“It’s over,” the Slovenian seemed to say. Tadej Pogacar as he rode solo to the top of La Couillole, pointing with one hand to his fifth victory in this Tour, which leaves the race decided pending the time trial that will be held this Sunday in Nice to round off the 111th edition of the “grande boucle”.
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Once again, however he wanted, whenever he wanted. Another display of power from Pogacar, who single-handedly claimed his 16th Tour victory. The virtual 2024 champion won the 20th stage, contested between Nice and La Couillole, 132.8 km, with a time of 4h.04.22, at an average of 32.6 km/h.
He won an interesting duel with Jonas Vingegaard with a lightning-fast start 300 metres from the finish line, which the Dane was unable to respond to after trying to stand up to his great rival. The Nordic rider lost 7 seconds, while the Ecuadorian Richard Carapaz, already king of the mountains, came in 23 seconds behind.
A string of riders reached the top of La Couillole. The fight between Pogacar and Vingegaard left its mark. Remco Evenepoel crossed the line 55 seconds behind, Enric Mas, the most combative of the day, 1.08 behind, Joao Almeida 1.30 behind and Mikel Landa 1.43 behind. Carlos Rodriguez was not among the best, losing 3.26 and sixth place in the general classification to the British Adam Yates, by just one second.
The Tour was already decided, but Pogacar has taken another turn of the screw, in cannibal mode, insatiable, ready to blast his way into history. He will face the final time trial without any pressure, but if one of his ideas comes to mind, he will seek his sixth victory. He has Vingegaard at 5.14, Evenepoel at 8.04, Almeida at 16.45 and Mikel Landa at 17.25.
Stage classification
1. Taded Pogacar 4h 04m 22s
2. Jonas Vingegaard at 7 s
3. Richard Carapaz at 23 s
4. Remco Evenepoel at 53 s
5. Enric Mas at 1 min 7 s
14. Santiago Buitrago at 03 min 04 s
109. Egan Bernal at 36 min 26 s
General
1. Tadej Pogacar 82h 53m 32s
2. Jonas Vingegaard at 5 min 14 sec
3. Remco Evenepoel at 8 min 04 s
4. Joao Almeida at 16 min 45s
5. Mikel Landa at 17 min 25 s
11. Santiago Buitrago at 26 min 10 s
28. Egan Bernal at 1 hour 57 minutes 31 seconds
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