Tour peloton strolls, then sprint star Philipsen lets it rip
On a 10th stage with no major events, there is a sprint finish. Three Germans are among the leading pack, but it's not enough for the win. The competition is no match for Belgian top sprinter Jasper Philipsen.
Jasper Philipsen, the Belgian sprint star, decided the fifth mass sprint of the 111th Tour de France for himself and celebrated his seventh stage win. The 26-year-old finished first in Saint-Amand-Montrond after 187.3 kilometers, ahead of Eritrean Biniam Girmay and German Pro Pascal Ackermann. Philipsen had missed the stage win several times in this year's edition before. Two more Germans, Phil Bauhaus and John Degenkolb, finished 7th and 8th respectively in the top ten.
"The past week wasn't great, but now I'm really happy and relieved. We've finally achieved what we came for, it was a perfect job by the entire team," said Philipsen: "I'm happy for the whole team. We kept believing, now we've earned our well-deserved win."
After the start in Orléans, the field remained calm for a long time. The pros barely managed a speed of just over 40 km/h in the first racing hours. All teams were aiming for a mass sprint, so no breakaway group formed. Only in the final part did it get really fast due to the work of the sprinter teams and the increasing tailwind. At the top of the general classification, nothing changed as expected. Tadej Pogačar leads with a 33-second advantage over Time Trial World Champion Remco Evenepoel. Defending champion Jonas Vingegaard is 1:15 minutes behind in third place.
On Wednesday, a climber's test in the Central Massif awaits. The 211 kilometers to the ski resort Le Loiran have primarily the final 50 kilometers with four mountain classifications in store. The stage is made for escape artists. However, attacks can also come from the contenders for the overall win.
Philipsen's victory in the fifth mass sprint of the Tour de France was a celebrated moment in cycling, marking his seventh stage win in the 111th edition of the race. This significant achievement in the renowned French sporting event, the Tour de France, solidified his position as a top sprinter in the world of cycling.
