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Jonas Vingegaard has come home safely to win the Tour de France in Paris while Jasper Philipsen powered to victory on the final stage on the Champs-Elysees.
Denmark’s Vingegaard, the leader of the all-conquering Jumbo-Visma team, had effectively sealed his triumph in Saturday’s time trial and was shepherded home in 77th place on the largely ceremonial 21st and final stage on Sunday.
“It’s just incredible – I finally won the Tour. Nothing can go wrong any more. It’s the biggest cycling race you can win and now I’ve done it and no-one can take it away from me,” said the 25-year-old, holding his young daughter.
“I’m super happy about my victory. I want to relax, celebrate – but I also want more.”
That bodes well for a thrilling new era for the sport after Slovenia’s Tadej Pogacar, winner of the two previous editions, finished second overall 3 minutes 34 seconds, while Britain’s former champion Geraint Thomas took third place.
The irrepressible Pogacar may have been dethroned but he still had the cheek to launch his own attack in the denouement in Paris, before it was quickly pulled back.
Belgian Philipsen (Alpecin-Deceuninck) proved a dominant winner in the sprint finale to the 115.6km stage, racing away from runner-up Dylan Groenewegen, the star sprinter of the Australian outfit Team BikeExchange-Jayco, and Norwegian Alexander Kristoff.
“I cannot believe it, it’s a childhood dream coming true,” said Philipsen, who’d also won his maiden Tour victory on stage 15 in Carcassonne.
“This will take a while to realise. I’m just super proud of the team. That we could finish a Tour like this is the cherry on the cake.”
Once again, the luckless Australian star Caleb Ewan missed out, failing to find the right position to strike in the denouement and finishing eighth.
He also became only the second Australian ever to win the ‘Lanterne Rouge’, the accolade bestowed on the slowest finisher after the three-week slog.
Finishing last of the 135 riders who finally made it across the line, the Sydneysider, who had had to battle through two crashes en route, had been in the saddle for 85 hours, 14 minutes, 2 seconds.
In contrast, Vingegaard, the first Danish rider to win cycling’s biggest race since Bjarne Riis’s largely discredited triumph in 1996 after he admitted later to doping, finished in 79:33:20, some five hours 40 minutes quicker.
The top Australian finisher on the Tour was BikeExchange-Jayco’s Nick Schultz, who ended up 23rd, 1:39:41 down on Vingegaard.
Michael Storer (Groupama-FDJ) was 35th, Chris Hamilton (DSM) was 38th, and stage winner Michael Matthews (BikeExchange-Jayco) 78th.
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