit to eat in the camper van and then watched the race go by.' Though Geraint Thomas will always be their hero, they couldn't help noticing Pogacar in the group of favourites. 'The way he sits on the bike,' Glenn said. 'He makes it seem just effortless,' Louis added. They are now on their way to Avignon and from there to the foot of Mont Ventoux which they will climb together on Tuesday morning, again before the race. This time, they are going to stay high on the Ventoux and see the riders on the upper slopes of one of the iconic climb. I joke that the Ventoux only gets really bad when they pass through Chalet Reynard and turn left to begin the last six kilometres. They say they cannot wait. I mention to Glenn that it must be some experience to make this trip with his boy. Suddenly this old rugby player, who doesn't seem like he would have been a pushover on the pitch, has tears in his eyes. 'I'm sorry, I'm getting upset now, emotional. It means the world to me to be able to do this. I never had anything like this with my own father. He was a miner, Marine Colliery at Blackwood in South Wales. When he was 40 and I was 10, he had a stroke. He didn't have very good mobility after that and I never could do anything like this with him. Doing this with Louis is unbelievable, just unbelievable.'
BBC News
13-07-2025
- Climate
- BBC News
Van der Poel caught inside final kilometre after epic breakaway as Merlier wins final sprint
Update: Date: 16:26 BST Title: Bastille Day awaits Content: Tomorrow would normally be a rest day but it is Bastille Day so a big day of climbing is coming up instead. The 4,400m of elevation gain across seven category-two climbs and a category-three ascent is likely to put the sprinters in trouble almost from the start on a stage that looks made for the breakaway specialists. There will likely be a strong posse of home riders trying to get in any group heading up the road with the objective of becoming the first French stage winner on the national holiday since Warren Barguil in 2017. The first trip into the mountains should provide a decent shake up of the GC standings although it unlikely to cause any of the main favourites issues. We'll see you for that at noon on Monday. Update: Date: 16:21 BST Title: General classification after stage nine Content: Update: Date: 16:20 BST Title: It was 'fast and furious' Content: Race leader Tadej Pogacar speaking after stage nine: "Today was fast and furious thanks to the two guys in front and also the wind was blowing to make it hard. Tomorrow is a solid day. A proper climbing day, it does not look so hurtful on the profile but I think it is going to be a really hard race and we are ready for tomorrow. "Sadly Joao had to abandon. It was too much to bear and I think everybody understands and wish him all the best." Update: Date: 16:13 BST Title: Van der Poel drops a spot in GC Content: Poor old Mathieu van der Poel. Delivers a mammoth effort to almost win from basically the flag drop and then finds himself being the only rider inside the top 10 in the general classification to lose time and drop a place from fifth to sixth. Update: Date: 16:10 BST Title: Van der Poel goes all in Content: Tim Merlier may well have claimed his second stage of this year's Tour but what about that performance from Mathieu van der Poel. The Dutch rider spent 173km of 174.1km up the road at an average speed of 49.9 kmh but ended up crossing the line 17 seconds after Merlier in a group containing Wout van Aert and Sepp Kuss. Update: Date: 16:03 BST Title: Stage nine results Content: 1. Tim Merlier (Bel/Soudal Quick-Step) 3hrs 28mins 52secs 2. Jonathan Milan (Ita/Lidl-Trek) Same time 3. Arnaud De Lie (Bel/Lotto) " 4. Pavel Bittner (Cze/Picnic PostNL) " 5. Paul Penhoet (Fra/Groupama-FDJ) " 6. Biniam Girmay (Eri/Intermarche-Wanty) " 7. Phil Bauhaus (Ger/Bahrain Victorious) " 8. Jordi Meeus (Bel/Red Bull-Bora-hansgrohe) " 9. Stian Fredheim (Nor/Uno-X Mobility) " 10. Kaden Groves (Aus/Alpecin-Deceuninck) " Update: Date: 15:56 BST Title: Tim Merlier wins stage nine Content: Belgium's Tim Merlier takes stage nine with Jonathan Milan in second and a fast-finishing Arnaud de Lie in third. Update: Date: 250m to go Title: Post Content: Jonathan Milan hits the front as Tim Merlier starts to come through... Update: Date: 500m to go Title: Post Content: Jake Stewart opens up a sprint... Update: Date: 1km to go Title: Post Content: Mathieu van der Poel is caught just inside the flamme rouge. A valian effort. Update: Date: 1.8km to go Title: Post Content: Jonathan Milan has no lead out train today. He will have to freelance and pick a wheel. Mathieu van der Poel has seven seconds. Update: Date: 2km to go Title: Post Content: The peloton is coming in hot. Mathieu van der Poel is riding like his life depends on it but it's only a matter of time now as Kaden Groves begins to tighten his shoes up for the expected bunch sprint. Update: Date: 3km to go Title: Post Content: Tudor Pro Cycling are picking up the pace. Mathieu van der Poel is giving everything but his lead is falling and is 13 seconds. Update: Date: 4km to go Title: Post Content: The gap comes down by four or five seconds. This could be touch and go. Update: Date: 5km to go Title: Post Content: Mathieu van der Poel has a 28-second lead. Will the peloton be able to reel him in from here? Update: Date: 6km to go Title: Post Content: Mathieu van der Poel is going solo. He effectively has a six kilometre time trial to deliver a sensational victory. Update: Date: 7km to go Title: Post Content: Fred Wright and Remco Evenepole are right up front as Magnus Cort pulls. The Dane almost creates a huge gap. There is serious fatigue setting in among that chasing group. The leaders still have 35 seconds. Update: Date: 8km to go Title: Post Content: Jasper Stuyen peels off the front but an Alpecin-Deceuninck rider is in his wheel to slow the chase. Update: Date: 9km to go Title: Post Content: The time gap is coming down but slowly. The leading pair have 45 seconds. Can Mathieu van der Poel pull off a remarkable victory here? Update: Date: 10km to go Title: Post Content: Mathieu van der Poel and Jones Rickaert have 50 seconds as Jasper Stuyven pulls the main bunch.
BBC News
13-07-2025
- Sport
- BBC News
Merlier wins sprint finish as Van der Poel denied epic breakaway triumph
Tim Merlier won stage nine of the Tour de France in a sprint finish after Mathieu van der Poel's hopes of an audacious breakaway victory were dashed inside the final der Poel and team-mate Jonas Rickaert attacked at the start of the 174.1km run from Chinon to Chateauroux and the Dutch former world champion produced a gutsy effort that just fell short of delivering his second win in this year's race. Instead, Belgium's Merlier was able to celebrate again, having also won stage three, as he came past Jonathan Milan and held off fast-finishing compatriot Arnaud de Lie."Five minutes [to Van der Poel in the break] is a lot but we tried to chase and also the other teams started to help. The pacing was quite high at the front, but it was hard for all the guys - the bunch was nervous," said Merlier."In the end we just went all in and I'm happy I can win my second stage here."There has been debate in recent days about the long-term value of flat sprint stages in the Tour, which can unfold in predictable fashion, with the interest confined to the final which was dubbed 'Cavendish City' in honour of Sir Mark, who took the first of his Tour-record 35 career stage victories here in 2008, has long been the preserve of Van der Poel's valiant attempt to end that streak and the race for position in the wind broke the race the Dutchman revealed afterwards that he had embarked on the two-man expedition because team-mate Rickaert had a dream that he has now achieved after winning the day's combativity award."We wanted to go for it today because it's his dream to be on the podium of a Tour de France," Van der Poel said. "It's hard not to be able to finish it off but we put up a good show today."There was no change at the top of the general classification, with defending champion Tadej Pogacar remaining 54 seconds clear of Remco Evenepoel. Two-time winner Jonas Vingegaard is fourth, one minute 17 seconds off there was a blow for Pogacar as key lieutenant Joao Almeida abandoned the race as a result of injuries suffered on stage Monday, the race takes in eight categorised climbs on Bastille Day as it travels 165.3km from Ennezat to Le Mont-Dore Puy de Sancy in the Massif Central.
BBC News
11-07-2025
- Sport
- BBC News
Tour de France - will Pogacar regain yellow jersey on stage seven?
Update: Date: 127km to go Title: Who's in the breakaway? Content: The breakaway has settled. The gap is now up to one minute 30 seconds. So who's in it? Update: Date: 12:56 BST Title: It's 50-50 whether the breakaway will go - Thomas Content: Geraint Thomas was asked before today's stage about the potential of getting into the breakaway. "We've just got to keep trying," said the Ineos Grenadiers rider. "I was just not very good yesterday. I've just been a bit up and down really, so it's a bit frustrating. Today's a new day and we go again. "I think Axel [Laurance] will sit in and wait for the final and a few others will wait for the break. I think today is 50-50, we're not quite sure whether the breakaway will go or not, but as soon as the race starts you kind of get a feel, for who wants it to go and who wants it to not go." Update: Date: 135km to go Title: Post Content: UAE's Marc Soler is trying to control the bunch and has got it back to within 50 seconds of the breakaway. Update: Date: 138km to go Title: Post Content: The gap is up to over a minute as the breakaway comes through the town of Dinan, with Bruno Armirail of French team Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale trying to bridge. Update: Date: 141km to go Title: Thomas in breakaway Content: Now then, there's finally a gap... and British veteran Geraint Thomas is among the lead group. The 2018 race winner is racing in the Tour for the 14th and final time before retiring and has got clear in a five-man breakaway. Update: Date: 147km to go Title: Post Content: Now Wout van Aert tries again, with Mathieu van der Poel's yellow jersey among those trying to go with him. Update: Date: 155km to go Title: Post Content: It's no wonder the wannabe breakaway riders have been struggling to get away, the peloton has averaged 55km per hour so far. This year's stage takes place in Brittany and Valentin Madouas, one of seven Breton riders in the Tour, now makes a second attempt. Update: Date: 162km to go Title: Post Content: Bahrain Victorious have just been on the team radio, singing 'happy birthday' to Lenny Martinez. The French climber turns 22 today, while UAE's Pavel Sivakov turns 28... what better way to celebrate than clinching a prestigious victory at Mur-de-Bretagne?! Update: Date: 165km to go Title: Post Content: There have been a number of attacks from the front of the peloton but the likes of Victor Campenaerts (Visma-Lease a Bike) and Marc Soler (UAE) have been quick to bring the bunch back, to protect their GC contenders - Jonas Vingegaard and Tadej Pogacar. Update: Date: 175km to go Title: Post Content: Just like yesterday, Wout van Aert is unable to establish himself in a breakaway as he and Mauro Schmid are caught by the peloton. Update: Date: 178km to go Title: Post Content: As we reached the 1,000km of this year's race, EF Education-EasyPost were on the team radio, warning their riders to look out for UAE Team Emirates-XRG at the front of the peloton as Tadej Pogacar's team will be looking to take control of the stage. The total distance of this year's Tour is 3,338.8km so we're almost a third of the way through. There will be a lot more elevation gain in the last two weeks though, when we head into the mountains. Update: Date: 190km to go Title: Post Content: Today's stage is already under way, with Belgian star Wout van Aert and Swiss road and time trial champion Mauro Schmid first to go clear of the peloton. Van Aert tried to break away yesterday but ultimately the Visma-Lease a Bike rider could not make it stick. Update: Date: 12:13 BST Title: What's in store for stage seven? Content: A 197km hilly stage begins on the north coast in Saint-Malo and passes through Yffiniac, the home village of five-time winner Bernard Hinault, during a relatively tame opening 175km. However, expect bedlam as the finishing line approaches with a closing circuit that mirrors the 2021 stage, which was won by current race leader Mathieu van der Poel. The Mur-de-Bretagne, which ramps up above 10%, features twice and explosiveness and tactical nous will determine how things play out. There is an intermediate sprint followed by three categorised climbs, the third ramping up to the finish, taking the total elevation gain to 2,450m. Update: Date: 12:09 BST Title: What happened yesterday? Content: Ireland's Ben Healy produced a stunning solo break to win stage six of the Tour de France while Mathieu van der Poel regained the race leader's yellow jersey. Healy and Van der Poel spent most of the 201.5km hilly stage in an eight-man breakaway before the former attacked with 42km remaining. The EF Education-EasyPost rider then pulled away to claim his first stage win on the Tour, crossing the line in Vire Normandie almost three minutes before Quinn Simmons and Michael Storer. Update: Date: 12:04 BST Title: Bonjour Content: Welcome back to BBC Sport's live text coverage of the 2025 Tour de France. Mathieu van der Poel reclaimed the race leader's yellow jersey from Tadej Pogacar by just one second after a gruelling stage six. But will the Dutch rider be able to recover in time for today's stage or will reigning champion Pogacar go back to the top of the general classification standings?
BBC News
10-07-2025
- Sport
- BBC News
Tour de France: Stage six - Healy claims solo win while Van der Poel regains yellow jersey
Update: Date: 17:14 BST Title: Au revoir Content: That's it from today's stage, which saw a stunning solo victory by Ben Healy. After spending most of the day in an eight-man breakaway, the 24-year-old Irishman attacked with about 42km remaining to claim the first Tour de France stage win of his career. Do join us again on Friday from about 12:00 BST for live text coverage on stage seven, another hilly route of from 197km from Saint-Malo to Mur-de-Bretagne Guerledan. Update: Date: 17:07 BST Title: General classification standings after stage six Content: Update: Date: 17:00 BST Title: Tour de France: Stage six results Content: Update: Date: 16:55 BST Title: This stage was one I circled from the start - Healy Content: Stage winner Ben Healy added: "I switched on from the start. Maybe I spent a bit too much [energy] to try to get into the break but that's the way I do it. Once I was in there we really had to work for that gap and we were on the pedals all day. "I knew I needed to get away from the group and picked my moment. I think I timed it well and hopefully caught them by surprise a bit. And then I knew what I had to do: just head down and do my best right to the finish. "This stage suited me down to the ground. It was one I circled from the start and to do it feels amazing. "I grew up watching the Tour, one day wishing I could maybe be there, and to even be here is an achievement. Now to win a stage is so amazing." Update: Date: 16:48 BST Title: Last year made me believe that I could do it - Healy Content: Stage winner Ben Healy, who finished 27th on his Tour debut last year: "It's unbelievable, it's really what I've worked for, not just this year but the whole time. "It's really incredible and [down to] hours and hours of hard work by so many people. To pay them back today is really amazing. "Last year was a real eye-opener and it really made me believe that I could do it. I just knuckled down and did the hard work. I tried to refine my racing style as well and it really paid off today." Update: Date: 16:36 BST Title: Post Content: Ben Healy's EF Education-EasyPost team-mate Kasper Asgreen: "He really had a plan today, you could see it straight off the [team] bus. "He made every move from the gun and he took off with 45km to go and just extended it on his own. "It was really a pleasure listening to [sporting director] Tom Southam in the car behind and hearing Ben crush it. "They were trying to find a good spot to make that move, where it maybe wouldn't be so expected but still be very effective." Update: Date: 16:24 BST Title: Yellow jersey - Van der Poel regains race lead by one second Content: Tadej Pogacar crosses five minutes 26 seconds after Ben Healy, so Mathieu van der Poel will regain the race leader's yellow jersey by just one second. Update: Date: 16:22 BST Title: Post Content: Tadej Pogacar is first over the line from the peloton, with Jonas Vingegaard right behind him. Update: Date: 16:18 BST Title: Post Content: Matteo Jorgenson leads the way for Visma-Lease a Bike, Tadej Pogacar responds. Update: Date: 16:17 BST Title: Post Content: Now for the main GC contenders... Update: Date: 16:17 BST Title: Dunbar makes it two Irish riders in first four Content: Harold Tejada makes the first move on the climb to the finish, but Quinn Simmons responds to claim second place with ease. Eddie Dunbar comes through shortly after to make it two Irishmen in the first four today. What a day for the Irish!! Update: Date: 16:15 BST Title: Post Content: Mathieu van der Poel and Harold Tejada have been dropped from the chase group, with Michael Storer and Quinn Simmons set to battle it out for the bonus seconds. Update: Date: 16:12 BST Title: Healy wins stage six for first Tour de France victory Content: Ben Healy powers up the final climb to cap a wonderful day by clinching the first Tour de France stage win of his career. The 24-year-old Irishman has produced a stunning solo attack to win stage six while Mathieu van der Poel will regain the leader's yellow jersey. Update: Date: 16:09 BST Title: Polka dot jersey - Healy claims final KoM point Content: Ben Healy adds another mountain point to his tally on the Cote de Vaudry. What a day it's been for the 24-year-old Irishman. He's even closing in on the white jersey for best young rider too. Double Olympic champion Remco Evenepoel currently has it. Update: Date: 5km to go Title: Healy closes in on stage win Content: Ben Healy is on to the penultimate hill of the day, and the last categorised climb. Update: Date: 10km to go Title: Post Content: Ben Healy has been named the most aggressive rider of the day. He was in with a shout even before he launched this solo attack. It looks like the Irishman will claim a first-ever stage win on the Tour too. He's almost two minutes clear, with the peloton nearly seven minutes back. Update: Date: 15km to go Title: Post Content: The gap from Ben Healy to Quinn Simmons and Michael Storer is up to one minute 20 seconds. This would be the 12th Tour stage win for EF Education-Easypost, with the most recent coming last year from Richard Carapaz on stage 17. Update: Date: 15:52 BST Title: Frantic finale in store Content: Can Ben Healy maintain his lead over this frantic finish to stage six? It is a similarly punchy finale to that for stage four, with a category four ascent up the Cote de Vaudry before an uncategorised climb to the line. Update: Date: 22km to go Title: Post Content: Ben Healy is now in time-trial mode as he hopes to claim Ireland's 15th Tour stage win. The first came from Seamus Elliott in Roubaix in 1963 and the most recent was Sam Bennett to close the 2020 edition on the Champs-Elysees. Update: Date: 27km to go Title: Polka dot jersey - Healy claims penultimate climb Content: Ben Healy leads by 47 seconds at the start of the Cote de Saint-Michel-de-Montjoie climb so takes the two points, with Michael Storer next up for the other point.
