tour de france 2023 expected winners

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Tour de France 2023 Predictions - Yellow jersey winner, stage victors, the best team and more

We make our bets on which riders will reign supreme in the 2023 edition of La Grande Boucle

Words: Rachel Jary

The biggest race in the cycling calendar is fast approaching in the form of the 2023 Tour de France . Steep roads and wild fans await the peloton in the Basque Country for the race’s Grand Départ and the stakes are as high as ever for this year’s edition of the race. 

2023 winner Jonas Vingegaard returns to defend his yellow jersey, but two-time winner Tadej Pogačar is hungry to reaffirm his dominance. Mark Cavendish is looking to get his 35th stage win, but there’s a stacked list of fast sprinters who are going to make his life difficult. There’s breakaway specialists who are ready to pounce when the chances arise, and Tour de France debutants who could really make their mark on this race.

So who will come away from the Tour satisfied and who will be left wanting more? These are our predictions of the winners and losers.

Yellow jersey winner

There is no denying that the yellow jersey is the most coveted prize in cycling. Winning the Tour de France is the dream of many professional riders and, for the few who succeed, it changes their lives forever. That very thing happened for Jumbo-Visma’s Jonas Vingegaard last year when he surprised many by beating two-time Tour de France winner Tadej Pogačar, dropping him on the brutal Col du Granon in a stage that will go down for the ages. Both riders return to the Tour in 2023 with Vingegaard hoping to defend his title and Pogačar with dreams of getting back to the top step of the podium, but who will get the outcome they are hoping for?

Best sprinter

The beauty and complexity of the Tour de France is that it is about far more than just the battle for the overall general classification victory. Stage wins for sprinters on the flatter days of the Tour are extremely coveted – Mark Cavendish currently shares the record for the most Tour de France stage wins with Eddy Merckx, both riders have won 34 stages in their respective careers. In 2023, Cavendish will ride his final Tour de France with Astana-Qazaqstan with the aim of getting one final stage win so he can hold the record of the winningest rider in Tour history. However, for the British sprinter who is in the twilight of his career, a stage win in the 2023 edition of Le Tour is  a tall order, he has some tough competition to contend with.

The likes of Caleb Ewan (Lotto-Dstny), Dylan Groenewegen (Jayco-Alula), Sam Welsford (Team dsm-fermenich), Biniam Girmay (Intermarché - Circus - Wanty), Fabio Jakobsen (Soudal–Quick-Step), Wout van Aert (Jumbo-Visma) and Jasper Philipsen (Alpecin-Deceuninck) are just a few of the main sprinters who will want to challenge Cavendish for stage wins. Record or no record, victories will not be gifted to the Manxman in this Tour de France. Of the stacked list of sprinters taking part in the race, we expect Jakobsen to be the best of the bunch. Quick Step have a team almost solely dedicated to leading out the Belgian, with Danish rider Michael Mørkøv (widely regarded as the best lead out man in the world), serving as Jakobsen’s last man. Mørkøv’s wheel can give sprinters a red carpet ride to the finish line and it led Jakobsen to two stage victories at the Baloise Belgium Tour recently, the penultimate race that Jakobsen will do before the Tour de France. It should be on stages three and four that the sprinters get their first chances to shine after a hilly opening two days in the Basque Country and Jakobsen will be leading the charge in the colours of  Soudal–Quick-Step .

Best debutant

This year’s Tour de France sees a number of riders taking on the three week race for the first time in their careers. The youngest rider on the current startlist is Carlos Rodríguez of the Ineos Grenadiers and it will also be the Spanish rider’s first ever attempt at La Grande Boucle. Rodríguez recently won the white jersey at the Critérium du Dauphiné and finished ninth overall. His role for Ineos at the Tour de France is currently unclear, but he will either be one to watch in the white jersey competition if he is riding for GC, or fight for stage wins if he is given the freedom to get in the breakaways when the opportunity arises. 

Another rider competing in the Tour de France for the first time is Mattias Skjelmose of Lidl-Trek. Skjelmose surprised many by taking victory at the recent Tour de Suisse , riding with impressive strength and maturity. Skjelmose’s performances so far this season have been beyond expectations, he was second in La Flèche Wallonne – the parcours of which are similar to the opening stages in the Basque Country in this year’s Tour de France. From Bora-Hansgrohe, this is also the first time that last year’s Giro d’Italia winner Jai Hindley will race in the Tour de France – he is one to watch for the general classification. 

On the side of the sprinters, Biniam Girmay starts in the Tour de France for the first time in his career this year – the Eritrean rider proved he was back to winning form at the Tour de Suisse when he outsprinted Arnaud Démare and Wout van Aert on stage two. We can expect more of this from Girmay in the Tour. Sam Welsford of Team DSM has proven to be another promising fast man so far in his career so could be one to keep an eye on during the flatter stages. It will certainly be a test to see if Welsford, who originally comes from track cycling, can get himself over the arduous mountain tests of the Tour de France.

Of all the debutants in this year’s race, we expect Skjelmose and Girmay to be the two key riders to watch.

Breakaway specialists

And for the days in between, that aren’t for the sprinters and aren’t for the general classification riders, there are chances for the breakaway. The Tour de France provides unusual opportunities for riders with varied skill sets to take stage wins – there is often little incentive for the strong GC teams to chase down the breakaway if it contains riders who aren’t of any danger for challenging for yellow. This means that riders who are brave, courageous and believe in their chance to win can often leave the Tour de France with stage wins to their name – something that has the potential to change a rider’s career path forever. 

Every year as the Tour rolls round, there are the usual candidates that we can expect to make themselves known in the breakaways when the chances arise. EF Education-EasyPost are a team with a number of riders who can perform well from a small group and play the breakaway game well. Magnus Cort, Alberto Bettiol and Nielson Powless are all riders from the team in pink who we can expect to see fighting to make the move when the time comes. Fred Wright of Bahrain-Victorious was a common face seen in the breakaway in last year’s Tour de France, coming close to stage wins on multiple occasions – he’ll be hoping to finally secure his first professional victory this season. His teammate, Matej Mohorič, is one to watch for the breakaway and intermediate days too. Julian Alaphilippe of  Soudal–Quick-Step  will dream of a stage win on those opening punchy stages in the Basque Country.

Valentin Madouas and Thibaut Pinot (Groupama-FDJ) are a duo who could fight for stage wins on the hillier days, but this will depend on if Pinot goes for the general classification or not. In fact, there are quite a few riders who fall in the category of those who could target the overall GC, but will move to hunting stage wins if they end up losing time due to a mishap in the earlier stages. These include the likes of Michael Woods and Nick Schultz (Isreal-Premier Tech) and Tom Pidcock (Ineos-Grenadiers). Wildcard team UNO-X Pro Cycling will also want to prove worthy of their spot in the race this year and will certainly be active in breakaways, Tobias Halland Johannessen and Anthon Charmig are two of their riders who could be up there on the hillier stages.

Most successful team

The official team classification at the Tour de France is decided by taking the time of each squad’s top three finishers on every stage (apart from in a team time trial, when the time of the fifth rider to cross the finish is counted, or the last if there are fewer than five riders remaining.) The team with the lowest cumulative time across the race so far leads the classification. It isn’t a classification that team’s normally target and doesn’t usually represent the overall success of a team – it doesn’t take into account stage wins or the work of domestiques.

We think that a team’s success at the Tour de France should be judged with a wider view than the current team classification shows – stage wins, team unity and tactics also should play a part in deciding which team has given the best performance. In 2023, we’re finding it hard to look past Jumbo-Visma as the strongest team in the race. Wout van Aert can perform well in the sprint stages and intermediate stages, but has also proven his ability to be a impressive mountain domestique; Sepp Kuss is consistently reliable in the high mountains too, able to ride with the strongest climbers; Christophe Laporte, Nathan Van Hooydonck and Tiesj Benoot are all-rounders who can protect Vingegaard when necessary and also go for stage wins themselves if given the chance; while Wilco Kelderman is another rider to rely on in the mountains – proving that with his recent fourth place finish at the Tour de Suisse. Jumbo-Visma will come to the Tour as defending champions and know how to win a three-week race.

Dutiful domestique

The role of a domestique is one of the most important in cycling – a good domestique can make the difference between their leader winning and losing a Grand Tour. Wout van Aert proved himself to be one of the best in the race in last year’s Tour de France, sacrificing his own chances of stage wins when required to help Vingegaard and Jumbo-Visma, notably on the cobbles in stage five. Similarly Brandon McNulty and Mikkel Bjerg were extremely valuable to Pogačar in the latter stages of last year’s race when he was trying to hold on to the yellow jersey – the Tour de France is not a race that can be won alone.

In 2023, we expect Sepp Kuss to be an extremely valuable domestique to Vingegaard in the high mountains. The American rider likely has the class and talent to go for a Tour de France victory himself, but has spoken publicly about enjoying the role of a domestique and being at peace with sacrificing his own chances. Last year, Kuss was absolutely crucial to Jumbo-Visma’s victory, able to stay with Vingegaard and Pogačar on the hardest sections of the most difficult mountain stages. Similarly, Rafał Majka is going to be crucial to Pogačar in the mountains – the Polish rider was forced to abandon last year’s Tour on stage 17 but has proven this season that he is in good form ahead of the Tour. Whichever domestique can do the best work for their leader as late into the race as possible will be seen as the most valuable – it’s important that a team has as many riders as they can as the stages get difficult.

Cover image: Zac Williams/SWpix

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Jonas Vingegaard becomes back-to-back Tour de France winner: How he bested Tadej Pogačar

Jonas Vingegaard became a back-to-back Tour de France champion Sunday, cruising into Paris to wrap up the 21-stage race. Here’s what you need to know:

• Vingegaard, 26, secured the yellow jersey in Stage 6 and never relinquished it.
• The first two weeks of the Tour were among the closest in its history as Vingegaard entered the final rest day just 10 seconds ahead of rival Tadej Pogačar — himself a back-to-back winner in 2020 and 2021. But the Danish rider broke the race open in stages 16 and 17 to win by over seven minutes.
• Jasper Philipsen won the green jersey and Giulio Ciccone was the “king of the mountains” in polka dots. Pogačar won a record fourth white jersey for being the best rider under 26 years old.

Final general classification standings

• Jonas Vingegaard (Jumbo-Visma)
• Tadej Pogačar (UAE Team Emirates) +7:29
• Adam Yates (UAE Team Emirates) +10:56
• Simon Yates (Team Jayco Alula) +12:23
• Carlos Rodriguez (Ineos Grenadiers) +13:17

🦁💛The King and its bodyguards💛🦁 🦁💛Le Roi et sa garde rapprochée💛🦁 #TDF2023 @JumboVismaRoad https://t.co/FDSMJTKctY pic.twitter.com/M5LYo9ldpX — Tour de France™ (@LeTour) July 23, 2023

How Vingegaard got it done

Vingegaard and Pogačar were the only two riders expected to be in the general classification conversation ahead of the race, and their back-and-forth did not disappoint. The first two weeks were a tactical battle as Vingegaard and his Jumbo-Visma super-team tried to snag every second they could.

But in Tuesday’s time trial, a format often regarded as the “race of truth” because every rider must fend for himself, Vingegaard proved to be a true star.

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He had the race of his life , besting Pogačar’s No. 2 time by a minute and 38 seconds. (Pogačar, in turn, was more than a minute ahead of the third-place rider). If it wasn’t a done deal already, Vingegaard sealed the win with a strong ride the next day in the mountains as Pogačar couldn’t dig deep enough to fight back. Vingegaard put nearly six minutes into the Slovenian rider — who declared he was “dead” after the stage — growing his lead to well over seven minutes.

At that point, Vingegaard wasn’t ready to call the race quite yet, noting that he expected Pogačar to “try something” in the coming days. And Pogačar indeed did not go out quietly, battling to grab the win in Saturday’s Stage 20. But Vingegaard, as he had been all race, was right there on Pogačar’s wheel.

Other notable results

American Sepp Kuss, who dutifully led Vingegaard through the mountains, dropped out of a top-10 finish Saturday after a gruesome crash . He managed to finish the race, however, and still ended up 12th.

French fan favorite Thibaut Pinot finished 11th in the last Tour of his career. He was the most aggressive rider of Saturday’s stage, making a strong push for the win, but ultimately finished seventh.

Egan Bernal, the last Tour de France winner not named Vingegaard or Pogačar, finished 36th in his first Tour since returning from a near-fatal crash in January 2022.

What Vingegaard said

“It’s amazing to take my second victory in the Tour de France, I almost cannot believe it,” Vingegaard said Saturday. He called the matchup with Pogačar a “crazy battle.”

“I would never have been able to do this without my fantastic team. They’ve been there every day for me,” he added.

Required reading

• Tour de France 2023: How to watch, schedule, odds and storylines you need to know

(Photo: Thomas Samson /AFP via Getty Images)

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Tour de France 2023: Kwiatkowski wins stage 13 as Pogacar grabs time – as it happened

Michal Kwiatkowski produced a superb solo ride on Grand Colombier while Tadej Pogacar reduced Jonas Vingegaard’s lead

• 14 Jul 2023 Top 10 on stage 13
• 14 Jul 2023 Vingegaard now leads overall by nine seconds
• 14 Jul 2023 Michal Kwiatkowski wins stage 13!
• 14 Jul 2023 Caleb Ewan (Lotto Dstny) abandons
• 14 Jul 2023 Mike Teunissen takes the intermediate sprint
• 14 Jul 2023 Stage 13 begins!
• 14 Jul 2023 Preamble

115km to go: That previous group of six was shut down. Now it’s Pacher, Van Gils, Oliveira and Teunissen out front, a group of four, and they have 13sec.

117km to go: One of the sports directors comes on the radio, saying that UAE Team Emirates have let it be known that they want to control the race today and go for the stage win. On commentary, Sean Kelly and Robbie McEwen poo-poo this idea. Neither believe UAE Team Emirates will expend the energy to control this.

119km to go: Cavagna (Soudal–Quick-Step), Castroviejo and Fraile (Ineos Grenadiers), Cort (EF Education–EasyPost), Wright (Bahrain Victorious) and Coquard (Cofidis) are the six up front.

121km to go: Six riders bust away from the clutches of the peloton once again. Is that Mohoric up there? I think it may be. Anyway six riders have five seconds on the bunch, but the bunch is still trying to shut all this silliness down.

We’re told the front group is moving at 56km/h. That’s a spicy meatball!

122km to go: Cavagna, the Frenchman who hails from Clermont-Ferrand, has a crack off the front again. It is Bastille Day, after all. Not Metronomy Day or Friendly Fires Day.

124km to go: Pierre Latour (TotalEnergies) and Jonas Abrahamsen (Uno-X) are on the move up front. They have impressively built a lead of eight seconds over the chasing peloton. But chasing is the operative word: the main bunch aren’t having any of this, and are trying their hardest to close it down … Mads Pedersen (Lidl-Trek) is taking charge of the chase, and predictably given his ludicrous power, he shuts it down in double-quick time. All back together.

125km to go: You already know about today’s climb. Stage 13’s intermediate sprint comes at Hauteville-Lompnes, with 50.5km to race. It’s on the way to the top of the long, but uncategorised ascent that comes as an hors d’oeuvre for Grand Colombier.

128km to go: “Huge day,” emails Paul. “But why have the French declared a national holiday named after a middling but erudite indie synth band? Can any Francophile readers explain? Not knowing is driving me MAD but I’ll wager that it’s do with why we needed to leave the EU and that. I predict we will see Pogacar in yellow today (the colour, not the middling but erudite Swiss synth band).”

129km to go: Cofidis up front now. There’s a gaggle of riders up ahead of the peloton again. Again they are going to be reeled in. At this pace, we’ll be faster than the fastest predicted stage finish, I’d bet.

130km to go: EF Education–EasyPost now have two riders up front trying to snap the elastic.

“Good afternoon!” emails Bill.

“It’s France! It’s Bastille Day! It’s a big mountain finish! It’s Thibaut’s time! Pinot is going to get a huge stomp on, and the final climb is going to be thrilling heorics in the red all the way to the top. He will take a brilliantly emotional victory on his farewell Tour de France .

“It will be marvellous.”

132km to go: The situation is fluid up front … but now that latest attempt to break away is closed down and we are back together again. This isn’t going to be a nice, relaxed start to the three looming days in the mountains, that’s for sure.

134km to go: Rémi Cavagna (Soudal–Quick-Step) now has a dart. There are four riders who have a few metres on the peloton. Biniam Girmay (Intermarché–Circus–Wanty) gets across and swells the group. Six there now … but I fancy this is going to get pulled back as well. They only have a few metres and it’s strung out at the front as the riders try to pull it back.

136km to go: That first attempt to break away is shut down. But more attacks come almost immediately. Mike Teunissen (Intermarché–Circus–Wanty) is the next to have a bash. He springs out of the peloton on the left-hand side of the road. And several riders give chase.

137km to go: Victor Campanaerts is one of two Lotto Dstny riders up front, trying to form the breakaway. Three Uno-X men are giving chase. They are speeding along at 50km/h.

Stage 13 begins!

And they’re off. Lotto Dstny are on the attack.

On the telly, there’s a beautiful shot of the Alps looming in the far distance.

Andrey Amador (EF Education–EasyPost) needs a front wheel change following a puncture.

Here we go then. The peloton are rolling along in the neutralised zone. 1.2km until they race.

Jens Voigt believes the break has zero chance of survival today. I don’t agree – and not just because Pogacar said UAE will be keeping their options open …

As mentioned earlier, De Gendt won on this day in 2016, the same day that Chris Froome went for a jog on Mont Ventoux:

On Eurosport , pundit Dan Lloyd points out that going really deep today may cost riders over the weekend: perhaps not tomorrow, but Sunday. Managing effort over the next three days is going to be so important.

Now Vingegaard speaks , and is asked by Eurosport if this is a climb for Pogacar? “Yes, it suits him better. It’s only one climb in the end. In that case we’ll try to ride a bit defensively today.

Are you going to leave everything to UAE? “Basically, yes.

“I have the lightest options for today [bike and equipment].

“It’s a very, very hard climb. It’s 17km. Especially the bottom of it is very hard. It’s a hard climb to predict. In the bottom it’s steeper … we’ll see what plans everyone else has.”

He looks nervous, in my view, but that’s only to be expected …

Tadej Pogacar speaks to Eurosport, and is asked about how today may play out: “A lot depends on the break … then we have to decide if we go for it, or we let go.”

Is Grand Colombier a good climb for him? “I think yes, it suits me good. Three years ago was really nice memories . It would be nice to have it again. But today might be totally different than three years ago.”

And what did he think of Jumbo Visma’s tactics yesterday? “It was a bit crazy. They really wanted to go for the break. It was strange to see. But for us, it was OK, we had a good day yesterday. We focus on ourselves, and do our own thing.”

The headline in GC is that Vingegaard leads Pogacar by 17sec.

Top 10 before stage 13:

Vingegaard 50hr 30min 23sec Pogacar +17sec Hindley +2min 40sec Rodriguez +4min 22sec Bilbao +4min 34sec A Yates +4min 39sec S Yates +4min 44sec Pidcock +5min 26sec Gaudu +6min 01sec Pinot +6min 33sec

Mark Cavendish gives an update following his unfortunate departure from the race . He says his broken collarbone is slightly complicated by a previous injury – the one he sustained when he crashed in Harrogate in 2014. Anyway, aside from that, he sounds upbeat and thanks everyone who’s sent him messages of support. It’s been “wicked”, he says.

An update on @MarkCavendish from his hospital bed 🤕 #TDF2023 pic.twitter.com/YqY0pM7i8y — ITV Cycling (@itvcycling) July 14, 2023

One more next year … ?

Any thoughts on today’s stage? You can email me or tweet . Allez!

Ion Izagirre mounted a superb lone breakaway yesterday to snaffle Cofidis’s second stage win of this Tour. Here’s Jeremy Whittle’s report, kicking off with some “Hell yes, I’m tough enough” thoughts from Vingegaard on the looming battle with Pogacar on Grand Colombier:

Chris Froome enjoyed some good times on Mont Ventoux, of course, but things are rather different now. Sylvan Adams, Israel-Premier Tech’s owner, took the opportunity yesterday to point out that the four-times Tour winner has not provided value for money since signing for the team in 2020:

Seven years ago today: everyone’s favourite Belgian breakaway specialist, Thomas de Gendt, won the stage on Mont Ventoux. (Being pedantic, it wasn’t “atop” Mont Ventoux as the Lotto Dstny tweet states. The finish was at Chalet Reynard, I think, but certainly not atop the mountain as you can see from the photo.)

Throw🔙 Seven years ago, a memorable win atop Mont Ventoux for @DeGendtThomas on #BastilleDay ! pic.twitter.com/11l7mSLDCa — Lotto Dstny (@lotto_dstny) July 14, 2023

It’s the 14th of July – Bastille Day – a time for French pride and, perhaps, a French stage winner?

Here’s a picture of Tony Gallopin (Lidl-Trek) waving the flag, a proud Frenchman, but not the type of rider who will be in contention for today’s win.

Below that, a hint from the Tour’s official Twitter that we may see an appearance from the Patrouille acrobatique de France.

🇫🇷 Bastille day on the Grand Colombier 🇫🇷 Fête nationale au Grand Colombier ! #TDF2023 pic.twitter.com/J32EMuqRAv — Tour de France™ (@LeTour) July 14, 2023

The omens could hardly be better for UAE Team Emirates today. In 2020, Tadej Pogacar won stage 15 atop Grand Colombier on a day that Egan Bernal’s attempt to defend his title with Team Ineos disintegrated. Primoz Roglic (Jumbo-Visma) remained well placed for the overall win, or so it seemed before that fateful final time trial.

Have you got much planned for this weekend? The Tour de France certainly has: three mountain stages, beginning today, that may even determine the overall winner. The race hits the Jura Mountains this afternoon before two punishing days in the Alps on Saturday and Sunday. This afternoon’s route is relatively short, at 137.8km, but very sharp with a summit finish atop Grand Colombier, 17.4km long, peaking 1,501m above sea level.

We will almost certainly see a full-on early fight to form a breakaway among the peloton’s climbers who fancy a stage win, but regardless of how the rest of the stage plays out, attention will be focused on Jonas Vingegaard and Tadej Pogacar on that final, attritional ascent. The Slovenian Pogacar (UAE Team Emirates) is just 17sec behind his Danish rival in the general classification. Vingegaard, of Jumbo-Visma, may still lead the race, but there is a sense Pogacar is getting stronger and merely waiting for his moment.

Perhaps the GC teams will seek to control things, and let Vingegaard and Pocagar duke it out for the stage win as well as precious seconds in the GC at the front of the race? However it shakes down, the relatively short distance and the finely-balanced situation at the top of the standings means it’s going to be gripping entertainment anyway.

Scheduled stage start time: 12.55 BST

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Meeus wins thrilling Champs-Élysées finish as Vingegaard wins Tour de France

It was a surprise winner of the 2023 tour de france final stage in jordi meeus, but a very expected result as jonas vingegaard wrapped up the overall victory of the race..

Jordi Meeus wins Stage 21 of the 2023 Tour de France.

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Sprint | Grignols (88 km)

Points at finish, kom sprint (4) côte de béguey (131 km), youth day classification, team day classification, race information.

• Date: 07 July 2023
• Start time: 13:30
• Avg. speed winner: 45.013 km/h
• Race category: ME - Men Elite
• Distance: 169.9 km
• Points scale: GT.A.Stage
• UCI scale: UCI.WR.GT.A.Stage
• Parcours type:
• ProfileScore: 7
• Vert. meters: 808
• Departure: Mont-de-Marsan
• Arrival: Bordeaux
• Race ranking: 1
• Startlist quality score: 1584
• Won how: Sprint of large group
• Avg. temperature: 32 °C

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• Côte de Béguey

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Tour de France

Could matteo jorgenson win a grand tour this weekend’s gc test in french alps could hold answer, jorgenson's grand tour gc future will see a major test across 3 summits to close critérium du dauphiné: 'many people said sepp kuss could not win a grand tour, so why cannot matteo jorgenson do that'.

Heading out the door? Read this article on the new Outside+ app available now on iOS devices for members! >","name":"in-content-cta","type":"link"}}'>Download the app .

Matteo Jorgenson opens Friday what could be among the most decisive days of his already blossoming professional career when he faces three monster climbing stages stacked up across the French Alps.

A strong showing this weekend at the Critérium du Dauphiné could reveal whether or not the ever-improving Idahoan packs the right stuff to evolve into a grand tour rider.

Jorgenson, who avoided injury in Thursday’s massive high-speed pileup, won’t be holding back.

“I’m feeling very good after a training camp and I’ll see what I can do this week,” Jorgenson told Velo at the start of the Dauphiné. “There are a lot of good riders here. I am not raising my expectations too much, but I’m curious to see how my body reacts on these big climbs.”

The Visma-Lease a Bike star opens Friday’s 174.1km sixth stage poised in third place overall, but that position will almost certainly end by the time he arrives at the hors-categorie Le Collet d’Allevard summit finale a few hours later.

Stacked up like guillotines are two more massive climbing stages, with more Tour de France -styled summit finales this weekend, with the race-breaking climax at the Cat. 1 summit finish Sunday at Plateau des Glières that will crown the 2024 Dauphiné winner.

Visma-Lease a Bike brass are just as curious to discover the 24-year-old’s limit in the high-altitude, long-distance climbs of the French Alps that are part and parcel of any Tour de France.

“We will know a lot more after this week. The Dauphiné is a little Tour de France, with all these mountains and some big challengers,” Visma-Lease a Bike sport director Frans Maassen told Velo . “[Jonas] Vingegaard is not here, so he has the freedom, and it’s a chance for him to see what’s possible.”

No one’s expecting Jorgenson to win the Dauphiné, but closing out the week anywhere near the top-10 would be a huge step forward for the multi-faceted rider who’s already won one-week stage races at the Tour of Oman and Paris-Nice as well as one the one-day classic at Dwars door Vlaanderen.

Can he climb higher? This weekend could reveal a lot.

‘Expectations can change with time’

Jorgenson is in the clouds since his high-profile transfer to super team Visma-Lease a Bike this season.

The Idahoan carved out a unique Do-It-Yourself pathway into the WorldTour. As a budding U23 rider, he sent out emails to team managers and raced on a development team in France, with his parents paying his expenses as he chased his WorldTour teams.

Team Movistar signed him in 2020, and he quickly paid back on the investment. Three superb seasons with “Los Blues” at Movistar produced a string of excellent results that saw several top-tier teams bidding for his signature.

Visma-Lease a Bike, hot off winning all three grand tours in 2023, won the Jorgenson sweepstakes.

And he’s confirmed the transfer with red-hot results, including victory at Paris-Nice and Dwars door Vlaanderen that’s made Jorgenson one of the top signings of 2024.

And now he’s barreling into this weekend’s trio of climbing stages positioned to show how well he can handle the harder, longer climbs of the French Alps.

The question begs, could he evolve into a grand tour rider?

Maassen told Velo that team brass will be watching closely.

“It’s hard to say, but why not? Of course, Paris-Nice is not a grand tour, but he proved last year in the Tour that he is a special rider. He almost won at Puy de Dôme, and you are a hero if you win there,” Maassen told Velo . “He is a better rider now, and we are curious what is possible with him.”

Maassen said there is absolutely no pressure or undue expectations this weekend on Jorgenson, but pointed out that since defending champion Jonas Vingegaard is not racing, the American will have an open road into the heart of the Alps.

Top ten finishes in the time trial for Americans Matteo Jorgenson and Neilson Powless! #Dauphine pic.twitter.com/szdPuBmkTN — NBC Sports Cycling (@NBCSCycling) June 5, 2024

For a rider who can shine both on the cobbles and the climbs, Jorgenson’s already proven he can climb well in the right conditions. Last year, he nearly won the Tour de Romandie, but lost the chance by ceding 21 seconds to Adam Yates on the HC summit finish at Thyon 2000.

Highlights in his two Tour starts include six major breakaways, with five top-5s, including fourth at Puy de Dôme last year, and fourth over two Cat. 1 climbs in the Pyrénées into Foix in his Tour debut in 2022.

Of course, attacking out of a breakaway as a non-GC threat is very different business than matching the wheels of the world’s best climbers at the sharp end of the group.

Jorgenson is cautious when he answers queries if he thinks he could one day race for victory in a grand tour.

“I do believe it would be a really big challenge for me to compete for the GC in a grand tour just because of my size, and the energy required to get over the big climbs,” Jorgenson told Velo .

“At first I need to do a grand tour where I feel good the first week, the second week, and the third week before evening considering that a possibility,” he said. “I’ve done three grand tours, and I’ve never felt consistent.

“I just saw the GC guys so far ahead of me on so many occasions that it feels far out of reach at the moment. Those expectations can change with time.”

Tour de France role undefined

Jorgenson’s stock within the Visma-Lease a Bike bus continues to rise.

Right now, the team is walking on eggshells waiting to see if Vingegaard and Wout van Aert will be fit enough to race the Tour with enough fitness to legitimately take on the race. The team’s bad luck extended overnight when both Tour-bound riders Dylan Van Baarle and Steven Kruijswijk both crashed out of the Dauphiné with heavy injuries that will keep them sidelined for weeks.

The uncertainty isn’t disrupting Jorgenson’s otherwise methodical approach toward the Tour.

“I don’t think it changes anything,” Jorgenson said of the team’s leadership quandary. “We are all preparing the best we can, Jonas and Wout included. We will just have to see once we get close to make any of these plans.”

Jorgenson — who’s come close to winning Tour stages in his two previous starts — quickly adds that despite his recent run of successes that he had no doubt about what his role will be.

“With Jonas and Wout there, I don’t expect to go for stage wins,” he told Velo . “With Jonas there we would be full-on for GC, and I would be very happy to support that.”

But what if neither Vingegaard or Van Aert are able to start?

That prospect is already putting defending Vuelta a España champion Sepp Kuss in the spotlight, and the Coloradan climber could be next in line to lead the team’s strong base if Vingegaard cannot start.

Kuss told Velo he’s hoping that the Dane races the Tour, adding that his chances of a strong GC performance is bolstered if Vingegaard is there.

Brandon McNulty and Matteo Jorgenson as 15-year-olds on an early trip racing in Europe, 2014. Ten years later, they’re 1-2 in Paris-Nice. pic.twitter.com/tqBdX66Kba — Andy McGrath (@Andymcgra) March 8, 2024

But what about Jorgenson? There are even whispers that the team could also back him in this Tour if Vingegaard doesn’t start.

A strong time trial Wednesday, when he was fourth at 1:07 behind former world time trial champion Remco Evenepoel, only bolsters his standing inside the team bus.

“Many people said Sepp Kuss could not win a grand tour, and he won the Vuelta, so why cannot Matteo Jorgenson do that?” Maassen told Velo . “I don’t know if it’s possible every year, but we have to see the parcours , but he is saying it himself.

“He is an intelligent guy, he knows what he can do and what he cannot do,” he said. “For me it was quite a surprise he would win Paris-Nice, but I thought a top-5 was possible. It was nice to see him like he was already a leader.

“In his first important race, he was really leading the team, and he predicted a few things right during the race. Of course, it’s his home roads near Nice in the final stages, that helps, but to beat Remco on the last day, that was really impressive.”

Jorgenson refuses to look too far down the road.

First, he needs to finish off the Dauphiné and test himself against three consecutive summit finishes in the French Alps against some of the world’s best climbers.

All season long, Jorgenson’s been planning on racing the Tour in support, and that’s what he’s banking on right now.

“It provides extra motivation to have an objective that clear,” Jorgenson said. “It’s a privilege to have that, it pushes you in training. In the Tour it’s important to stay mentally connected, there are a lot of moments when you start to tune out and things can go start to go sideways, not just in the race, but even with how much you’re sleeping.

“I felt like in the past when we lost our leader, I would lose a bit of my ambition and change my mindset. It would be a different mentality to win the Tour.”

Jorgenson isn’t dreaming of winning the Tour de France just yet.

A strong showing this weekend across the French Alps, however, could rewrite the script and perhaps convert him into GC man a lot faster than he ever could have expected.

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Saturday, June 08, 2024 6:50 am (Paris)

• Environment

Protesters against 'climaticidal' projects converge at highway in southern France

Several thousand people are expected to attend the demonstrations scheduled for June 7-9, in the Tarn region of southwest France, which have been banned by the authorities. A series of incidents have occurred in the past few weeks.

By  Matthieu Goar and Audrey Sommazi   (Toulouse (France) correspondent)

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Six years after the abandonment of the Notre-Dame-des-Landes airport project, is the A69 highway infrastructure – a 53-kilometer expressway linking Castres to Toulouse – becoming a new focal point for the fight against projects deemed "climaticidal?"

From Friday, June 7, to Sunday, June 9, several collectives are hoping to see "tens of thousands" of opponents march on the future route, where construction has already begun. Although the unofficial target is closer to 15,000 protesters, this could be the biggest gathering on site since the choice of the concession holder was announced on September 25, 2021, in Lagarrigue (Tarn, southwestern France) by then-prime minister Jean Castex.

"At the time, there were protests, which is normal in a democracy. Back then, they hadn't reached the scale, the degree of violence they've taken on since," said the former head of government on Tuesday, June 4, before the Assemblée Nationale's commission of inquiry into the "legal and financial structure of the A69 highway project."

The same day, in the Assemblée Nationale, Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin put more pressure on the mobilization. Anticipating an "extremely violent" demonstration, with the presence of "600 black blocs [far-left activists]," and describing "knives, hammers, axes" already seized from vehicles, he announced a ban on such gatherings. The Tarn prefecture then declared that nearly "1,000 police and gendarmes will be on the ground this weekend," and that demonstrators would be liable to a €135 fine.

An 'ecocidal and antisocial' project

The state's offensive has not demobilized the organizers. At a press conference on Wednesday, representatives of the organizations Soulèvements de la Terre, La voie est libre, Extinction Rebellion Toulouse and ZAD A69, who preferred to remain anonymous, maintained their call for mobilization, while placing the onus on the executive. "They've seized DIY equipment from cars..." quipped one of the occupants of the three ZADs (zone to be defended). " All this is done to legitimize repression. Despite what the interior minister tells us, we're not the ones with lethal weapons." "Our goal remains to celebrate, to welcome people peacefully. If there are any incidents, they will be the police's fault," said Daniel Coutarel, of the Confédération Paysanne (farmers' confederation), which is supporting the rally.

Opponents began setting up a base camp on private land in the municipality of Puylaurens on Thursday. Although they are still keeping tight-lipped about the three-day event, the organizers intend to maintain most of the original program, including a "Manif'action" on Saturday afternoon. "We call on opponents of the A69 to join the camp (...) and to prepare for a massive mobilization this weekend to block the construction sites," they said on social media.

You have 54.91% of this article left to read. The rest is for subscribers only.

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The (Other) Winners of the 2024 Giro d’Italia

Sure, Tadej Pogačar put together a legendary performance at the Giro—but who and what else stood out?

The 107th Giro d’Italia wrapped up on Sunday in Rome with Slovenia’s Tadej Pogačar (UAE Team Emirates) taking home the maglia rosa (“pink jersey”) as the overall winner of the Italian grand tour.

Pogačar started the final week with a sizable lead: 6:41 ahead of Great Britain’s Geraint Thomas (INEOS Grenadiers) and 6:56 ahead of Colombia’s Daniel Martínez (BORA-hansgrohe). But the Slovenian left nothing to chance, winning Stages 16 and 20 to extend his lead even further.

By the time the dust had settled, the two-time Tour de France champion had won the General Classification by almost 10 minutes. Martínez ended the race in second-place overall, 9:56 behind Pogačar; and Thomas, who finished second overall in last year’s Giro, ended the race in third, 10:24 behind the Slovenian. To put things into perspective, Pogačar’s winning margin was the largest since 1965.

Pogačar and his UAE Team Emirates squad dominated the race from start to finish–perhaps even more emphatically than most expected. The Slovenian wore the maglia rosa for 20 days, falling one day short of taking the Giro’s first wire-to-wire victory since 1990. He won six stages, the most by anyone since Alessandro Petacchi won nine sprint stages in 2004 and the most ever by an overall winner. Even Belgian legend Eddy Merckx–who won the race five times–never won more than five stages in a single Giro. And with five of his six stage wins coming in the mountains, it comes as no surprise that Pogačar also won the maglia azzurra (“blue jersey”) as the Giro’s King of the Mountains.

Simply put: this was the greatest Giro performance by a single rider in the modern era– and maybe ever. The 25-year-old was far and away the best rider in this year’s race, and there was nothing anyone could do to stop him.

Now the Slovenian has his sights set on the Tour de France, where he will most likely enter the race as the top contender. His goal in winning a third Tour de France is to become the first rider since 1998 to win the Giro and the Tour in the same season. And after his Giro performance–and given the fact that the Tour’s two-time defending champion, Denmark’s Jonas Vingegaard (Visma-Lease a Bike), might not be healthy enough to start the Tour–we’re not betting against him.

Here’s a look at some of the other “ winners” from the 107th Giro d’Italia:

Daniel Martínez (BORA-hansgrohe)

Thanks to Pogačar, the Giro quickly became a race for second, and credit goes to Martínez for scoring his first podium finish in a grand tour. The Colombian–who came to BORA from INEOS during the off-season–rode a near-flawless race after climbing into the top-3 on Stage 2 and then never leaving it.

Geraint Thomas (INEOS Grenadiers)

Thomas–who turned 38 on Saturday–finished second to Roglič last year after losing the maglia rosa in a mountain time trial on the penultimate day. Like Martínez, the Welshman raced into the top-3 on the General Classification on Stage 2 and then never left it; his dogfight with the Colombian was one of the race’s more interesting storylines once Pogačar had pulled away from the field.

A podium finish in a grand tour is a career achievement at any age, but at 38, it’s really something special. Then again, for Thomas–who’s probably the most consistent stage racer in the sport–it’s just another day at the office.

Thomas is retiring at the end of the season, but first he’s joining Pogačar and Martínez at the Tour de France, a race he won back in 2018. He’s not expected to lead the team, though. Instead he’ll join Spain’s Carlos Rodriguez and Colombia’s Egan Bernal as some sort of three-headed GC-monster that will attempt to use its strength and experience to try and upset the Tour’s more favored contenders.

Jonathan Milan (Lidl-Trek)

For the second year in a row, Italy’s Jonathan Milan (Lidl-Trek) won the maglia ciclamino (“cyclamen jersey”) as the winner of the Giro’s Points Classification. While not quite as impressive as Pogačar, the 23-year-old won four stages–and finished second in four others–to run away with the competition for the second year in a row.

We’re not sure if the statuesque Italian (he’s about 6’3”) will be riding the Tour de France this summer. But if he does, he could give Belgium’s Jasper Philipsen (Alpecin-Deceuninck)–who won four stages and the Points Classification in last year’s Tour–a run for his money.

Antonio Tiberi (Bahrain-Victorious)

Prior to this year’s Giro d’Italia, Tiberi was known more for something he did off the bike–and it wasn’t very good. In early 2023, the Italian killed his neighbor’s cat with an air rifle and was subsequently fired by Trek-Segafredo, the team he was riding for at the time. After some time passed, Bahrain-Victorious signed the then-21-year-old and gave him a chance to resume his career and re-shape his image.

Well, in finishing fifth overall and taking home the maglia bianca (“white jersey”) as the Giro’s Best Young Rider, Tiberi has put himself squarely on the radar of his nation’s rabid fans. A gifted climber, he’s possesses two additional traits that might make him a future Giro champion: he’s a talented time trialist–he finished sixth in both ITTs in this year’s race; and he’s got a bit of swagger–Pogačar complimented Tiberi for being the only one willing to attack the Slovenian during the first week.

The 22-year-old is heading straight to France’s Critérium du Dauphiné–which starts this weekend–where he’ll see if he has enough form left to challenge some of the Tour’s top pre-race contenders. Then he’ll rest before tackling the Vuelta a España in late-August. If everything goes as planned, Tiberi will enter next year’s Giro as a top contender, a rider who could possibly win the host nation its first maglia rosa since 2016.

Italian Tifosi

Italian cycling tifosi or “fans” haven’t had much to cheer about in the past few years, as the nation’s been experiencing a bit of a dry spell when it comes to producing riders capable of winning grand tours like the Giro d’Italia or Monuments like Milan-San Remo. But if this year’s Giro is any indication, that could be changing soon.

Obviously, Milan–a future world class sprinter–and Tiberi–a potential pink jersey contender–lead the way, but Italians also loved the gutsy ride from Giulio Pellizzari, a 20-year-old who rides for the small VF Group-Bardiani CSF-Faizanè team, one of a few squads to receive wild card invitations to this year’s race.

The youngest rider in the race, Pellizzari attacked relentlessly in the mountains, coming close to winning a stage on more than one occasion and even impressing Pogačar, who gifted the Italian his sunglasses and his maglia rosa after the Slovenian defeated the Italian to win Stage 16.

He ended the race as the runner-up in the Giro’s King of the Mountains competition, which meant he earned the right to wear the maglia azzurra into Rome–because Pogačar couldn’t wear two leaders’ jerseys at once. And even better, Pellizzari’s performance caught the eye of several WorldTour squads, with rumors swirling as to which team will sign the talented young climber to a big contract this off-season.

Soudal-Quick Step

The Belgian WorldTour squad had a terrible spring, coming up short in cobbled Classics like the Tour of Flanders and Paris-Roubaix, events that the team once dominated. To make matters worse, the team’s marquee rider, Remco Evenepoel, crashed out of the Tour of the Basque Country, which prevented the Belgian superstar from going for a third-straight win in Liège-Bastogne-Liège, a victory that would have salvaged the team’s spring campaign.

But the team rebounded at the Giro, winning four stages. Belgium’s Tim Merlier led the way with three sprint victories–including the final stage into Rome.

But Julian Alaphilippe’s Stage 12 victory was easily the team’s most popular victory. The one-time “galactico” has had a rough couple of seasons and has since fallen out with his team’s outspoken General Manager, Patrick Lefevere . But after spending three weeks as one of the Giro’s most aggressive riders, Alaphilippe seems to have regained the swashbuckling spirit that won the French puncheur back-to-back world championships in 2020 and 2021.

Alaphilippe wasn’t slated to ride the Tour de France, but there are rumors that his Giro performance might help him make the team. And if it didn’t, it at least helped his asking price: with his contract set to expire at the end of the season, there are several French teams looking to sign him.

Colnago bicycles have been ridden by some of cycling’s most famous champions. But the iconic Italian brand hasn’t stood on the top step of the Giro’s podium since Russia’s Denis Menchov (Rabobank) won the race back in 2009. Well, that’s all changed thanks to Pogačar, who ended the brand’s 15-year Giro drought with his victory.

The company might want to sign Pogačar to a lifetime contract , as the Slovenian seems to be a lucky talisman for the legendary brand. His 2020 Tour de France victory was Colnago’s first–a bit of a surprise for a company that once supplied bikes to Merckx. Then again, maybe it’s time to get used to Pogačar doing things that even Merckx–who’s widely considered to be the greatest men’s cyclist of all time–could not.

.css-1t6om3g:before{width:1.75rem;height:1.75rem;margin:0 0.625rem -0.125rem 0;content:'';display:inline-block;-webkit-background-size:1.25rem;background-size:1.25rem;background-color:#F8D811;color:#000;background-repeat:no-repeat;-webkit-background-position:center;background-position:center;}.loaded .css-1t6om3g:before{background-image:url(/_assets/design-tokens/bicycling/static/images/chevron-design-element.c42d609.svg);} 2024 Giro d'Italia

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2024 Giro d’Italia: Rest Day Wrap-Up #2

Giro d’Italia Abandons Claim Key Riders

The Stelvio May Not Be Part of Giro’s Stage 16

Bernard Hinault: “He’s Like Me and Merckx”

Geraint Thomas Calls Stage 9 of Giro "Carnage"

2024 Giro d’Italia: Rest Day Wrap-Up #1

Lefevere Takes on New Role as Waterboy in Giro

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Critérium du Dauphiné stage 6 live - The first in a trio of summit finishes

Tour de france 2024 - stage 15 preview.

July 14, 2024: Loudenvielle - Plateau de Beille, 197.7km

Stage 15 Sprints

Stage 15 mountains.

Stage 15 to Plateau de Beille is Bastille Day, so fireworks are expected from the French riders going for glory, from riders battling for the King of Mountains jersey and from the general classification favourites. The third Sunday of the Tour could prove crucial for many. Whatever has happened on the previous days in the mountains, the terrain on this stage will be ripe for an upset or confirmation, with 4,800 metres of vertical gain on the menu over 197.7 kilometres of racing.

All manner of scenarios could play out, and it’s not unrealistic to imagine that teammates of the overall contenders will attempt to infiltrate the breakaway climbing the Col de Peyresourde (6.9km at 7.8%) which looms 7 kilometres into the stage. That would prove invaluable given what lies ahead, the Col de Menté (9.3km at 9.1%) and Col de Portet-d’Aspet (4.3km at 9.6%) but especially in a finale that will feature the climbs of the Col d’Agnes (10km at 8.2%), and the Port de Lers followed by the final haul up to Plateau de Beille. The final climb is 15.8km long with an average gradient of 7.9% with the hardest gradients at the bottom.

• Intermediate sprint, km 37
• Col de Peyresourde (6.9km at 7.8%), cat. 1, km 7
• Col de Menté (9.3km at 9.1%), cat. 1, km 50
• Col de Portet-d’Aspet (4.3km at 9.6%), cat. 1, km 65.4
• Col d’Agnes (10km at 8.2%), cat. 1, km 138.6
• Plateau de Beille (15.8km at 7.9%), cat. HC, km 197.7

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Kirsten Frattini is the Deputy Editor of Cyclingnews , overseeing the global racing content plan.

Kirsten has a background in Kinesiology and Health Science. She has been involved in cycling from the community and grassroots level to professional cycling's biggest races, reporting on the WorldTour, Spring Classics, Tours de France, World Championships and Olympic Games.

She began her sports journalism career with Cyclingnews as a North American Correspondent in 2006. In 2018, Kirsten became Women's Editor – overseeing the content strategy, race coverage and growth of women's professional cycling – before becoming Deputy Editor in 2023.

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