Jonas Vingegaard clinched the 11th stage of the Tour de France, dashing Tadej Pogacar’s hopes of expanding his advantage over his principal adversary for the yellow jersey in the Massif Central. In a sprint finish at Le Lioran, Vingegaard unexpectedly overcame Pogacar to claim victory by a whisker. This surprising victory followed Vingegaard’s recovery from a 30-second disadvantage built up by Pogacar after his advance on the Pas de Peyrol, approximately 30km from the conclusion of this 211km stage starting at Evaux-les-Bains and ending in Le Lioran.
Despite his victory, Vingegaard remains third in the overall rankings after Remco Evenepoel tenaciously maintained his second place at the finish line. The triumph, however, affirms Vingegaard’s impressive form in his inaugural race following his recovery from severe injuries, including a lung puncture and fractured ribs and collarbone, from a crash in the Basque Country in April.
Emotionally affected by his win, the 27-year-old Danish cyclist stated this achievement was very meaningful for him considering his arduous recovery journey. He attributed his success to the unwavering support from his family, the struggles he endured, and his relentless fighting spirit, having been surprised to beat Pogacar in the sprint. Vingegaard confessed that he didn’t foresee achieving this feat just three months prior.
Pogacar did manage to further his lead in the competition, now leading Evenepoel by 66 seconds with Vingegaard trailing by an additional eight seconds. However, the perplexed Slovenian was left contemplating how his strategic plans for the race unraveled.
With Pogacar in an impressive form, it was indeed a fair competition, the winner remarked appreciatively. After an intense stage, he had come out runner-up in a tense sprint. Despite the physical ordeal, he relished the experience and hoped for more of the same as the Tour progressed.
There was evidently a strong contest between the two athletes. On the first climb, the trophy swung in Pogacar’s favour, but his adversary retaliated on the second. Together they raced, with his rival bagging victory in the sprint. Pogacar congratulated him and acknowledged their evenly matched prowess.
Though initially pegged as a potential time for a breakaway, Pogacar and the UAE Team Emirates had a differing strategy in place. 80km into the race, a small party consisting of Ireland’s Ben Healy and Scotland’s Oscar Onley broke free, however they found no chance to establish a leading edge.
With the support of his team-mates, Pogacar embarked on the category one ascend of the Peyrol, pulling away from the competition 600 metres from the crest. This gap expanded further during the descent.
Before tackling the Col de Pertus, Pogacar had a gain of just over 30 seconds. However, Vingegaard, leaving Evenepoel and Primoz Roglic behind, managed to close in on Pogacar’s lead until almost topping him before the summit. This setup a sprint for the bonus seconds available.
Pogacar was victorious in this sprint, yet it was a different story at the finish line. He persisted on Vingegaard’s wheel up until the final 150m, but couldn’t muster the strength to overtake.
In the meantime, Evenepoel and Roglic managed to recoup some part of a one-time 50-second lag, with Evenepoel completing 25 seconds behind the leaders to clutch onto the overall second place by the skin of his teeth.
On the final approach into town, Roglic took a tumble. However, he was eventually given the identical timing as Evenepoel, since the occurrence happened within the last three kilometres of the stage.