Pogacar delivers fascinating Pyrenees ride, Vingegaard fights for
Tadej Pogacar takes the next step towards Tour-de-France victory: The Slovenian wins the first Pyrenees stage and gains more seconds of advantage over second place. Jonas Vingegaard is now in second place behind the man in the Yellow Jersey.
Tadej Pogacar launched one of his unrivaled attacks against Jonas Vingegaard on the steep slope just before the first mountain finish of the 111th Tour de France. He celebrated an important partial victory against his perennial rival. The overall leader in the Yellow Jersey finished the next encounter between these two pro cyclists with a comfortable margin before the Danish title defender.
At the finish line in Pla d'Adet in the Pyrenees, Pogacar crossed the finish line 39 seconds ahead of Vingegaard. The 25-year-old Pogacar finished the 151.9 kilometers on the 14th stage from Pau on Saturday an impressive 1:10 minutes ahead of Remco Evenepoel. The Belgian finished third. In the general classification, Pogacar now leads with 1:57 minutes over Vingegaard and 2:22 minutes over Evenepoel. The time trial world champion lost his second place.
Pogacar's German teammate Nils Politt kept the pace of the main field high for a long time. However, 4.6 kilometers before the finish, Pogacar attacked Vingegaard. He gradually gained valuable seconds on his competitors. Vingegaard tried to keep up but couldn't.
Both exceptional riders have already engaged in several duels during this year's race. Pogacar overtook Vingegaard by a few seconds at the Col du Galibier. The defending Tour champion remained calm. He countered Pogacar's attacks and raised the nerves of the man in Yellow with his defensive riding style. Pogacar complained, but Vingegaard defended the tactics of his team. In the ski resort of Le Lioran, the 27-year-old even managed to finish just ahead of Pogacar and win the stage.
Corona at the Tour
The first of two Pyrenean crashes came over the weekend. The Tour classic Col du Tourmalet alone had this in store for the riders. The 19-kilometer stretch required an average gradient of more than seven percent. The steep final section on Pla d'Adet contained almost eight percent over about ten kilometers.
Tom Pidcock was saved from the mishap. To the disappointment of the once British Tour stage winner. His Ineos team announced just before the start of the race that the 24-year-old would return home due to Corona symptoms. His Ineos team was known for being very cautious. Team members had recently worn masks. Currently, there are no fixed Corona measures at the Tour. Several riders are reportedly infected with Corona on the road.
The national holiday awaits on Sunday with an even more challenging Pyrenees stage. The King's Stage with a start in Loudenvielle and a finish on the Plateau de Beille is considered the greatest challenge of this year's race. With its more than 4800 height meters and 197.7 kilometers.
Tadej Pogacar's victory in the Pyrenean Ride during the Tour-de-France further solidified his position, as he finished the stage 39 seconds ahead of Jonas Vingegaard. The sporting event in France saw Pogacar increase his lead in the general classification, now standing at 1:57 minutes ahead of Vingegaard. (Tour, Pyrenean Ride, Pogacar, Vingegaard, sport, France)
Jonas Vingegaard, despite attempting to keep up with Pogacar's attacks, struggled to maintain the pace in the Pyrenean stage. As a result, the time gap between the two cyclists continued to widen, further jeopardizing Vingegaard's chances of overtaking Pogacar in the overall standings. (Tour, Pyrenean Ride, Pogacar, Vingegaard, sport, France)
Despite Ineos's team member Tom Pidcock being forced to withdraw from the Tour-de-France due to Corona symptoms, the competition continues in France. Several riders have reportedly contracted the virus during the race, without any fixed Corona measures in place. (Tour, Corona, France)
