american to win tour de france

• History Classics
• Your Profile
• Find History on Facebook (Opens in a new window)
• Find History on Twitter (Opens in a new window)
• Find History on YouTube (Opens in a new window)
• Find History on Instagram (Opens in a new window)
• Find History on TikTok (Opens in a new window)
• This Day In History
• History Podcasts
• History Vault

This Day In History : July 24

Changing the day will navigate the page to that given day in history. You can navigate days by using left and right arrows

Lance Armstrong wins seventh Tour de France

On July 24, 2005, American cyclist Lance Armstrong wins a record-setting seventh consecutive Tour de France and retires from the sport. After Armstrong survived testicular cancer, his rise to cycling greatness inspired cancer patients and fans around the world and significantly boosted his sport’s popularity in the United States. However, in 2012, in a dramatic fall from grace, the onetime global cycling icon was stripped of his seven Tour titles after being charged with the systematic use of performance-enhancing drugs.

Born on September 18, 1971, in Plano, Texas , Armstrong started his sports career as a triathlete, competing professionally by the time he was 16. Biking proved to be his strongest event, and at age 17 he was invited to train with the U.S. Olympic cycling developmental team in Colorado . He won the U.S. amateur cycling championship two years later, in 1991, then finished 14th in the road race competition at the 1992 Olympics in Barcelona, Spain. He turned pro later that year but finished last in the Classico San Sebastian, his first race as a professional. In 1993 he bounced back to win 10 titles, including his first major race, the World Road Championships. That same year, he also competed in his first Tour de France, the grueling three-week race that attracts the world’s top cyclists, and won the eighth stage. In 1995 he again won a stage of the Tour de France, as well as the Tour DuPont, a major U.S. cycling event.

Armstrong began 1996 as the number-one-ranked cyclist in the world, but he chose not to race the Tour de France and performed poorly at that year’s Olympics. After experiencing intense pain during a training ride, he was diagnosed in October 1996 with Stage 3 testicular cancer, which had spread to his lungs and brain. He underwent surgery and chemotherapy, then began training again in early 1997. Later that year, he signed with the U.S. Postal Service team. After he quit in the middle of one of his first races back, many thought his career was over. However, after taking some time off from competition, Armstrong came back to finish in the top five at both the Tour of Spain and the World Championships in 1998.

In 1999, to the amazement of the cycling community, Armstrong won his first-ever Tour de France and went on to win the race for the next six consecutive years. In addition to his seven overall wins (a record for both total and consecutive wins), he won 22 individual stages and 11 individual time trials, and led his team to victories in three team time trials between 1999 and 2005. After retiring in 2005, Armstrong made a comeback to pro cycling in 2009, finishing third in that year’s Tour and 23rd in the 2010 Tour. He retired for good from the sport in 2011 at age 39.

Over the years, Armstrong’s intense training regimen and his famed dominance in the difficult and treacherous mountain stages of the Tour de France inspired awe among both fans and opponents. His cycling cadence, which averaged 95 to 100 rotations per minute (rpm) but reached as high as 120 rpm, was considered remarkable, particularly during climbs. In addition to being an exceptionally talented climber, Armstrong performed extremely well in time trials.

Throughout his career, Armstrong, like many other top cyclists of his era, was dogged by accusations of performance-boosting drug use, but he repeatedly and vigorously denied all allegations against him and claimed to have passed hundreds of drug tests. In June 2012 the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency (USADA), following a two-year investigation, charged the cycling superstar with engaging in doping violations from at least August 1998, and with participating in a conspiracy to cover up his misconduct. After losing a federal appeal to have the USADA charges against him dropped, Armstrong, while continuing to maintain he had done nothing wrong, announced on August 23 that he would stop fighting the charges. The next day, USADA banned Armstrong for life from competitive cycling and disqualified all his competitive results from August 1, 1998, through the present.

On October 10, 2012, USADA released hundreds of pages of evidence, including sworn testimony from 11 of Armstrong’s former teammates, that the agency said demonstrated Armstrong and the U.S. Postal Service team had been involved in the most sophisticated and successful doping program in the history of cycling. A week after the USADA report was made public, Armstrong stepped down as chairman of his Livestrong cancer awareness foundation, and also was fired from many of his endorsement deals. On October 22, Union Cycliste Internationale, the cycling’s world governing body, announced that it accepted the findings of the USADA investigation and officially was erasing Armstrong’s name from the Tour de France record books and upholding his lifetime ban from the sport.

After years of denials, Armstrong finally admitted publicly, in a televised interview with Oprah Winfrey that aired on January 17, 2013, he had doped for much of his cycling career, beginning in the mid-1990s through his Tour de France victory in 2005. He admitted to using a performance-enhancing drug regimen that included testosterone, human growth hormone, the blood booster EPO and cortisone.

READ MORE:  9 Doping Scandals That Changed Sports

Also on This Day in History July | 24

This Day in History Video: What Happened on July 24

Religious pioneers settle salt lake valley, “eye of the tiger” from “rocky iii” tops the u.s. pop charts, mary queen of scots deposed, apollo 11 safely returns to earth, american archeologist encounters machu picchu ruins.

Wake Up to This Day in History

Sign up now to learn about This Day in History straight from your inbox. Get all of today's events in just one email featuring a range of topics.

By submitting your information, you agree to receive emails from HISTORY and A+E Networks. You can opt out at any time. You must be 16 years or older and a resident of the United States.

More details : Privacy Notice | Terms of Use | Contact Us

Short story writer O. Henry is released from prison

“saving private ryan” opens in theaters, hundreds drown in eastland disaster, a 9-year-old’s murder puts an innocent man in jail, richard nixon and nikita khrushchev have a “kitchen debate”, john hancock scolds major general philip schuyler, operation gomorrah is launched.

"The Last Rider” movie review: a timeless tale of perseverance, love and America's true Tour de France hero

Now showing in theaters nationwide, the new Greg LeMond feature film is so much more than another Tour de France documentary

• Sign up to our newsletter Newsletter

If the Netflix series "Unchained" doesn't rapt American audiences, perhaps the new Greg LeMond feature film will connect them to cycling in a new way. 

Premiering today in theaters across the country, " The Last Rider " is a feature-length documentary that chronicles Greg LeMond's rock bottom year and his legendary comeback at the nail-biting 1989 Tour de France .

Directed by award-winning filmmaker Alex Holmes, the race almost serves as a backdrop. Instead, viewers are offered an intimate portrait of one of America's greatest athletes of all time as he maneuvres betrayal, childhood sexual abuse, getting shot, and coming back from the brink of death to face his rivals and win the Tour de France by just eight seconds — the closest winning margin in the race's history till this day.

The film features never-before-seen footage from the 1989 race as well exclusive interviews with LeMond himself, his former coach Cyrille Guimard and his wife Kathy, whom LeMond credits for his success.

The film has been a long time in the making. Holmes first met LeMond when making his 2014 film, Stop at Nothing, about the now-disgraced cyclist Lance Armstrong . That film was "a very dark story about a man who set out to destroy anyone who questioned his reputation," Holmes said, and upon finishing that project, he felt inclined to make a film that shines a more positive light on the sport.  

"Good stories; they're timeless in a way," LeMond told  Cycling Weekly , "And it's funny; it's only years later that people can appreciate something. Had I had a Netflix [show] to help others understand what was happening at that time, that would have been…well, I'd love to have had a little more forgiveness at the time and understanding what I went through."

Intrigued? See a list of theaters currently showing the film here.  

Get The Leadout Newsletter

The latest race content, interviews, features, reviews and expert buying guides, direct to your inbox!

L'Americain

It's been more than 40 years since LeMond burst onto the international cycling scene, so you'd be forgiven if you're not too familiar with LeMond's story. Allow me to give you the Cliffs Notes on America's greatest cyclist .

Born in California in 1961, LeMond started cycling in his early teens and proved to be a natural. He reportedly won the first 11 races he entered, and that success followed him on the world's stage as he earned several junior national and world titles.

He was scouted by famed team director Cyrille Guimard in 1980, and LeMond made his professional debut with the Renault team in 1981 alongside cycling great Bernard Hinault . LeMond would become the first American to infiltrate the Euro-centric cycling world, and his nickname became, simply, "L'Americain" — the American. 

When he won the UCI Road World Championship in 1983, he was the first American male cyclist to do so. Similarly, with his first Tour de France victory in 1986, he became the first non-European professional cyclist to win the men's Tour.

"When I started cycling, Americans could never compete against the Europeans," LeMond says in the film. "For me, it was like, 'Oh my gosh, that was my dream. Being the first American ever to put on the yellow jersey...That was the most magical thing I've ever experienced."

LeMond would go on to win the Tour de France two more times and earn a second world title as well. With his successes, LeMond played a key role in popularizing cycling in the United States —even appearing on the cover of Sports Illustrated!— and inspired an entire generation of American cyclists to start pedaling.

Off the bike, LeMond is known for surviving a near-fatal hunting accident in which he got shot with a pellet gun and nearly lost his career. A champion of equipment innovation,  LeMond championed several technological advancements in pro cycling, including the introduction of aerobars and carbon fiber frames — which he later produced under the eponymous bike brand .

Hitting rock bottom and cycling back out

Greg LeMond on his way to an 8-second victory margin in the 1989 Tour de France

The film does a good job introducing LeMond to the viewers, starting with his entry into the sport and leading up to the year that changed everything. 

It was 1986, and LeMond had done it. He stood on the Champs Elysees podium wearing the iconic Tour de France yellow jersey, a lifelong dream fulfilled, yet the first-ever American victor was far from happy. The win had been a bitter one. Betrayed by his friend and mentor, Bernard Hinault, he'd had to fight tooth and nail for every single second. The peloton had turned against him, the outsider, and he'd had to go it alone. 

The betrayal triggered a deep-seated trauma for LeMond: that of childhood sexual abuse and one that he'd been suppressing, perhaps outrunning, by cycling. His moment of victory spiraled into a depression.

"Nobody had any clue what I was going through physically and psychologically," LeMond says. "Trauma changes a person."

And things were about to get even worse. 

Just months after his historic Tour win, LeMond was accidentally shot by his brother-in-law in a hunting accident; dozens of lead pellets burying deep into LeMond's every major organ. He came within 20 minutes of bleeding to death but survived, yet the recovery years would be his toughest battle yet. 

And this is what the heart of "The Last Rider" is about: the journey of persistence, of hope and overcoming, of reclaiming a lifelong dream, and of one of the greatest comeback stories in sports. 

While this comeback happens at one of the most nail-biting editions of the Tour de France's 109-year history —and the film does do an excellent job building the tension— "The Last Rider" is much more than a documentary of that legendary race. 

"The Last Rider" is a showcasing of one man's personal journey with his mental and physical health, a true love story between him and his childhood sweetheart turned wife Kathy, and our beloved sport at its absolute best.

Thank you for reading 20 articles this month* Join now for unlimited access

Enjoy your first month for just £1 / $1 / €1

*Read 5 free articles per month without a subscription

Join now for unlimited access

Try first month for just £1 / $1 / €1

Cycling Weekly 's North American Editor, Anne-Marije Rook is old school. She holds a degree in journalism and started out as a newspaper reporter — in print! She can even be seen bringing a pen and notepad to the press conference.

Originally from The Netherlands, she grew up a bike commuter and didn't find bike racing until her early twenties when living in Seattle, Washington. Strengthened by the many miles spent darting around Seattle's hilly streets on a steel single speed, Rook's progression in the sport was a quick one. As she competed at the elite level, her journalism career followed, and soon she became a full-time cycling journalist. She's now been a cycling journalist for 11 years. 

Every human brain works slightly differently, yet too often we demand bland conformity. Chris Marshall-Bell meets riders unashamed to cherish their uniqueness

By Chris Marshall-Bell Published 30 March 24

Yes, it's polite, but there's another reason why you should always smile (and wave) at other riders

By Hannah Bussey Published 30 March 24

France Télévisions to discuss drone broadcasts with Tour stakeholders

By Tom Davidson Published 11 March 24

UK Sport confirms that Tour Grand Départ is now merely an "opportunity" in 2027

By Jeremy Whittle Published 5 March 24

The American is a master of the mountains, but he'll have to topple the Visma-Lease a Bike hierarchy if he wants a yellow jersey

By Tom Davidson Published 13 February 24

Government will pay wages via ‘short-time working’ to avoid job losses at Swiss bike giant

By Tom Thewlis Published 12 February 24

La Vache qui rit returns to the French Grand Tour as a sponsor, meaning the caravan might be a bit smellier this year

By Adam Becket Published 9 February 24

'It's not great to have a missed test hanging over you,' says Tour de France champion

By Tom Davidson Published 22 November 23

The farm animal wasn't the last to make a cameo at a bike race

By Tom Davidson Published 27 September 23

The show's stars have seen their profiles boosted by the new documentary

By Tom Davidson Published 3 August 23

Useful links

• Tour de France
• Giro d'Italia
• Vuelta a España

Buyer's Guides

• Best road bikes
• Best gravel bikes
• Best smart turbo trainers
• Best cycling computers
• Editor's Choice
• Bike Reviews
• Component Reviews
• Clothing Reviews
• Contact Future's experts
• Terms and conditions
• Privacy policy
• Cookies policy
• Advertise with us

Cycling Weekly is part of Future plc, an international media group and leading digital publisher. Visit our corporate site . © Future Publishing Limited Quay House, The Ambury, Bath BA1 1UA. All rights reserved. England and Wales company registration number 2008885.

Lance Armstrong

Who Is Lance Armstrong?

Lance Armstrong became a triathlete before turning to professional cycling. His career was halted by testicular cancer, but Armstrong returned to win a record seven consecutive Tour de France races beginning in 1999. Stripped of those titles in 2012 due to evidence of performance-enhancing drug use, Armstrong in 2013 admitted to doping throughout his cycling career, following years of denials.

Early Career

Born on September 18, 1971, in Plano, Texas, Armstrong was raised by his mother, Linda, in the suburbs of Dallas, Texas. Armstrong was athletic from an early age. He began running and swimming at 10 years old, and took up competitive cycling and triathlons at 13. At 16, Armstrong became a professional triathlete—he was the national sprint-course triathlon champion in 1989 and 1990.

Soon after, Armstrong chose to focus on cycling, his strongest event as well as his favorite. During his senior year of high school, the U.S. Olympic development team invited him to train in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Armstrong left high school temporarily to do so, but later took private classes and received his high school diploma in 1989.

The following summer, he qualified for the 1990 junior world team and placed 11th in the World Championship Road Race, with the best time of any American since 1976. That same year, he became the U.S. national amateur champion and beat out many professional cyclists to win two major races, the First Union Grand Prix and the Thrift Drug Classic.

International Cycling Star

In 1991, Armstrong competed in his first Tour DuPont, a long and difficult 12-stage race, covering 1,085 miles over 11 days. Though he finished in the middle of the pack, his performance announced a promising newcomer to the world of international cycling. He went on to win a stage at Italy's Settimana Bergamasca race later that summer.

After finishing second in the U.S. Olympic time trials in 1992, Armstrong was favored to win the road race in Barcelona, Spain. With a surprisingly sluggish performance, however, he came in only 14th. Undeterred, Armstrong turned professional immediately after the Olympics, joining the Motorola cycling team for a respectable yearly salary. Though he came in dead last in his first professional event, the day-long San Sebastian Classic in Spain, he rebounded in two weeks and finished second in a World Cup race in Zurich, Switzerland.

Armstrong had a strong year in 1993, winning cycling's "Triple Crown"—the Thrift Drug Classic, the Kmart West Virginia Classic and the CoreStates Race (the U.S. Professional Championship). That same year, he came in second at the Tour DuPont. He started off well in his first-ever Tour de France, a 21-stage race that is widely considered cycling's most prestigious event. Though he won the eighth stage of the race, he later fell to 62nd place and eventually pulled out.

In August 1993, the 21-year-old Armstrong won his most important race yet: the World Road Race Championship in Oslo, Norway, a one-day event covering 161 miles. As the leader of the Motorola team, he overcame difficult conditions—pouring rain made the roads slick and caused him to crash twice during the race—to become the youngest person and only the second American ever to win that contest.

The following year, he was again the runner-up at the Tour DuPont. Frustrated by his near miss, he trained with a vengeance for the next year's event and went on to finish two minutes ahead of rival Viatcheslav Ekimov of Russia for the win. At the Tour DuPont in 1996, he set several event records, including the largest margin of victory (three minutes, 15 seconds) and the fastest average speed in a time trial (32.9 miles per hour).

Also in 1996, Armstrong rode again for the Olympic team in Atlanta, Georgia. Looking uncharacteristically fatigued, he finished sixth in the time trials and 12th in the road race. Earlier that summer, he had been unable to finish the Tour de France, as he was sick with bronchitis. Despite such setbacks, Armstrong was still riding high by the fall of 1996. Then the seventh-ranked cyclist in the world, he signed a lucrative contract with a new team, France's Team Cofidis.

Battling Testicular Cancer

In October 1996, however, came the shocking announcement that Armstrong had been diagnosed with testicular cancer. Well advanced, the tumors had spread to his abdomen, lungs and lymph nodes. After having a testicle removed, drastically modifying his eating habits and beginning aggressive chemotherapy, Armstrong was given a 65 to 85 percent chance of survival. When doctors found tumors on his brain, however, his odds of survival dropped to 50-50, and then to 40 percent. Fortunately, a subsequent surgery to remove his brain tumors was declared successful, and after more rounds of chemotherapy, Armstrong was declared cancer-free in February 1997.

Throughout his terrifying struggle with the disease, Armstrong continued to maintain that he was going to race competitively again. No one else seemed to believe in him, however, and Cofidis pulled the plug on his contract and $600,000 annual salary. As a free agent, he had a good deal of trouble finding a sponsor, finally signing on to a $200,000-per-year position with the United States Postal Service team.

Tour de France Dominance

At the 1998 Tour of Luxembourg, his first international race since returning from cancer, Armstrong showed he was up for the challenge by winning the opening stage. A little over a year later, he capped his comeback in grand style by becoming the second American, after Greg LeMond, to win the Tour de France. He repeated that feat in July 2000 and followed with a bronze medal at the Summer Olympic Games.

Armstrong bolstered his legacy as his generation's dominant rider by handily winning the Tour in 2001 and 2002. However, notching a fifth victory, tying the record held by Jacques Anquetil, Eddy Merckx, Bernard Hinault and Miguel Indurain, proved his most difficult accomplishment. Stricken by illness before the start of the race, Armstrong fell at one point after snagging a spectator's bag, and barely avoided another crash by swerving across a field. He finished one minute and one second ahead of Germany's Jan Ullrich, the closest of his Tour triumphs.

Armstrong was back in top form to claim his record-breaking sixth Tour win in 2004. He won five individual stages, finishing a comfortable six minutes and 19 seconds ahead of Germany's Andreas Kloden. After capping his astounding run with a seventh consecutive Tour victory in 2005, he retired from racing.

Return to Competition

On September 9, 2008, Armstrong announced that he planned to return to competition and the Tour de France in 2009. A member of Team Astana, he placed third in the race, behind teammate Alberto Contador and Saxo Bank team member Andy Schleck.

After the race, Armstrong told reporters that he intended to compete again in 2010, with a new team endorsed by RadioShack. Slowed by multiple crashes, Armstrong finished 23rd overall in what would be his final Tour de France, and he announced he was retiring for good in February 2011.

Drug Controversy

Despite the inspiring narrative of Armstrong's triumph over cancer, not everyone was convinced it was valid. Irish sportswriter David Walsh, for one, became suspicious of Armstrong's behavior and sought to shed light on the rumors of drug use in the sport. In 2001, he wrote a story linking Armstrong to Italian doctor Michele Ferrari, who was being investigated for supplying performance enhancers to cyclists. Walsh later secured a confession from Armstrong's masseuse, Emma O'Reilly, and laid out his case against the American champion as co-writer of the 2004 book L.A. Confidential.

The plot thickened in 2010, when former U.S. Postal rider Floyd Landis, who had been stripped of his 2006 Tour de France win for drug use, admitted to doping and accused his celebrated teammate of doing the same. That prompted a federal investigation, and in June 2012 the U.S Anti-Doping Agency brought formal charges against Armstrong. The case heated up in July 2012, when some media outlets reported that five of Armstrong's former teammates, George Hincapie, Levi Leipheimer, David Zabriskie and Christian Vande Velde—all of whom participated in the 2012 Tour de France—were planning to testify against Armstrong.

The cycling champion vehemently denied using illegal drugs to boost his performance, and the 2012 USADA charges were no exception: He disparaged the new allegations, calling them "baseless." On August 23, 2012, Armstrong publicly announced that he was giving up his fight with the USADA's recent charges and that he had declined to enter arbitration with the agency because he was tired of dealing with the case, along with the stress the case created for his family.

"There comes a point in every man's life when he has to say, 'Enough is enough.' For me, that time is now," Armstrong said in an online statement around that time. "I have been dealing with claims that I cheated and had an unfair advantage in winning my seven Tours since 1999. The toll this has taken on my family and my work for our foundation and on me leads me to where I am today—finished with this nonsense."

Banned From Cycling

The following day, on August 24, 2012, the USADA announced that Armstrong would be stripped of his seven Tour titles—as well as other honors he received from 1999 to 2005—and banned from cycling for life. The agency concluded in its report that Armstrong had used banned performance-enhancing substances. On October 10, 2012, the USADA released its evidence against Armstrong, which included documents such as laboratory tests, emails and monetary payments. "The evidence shows beyond any doubt that the U.S. Postal Service Pro Cycling Team ran the most sophisticated, professionalized and successful doping program that the sport had ever seen," Travis Tygart, chief executive of the USADA, said in a statement.

The USADA evidence against Armstrong also contained testimony from 26 people. Several former members of Armstrong's cycling team were among those who claimed that Armstrong used performance-enhancing drugs and served as a type of a ringleader for the team's doping efforts. According to The New York Times , one teammate told the agency that "Lance called the shots on the team" and "what Lance said went."

Armstrong disputed the USADA's findings. His attorney, Tim Herman, called the USADA's case "a one-sided hatchet job" featuring "old, disproved, unreliable allegations based largely on axe-grinders, serial perjurers, coerced testimony, sweetheart deals and threat-induced stories," according to USA Today .

Shortly after the release of the USADA findings, the International Cycling Union (cycling's governing body) supported the USADA's decision and officially stripped Armstrong of his seven Tour de France victories. The union also banned Armstrong from the sport for life. ICU president Pat McQuaid said in a statement that "Lance Armstrong has no place in cycling."

Admission and Later Events

Of the interview, Winfrey said in a statement, "He did not come clean in the manner I expected. It was surprising to me. I would say that, for myself, my team, all of us in the room, we were mesmerized by some of his answers. I felt he was thorough. He was serious. He certainly prepared himself for this moment. I would say he met the moment. At the end of it, we both were pretty exhausted."

Around the same time that the interview was conducted, it was reported that the U.S. Department of Justice would join a lawsuit already in place against the cyclist, over his alleged fraud against the government. Armstrong's attempts to have the lawsuit dismissed were rejected, and in early 2017 the case was allowed to proceed to trial.

Fraud Settlement

In spring 2018, two weeks before his trial was scheduled to begin, Armstrong agreed to pay the U.S. Postal Service $5 million to settle their claims of being defrauded. According to his legal team, the settlement ended "all litigation against Armstrong related to his 2013 admission" of using performance-enhancing drugs.

"I am particularly glad to have made peace with the Postal Service," said Armstrong said in a statement. "While I believe that their lawsuit against me was without merit and unfair, I have since 2013 tried to take full responsibility for my mistakes, and make amends wherever possible. I rode my heart out for the Postal cycling team, and was always especially proud to wear the red, white and blue eagle on my chest when competing in the Tour de France."

Landis, the whistle-blower in the case, stood to receive $1.1 million of the amount paid to the government. Additionally, Armstrong agreed to shell out $1.65 million to cover his old teammate's legal expenses.

Movie and Documentaries

In 2015, the Armstrong biopic The Program , with Ben Foster portraying the fallen cyclist, premiered at the Toronto Film Festival. Armstrong had little to say about the film, other than criticizing its star for taking performance-enhancing drugs to prepare for the role.

Armstrong was far more receptive to the release of Icarus , a Netflix documentary in which amateur cyclist Bryan Fogel also pumps up on PEDs before uncovering a Russian state-sponsored system created to mask its athletes' use of such drugs. In late 2017, Armstrong tweeted: "After being asked roughly a 1000 times if I’ve seen @IcarusNetflix yet, I finally sat down to check it out. Holy hell. It’s hard to imagine that I could be blown away by much in that realm but I was. Incredible work @bryanfogel!"

It was subsequently announced that on January 6, 2018, the day after Academy Award voters could begin submitting their ballots, Armstrong would co-host a screening and reception for Icarus in New York.

The cyclist returned to the spotlight with the Marina Zenovich-directed documentary Lance , which premiered at the January 2020 Sundance Film Festival before airing on ESPN that May. Along with examining the formative influences that drove him to become such a ruthless competitor, the doc showcased Armstrong's attempts to adapt to public life in the years after he had fallen from his pedestal as one of the world's most admired athletes.

Charity, Personal Life and Children

Armstrong has lived in Austin, Texas, since 1990. In 1996, he founded the Lance Armstrong Foundation for Cancer, now called LiveStrong, and the Lance Armstrong Junior Race Series to help promote cycling and racing among America's youth. He is the author of two best-selling autobiographies, It's Not About the Bike: My Journey Back to Life (2000) and Every Second Counts (2003).

In 2006, Armstrong ran the New York City Marathon, raising $600,000 for his LiveStrong campaign. He stepped down from LiveStrong in October 2012 following the USADA report about his use of performance-enhancing drugs.

Armstrong married Kristin Richard, a public relations executive he met through his cancer foundation, in 1998. The couple had a son, Luke, in October 1999, using sperm frozen before Armstrong began chemotherapy. Twin daughters, Isabelle and Grace, were born in 2001. The couple filed for divorce in 2003. Afterward, he dated rocker Sheryl Crow , fashion designer Tory Burch and actresses Kate Hudson and Ashley Olsen .

In December 2008, Armstrong announced that his girlfriend, Anna Hansen, was pregnant with his child. The couple had been dating since July after meeting through Armstrong's charity work. The baby boy, Maxwell Edward, was born on June 4, 2009. A daughter, Olivia Marie, followed on October 18, 2010.

In July 2013, Armstrong made headlines again when it was reported that he would be competing in The Des Moines Register 's Annual Great Bicycle Ride Across Iowa, a statewide cycling race sponsored by the newspaper.

"I'm well aware my presence is not an easy topic, and so I encourage people if they want to give a high-five, great," Armstrong stated shortly after the news broke, according to the Daily Mail . "If you want to shoot me the bird, that's OK too. I'm a big boy, and so I made the bed, I get to sleep in it."

In 2015, Armstrong returned to the Tour de France course to ride in a leukemia charity event one day before the start of the race.

QUICK FACTS

• Name: Lance Armstrong
• Birth Year: 1971
• Birth date: September 18, 1971
• Birth State: Texas
• Birth City: Plano
• Birth Country: United States
• Gender: Male
• Best Known For: Lance Armstrong is a cancer survivor and former professional cyclist who was stripped of his seven Tour de France wins due to evidence of performance-enhancing drug use.
• Astrological Sign: Virgo

We strive for accuracy and fairness.If you see something that doesn't look right, contact us !

CITATION INFORMATION

• Article Title: Lance Armstrong Biography
• Author: Biography.com Editors
• Website Name: The Biography.com website
• Url: https://www.biography.com/athletes/lance-armstrong
• Access Date:
• Publisher: A&E; Television Networks
• Last Updated: April 23, 2021
• Original Published Date: April 2, 2014
• There comes a point in every man's life when he has to say, 'Enough is enough.' For me, that time is now.
• My ruthless desire to win at all costs served me well on the bike but the level it went to, for whatever reason, is a flaw. That desire, that attitude, that arrogance.
• The biggest challenge of the rest of my life is to not slip up again and not lose sight of what I have to do. I had it but things got too big and too crazy.
• If you're trying to hide something, you wouldn't keep getting away with it for 10 years. Nobody is that clever.
• I know the truth. The truth isn't what was out there. The truth isn't what I said, and now it's gone—this story was so perfect for so long.
• There was more happiness in the process, in the build, in the preparation. The winning was almost phoned in.
• If you're asking me if I want to compete again, the answer is hell yes, I'm a competitor.
• I learned a lesson that day. No more gifts."[On giving Marco Pantani a stage win in the 2000 Tour de France]
• The Look was just one part of a great battle with the Telekom team all day.
• Nobody believed I was able to do that after the crash. But I was a desperate man, and I knew that was my last chance to win the Tour de France.
• I'm well aware my presence is not an easy topic, and so I encourage people if they want to give a high-five, great. If you want to shoot me the bird, that's OK too. I'm a big boy, and so I made the bed, I get to sleep in it.
• I am deeply flawed ... and I'm paying the price for it, and I think that's okay. I deserve this."[On being stripped of his seven Tour de France titles for doping as a pro cyclist.]
• Two things scare me: The first is getting hurt. But that's not nearly as scary as the second, which is losing.
• Pain is temporary. It may last a minute, or an hour, or a day, or a year, but eventually it will subside and something else will take its place. If I quit, however, it lasts forever.

Famous Athletes

Florence Joyner

Who Is Caitlin Clark, the Record NCAA Scorer?

Lionel Messi

10 Things You Might Not Know About Travis Kelce

Every Black Quarterback to Play in the Super Bowl

Patrick Mahomes

What Is Soccer Star Cristiano Ronaldo’s Net Worth?

Jackie Joyner-Kersee

Rubin Carter

These 7 Fathers and Sons Have Won the Super Bowl

The Loss that Fueled Nick Saban’s Alabama Dynasty

His goal was never to be the only American winner of the Tour de France. But that's what happened.

• On Saturday, 176 riders will start the Tour de France in Nice with hopes of finishing in Paris on September 20. The race is starting two months later than planned because of the coronavirus.
• The organizer and the 22 teams say they're taking precautions to keep the riders safe from COVID-19, including wearing masks, social distancing, and limiting attendance.
• There are just three American riders on this year's start list, and none are expected to finish high up in the general classification.
• We spoke with the first and only US winner of the Tour, Greg LeMond, about racing during the pandemic, favorites for the yellow jersey, and why he's excited for the future of up-and-coming American riders.
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories .

On Saturday, the 107th Tour de France gets underway in Nice, two months later than originally scheduled because of the coronavirus. The organizer and the 22 teams say they'll be taking a deliberate approach to protect the 176 riders from COVID-19. This includes limited attendance, masks, social distancing, and lots of hand sanitizer (any rider caught leaving his team's safety "bubble" is to be sent home). And while the riders will not have to wear masks while competing, the race has asked that they wear them everywhere else. Meanwhile, spectators are being told to keep six feet from the athletes, and autographs and selfies with the riders are prohibited. Otherwise, the three-week route remains unchanged, and if all goes well, the race will finish in Paris on September 20.

To talk about this year's race, I spoke on Thursday with Greg LeMond , the winner of the Tour in 1986, '89, and '90. LeMond, now 59, was the first American to make it big in European cycling, having forged a path for US riders for years to come, including Lance Armstrong and Floyd Landis , both of whom won the Tour in the "dirty" '90s and 2000s before their titles were stripped for doping . LeMond, who's also a two-time world champion, is considered the greatest American cyclist of all time. His '86 Tour victory over five-time winner Bernard Hinault is celebrated in the popular ESPN 30 for 30 " Slaying the Badger. " He won the closest-ever Tour, claiming the '89 edition by eight seconds over two-time champion Laurent Fignon, two years after being shot in a hunting accident . Today he lives in Tennessee, where he's restarting his bike company, LeMond , intending to roll out new models this fall.

During our conversation, which has been edited for length and clarity, we talked about this year's Tour, the sport's dark era, and some of the changes he's seen in his time.

Much of this year's pro-cycling season is being condensed into three months, August through October, with the biggest race, the Tour, starting this weekend, all of it during a pandemic. What do you make of it?

Well, when you look at what's happened with the pandemic, early on, Europe was really good at controlling the spread. But it's been on and off since. They just canceled the world championships, mainly because Switzerland is not allowing any groups over a hundred people. But you know, if you take the right precautions and you're outside, even with Formula One and a lot of these sports, they don't have to have the spectators on the side of the road or in the stadium.

If the riders are protected, I think it's great. You've got team sponsors and riders training throughout the whole year, so at least they're not missing the whole year. I actually think it's kind of exciting because usually, you have months to see the condition of riders, to see where they're at. There's a lot of pressure. The riders who were able to train outside definitely have an advantage, although you could do a pretty good job inside. This is going to be a good Tour. It's going to be very competitive.

This year's route looks deceptively challenging, with so much climbing throughout.

The sport is favoring thinner and thinner riders . People sometimes basically look like they're anorexic. It's competitive, but they've got to even it out. They want it really tight, but they're making it tight for climbers. They've got to have longer, 50-, 70-kilometer time trials . You've got to have a guy like Tom Dumoulin have a chance, riders more all around. At least switch it up. For quite a few years it's been really geared toward climbers.

Who do you see as the favorites?

With Chris Froome and Geraint Thomas out, you've now got all these young riders with Tour de France potential. Egan Bernal has already won it. But you've also got Primož Roglič , Thibaut Pinot , Julian Alaphilippe . Roglič is injured, but I think it's going to be a really tight, exciting race.

Related stories

You know, nowadays there are some bright stars, good all-rounders. What I love about right now is you've got these younger riders, like Remco Evenepoel . There are so many young, 22-, 23-year-old riders. It's a changing of the guard. And what I like is it's no longer riders all of a sudden getting good at 28. It's where you got talent at 18, 19, and you got talent at 25 and 30. It's really a good sign for cycling.

Then there's the American Sepp Kuss , 25, who recently won a stage of the Dauphine and is about to start his first Tour. What do you think of the US riders right now?

You've got Quinn Simmons and Magnus Sheffield — these guys are real talent. Sheffield is probably the most talented rider we've ever produced, maybe even better than me. I've been looking at his wattage, and he's 18. After two years of racing, he's third in the junior world championships . I don't know about winning Tours, but stages maybe, and being competitive in big tours.

You retired from racing in '94. What's different to you now?

Well, versus from the '90s and the perspective of the 21st century — actually starting about 2013, 2015 — there's a generation of riders who are not from that past. And the sport's got a lot more to lose on scandals. There's the biological passport . And I've looked at historical power output of riders. At the top end, there's still stuff where I go, "I just hope everything's on the up-and-up." But if you look at some of the riders going up the climbs, they're very thin, so I think that's a really good sign.

I think there was a real issue with the motor doping — a real issue. And I believe it is real, and it's been in the past. It's made dramatic changes, but I think that I don't see that anymore. But I guess what I look at right now is the French riders really have another standard of testing. When I see like a guy like Thibaut Pinot, who publishes all his data — everything — and he's literally close to winning the Tour, that's a really good sign.

The radios have changed the sport. I wish they'd go away, because I think it's part of the cause of a lot of the crashes. I mean, you're literally doing two or three things at a time. I also think the riders are under a lot of pressure now to perform all the time, which is quite difficult. A lot of these guys do two grand tours, so it's a very difficult sport. I've heard from the inside that it's gotten to be almost too — I don't want to say "too serious" — but it's, you know, there's not a lot of fun in the peloton. You've got guys like Peter Sagan , sure. But I think there's an error there. Things changed. There is the younger group of riders, who are a lot more open.

So what do you make of the sport today?

I think we're as good as we've been since the '80s right now, and only because I look at the talent that's coming out. I mean, if you're 19 years old and you're on a drug program right now, you'd have to have some pretty evil people behind you. But when you see these young riders now, it goes back to the historical norm. It's weird, but I think for a lot of people in cycling, especially in Europe, the '80s were kind of recognized as maybe the last — what I call — "somewhat clean" era. You know, nothing was ever perfect. But part of it was, like, with racing in the '90s and all the way to the Sky team, it became less personal, less interaction with the public.

And I have to say, with helmets and glasses — even though I brought them into the sport — haven't helped in that way. When you look back in the '70s and '80s, you see people's expressions. People want to see that — they want to see suffering. And that's why, honestly, the last three years, and last year's Tour, were so exciting, because you're seeing people wiped out. I mean, there were periods in racing, people got done with a stage, they weren't even breathing. It was, like, "Oh, I just did a training ride." That's not natural.

You were the first American to win the Tour. Years later, the US had three Tour winners. Then there were two. Now there's one again, you. How do you look at your place in cycling history?

I'm glad that I won the Tour de France. I would say that it wasn't my goal to be the only Tour de France winner, because it actually would help the sport if we had more US Tour de France winners. And believe it or not, I'm not the jealous type, at all. I have zero jealousy. That was a nice sound bite that people wanted to use. But I think what's happened is the correct thing. People who cheat, and really cheat, to win races should not be winners. I mean, they should have them stripped away , and that's not just the American riders, but that's any rider. And so it is the way it is. I didn't have any part in that. If they didn't lose their Tour de France titles, what would change? I still won three Tours.

I'm just grateful that I had my time at that period in cycling, and I'm grateful because it wasn't like the '90s. I didn't have to make certain choices. And so in a way, when I look back at my career, I got really lucky, because in the '90s, you're 19 years old, 20 years old, you love cycling, and they slowly seduce you. I'm glad I never had to make that choice. And that's always been my goal, to get cycling to where people don't have to make that choice, they're not forced to make that choice. They're not told "You can't race as a pro cyclist unless you do this." Nobody should have to face that. And that's been, since the '80s, my stance.

I was fortunate I won two races that were very exciting, against Hinault and then '89. Everybody remembers a close race or a comeback. I'm fortunate I was able to race again, because I when I got shot, two years into it I was ready to quit, and I'm glad I didn't give up. I'm glad I had the career I had. I'm just grateful for that.

Watch: How billionaires saw their net worth increase by half a trillion dollars during the pandemic

• Main content

• E-Mythique LT
• Vitesse EVO
• Venon EVO-RS
• Venon EVO-GR
• Venon EVO-RS AERO
• E-Substance
• Energie EVO
• Mythique 24
• Mythique 26
• More Stories Tomorrow Collective
• Technical Support Documents
• Archive Bikes Post 2020
• Archive Bikes Pre 2020
• Mountain Downhill Dominer Enduro Sommet E-Sommet E-Mythique LT Trail/AM Escarpe Mythique E-Escarpe Trail Hardtail Nucleus Sentier E-Sentier Cross Country Rapide Rapide FS
• Road & Gravel Race ZX-1 EVO Vitesse EVO All-Road Venon EVO-RS Venon EVO-GR Venon EVO-RS AERO Performance Zenium Razor Gravel Substance E-Substance Cyclocross Energie EVO Energie Time Trial Auro
• E-Bikes MTB E-Sommet E-Escarpe E-Mythique LT E-Sentier City E-Mach 3 Road E-Substance Gravel E-Substance
• Hybrid Sport Mach 3 E-Mach 3 Utility Mach-1
• Kids Balance Bikes Nippy Smoothy Mini Rider (3-8y) 14 Kids 16 Kids 20 Kids 20+ Kids Big Rider (7+y) 24 Kids 24+ Kids Youth MTB (7+y) Mythique 24 Mythique 26 Nucleus 24 Nucleus 26 Youth Road/CX (7+y) Razor 24 Razor 26 Energie 24 Energie 26

The First American to Win the Tour de France: Marianne Martin

Marianne Martin was the first American to win the Tour de France.

The year was 1984. Bikes were made of metal, helmets were made of leather, and Marianne Martin, a 26-year-old cyclist originally from Fenton, Michigan, realized her dream of being the first American to wear the coveted yellow jersey as she pedaled across the finish line under the Arc de Triomphe and became the first American winner of the Tour de France.

Two years later, Greg LeMond's iconic victory secured his place in the history books – but not as the first American to win the Tour. That particular achievement belongs to Martin, who earned her place on the podium alongside the legendary LeMond, Laurent Fignon, and Bernard Hinault. Her name should be as well-known as these icons of the sport.

Marianne Martin specifically won the Tour de France Féminin, a race that ran alongside the Tour de France and covered 18 of the Tour’s 23 stages, with slightly abbreviated routes. The grueling climbs were the same, and the spectator-lined grand finales were the same, with the women’s race finishing only a half hour or so before the men crossed the line, to the wild reception of European cycling fans . The Tour de France Féminin lasted five years, and to this day the 1984 version remains the only women’s stage race that most closely mirrored the men’s edition. Even the modern Tour de France Femmes is substantially shorter and not run concurrently with the Tour de France.

Arguments that attempt to discredit or diminish Marianne Martin’s extraordinary performance speak to the chauvinism of the era more than they speak to Martin’s incredible athletic achievement. Unfortunately, this sort of sexism in sport isn’t just a product of its time – it still runs rampant. Thankfully, the Tour de France Femmes is a pedal stroke in the right direction.  

So, what was it like to ride in the first year of the Tour de France Féminin, in an era which many cycling fans consider to be the golden era for road racing?

“I still feel like I raced at the best time I could imagine because we had some amazing races around the States. You know, we had the Coors Classic, the South Series… so many big classic races,” Martin said, speaking on a video call from her home in Colorado. “There was a purity to the sport. You know, very few people got any money. It was passion driven, not money driven.”

Over the course of those 18 stages in July 1984, the powerhouse climber fought for every advantage, utilizing the strength, tactics, and guts of a true champion. And she did it all on a Vitus 979, the legendary lightweight aluminum race machine that became one of the most successful racing bikes ever built. Martin remembers it fondly.

“The Vitus 979 was the best bike that I’d ever had. It was light, it was state of the art. You know, I don't know a lot about equipment, and I don't really care. I just wanted it to work. And it worked.”

Her victory didn’t come easily. Martin was still recovering from a bout of anemia, and as a climber she had to wait until the 12th stage – the first in the Alps – to gain a competitive advantage. It wasn’t until the 14th stage that she finally earned the yellow jersey. Luckily, knowing when to go full gas and when to rest is a major part of Marianne’s recipe for success.

“Rest is like my secret weapon. And it's still not taken as seriously as it needs to be. What I learned early on in training was you go really hard, you push your body, you break your body down, and then you rest. And that's where all the magic happens – it's about letting your body rebuild.”

With cycling reentering the American popular consciousness thanks to the thrilling Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift, as well as the Netflix documentary series Tour de France: Unchained, Marianne Martin's victory during the golden age of the sport needs to be retold. As Billie Jean King famously put it, “You have to see it to be it.” Hopefully young riders find inspiration in Martin’s story.

Driven by her passion for the sport and an unwavering determination, Marianne Martin etched her name in history and blazed a trail for American cycling and women cyclists. She rightfully earned her place among the greats as the first American to win the Tour de France – no footnotes, no asterisks, full stop.  

Sepp Kuss becomes first American to win Tour de France stage since 2011; Tadej Pogacar increases overall lead

• Associated Press

ANDORRA LA VELLA, Andorra -- Sepp Kuss couldn't suppress a wide grin as he raced toward the finish line to become the first American in 10 years to win a stage at the Tour de France.

After winning Sunday's grueling 15th stage, Kuss threw his sunglasses into the crowd and put his arms in the air before covering his face, succumbing to emotion and exhaustion.

Tyler Farrar had been the last American to win a stage at cycling's biggest race in 2011.

"It's incredible, I'm lost for words," Kuss said.

The 26-year-old Colorado native left it late to make his move in the punishing 191-kilometer (118-mile) ride from Ceret at the foothills of the Pyrenees to the tiny mountain-bound nation of Andorra.

"This was Sepp's day," said Jumbo-Visma teammate Wout van Aert, who helped put Kuss in a position to break. "He lives in Andorra and he was looking forward to this stage."

The American attacked going up the 1,796-meter Col de Beixalis and maintained his hard-fought advantage over Spanish veteran Alejandro Valverde, who finished 23 seconds behind.

"To be honest, I was suffering a lot in this Tour de France. I didn't feel like I had the spice in the legs. Today I knew it was finishing where I live, so I was motivated for the stage," Kuss said.

Col de Beixalis was the steepest climb in a day of many ascents in the Pyrenees. Kuss' average speed going up was 20.4 kph (12.7 mph), and 57.9 kph (36 mph) going down, where he clocked a maximum speed of 80.6 kph (50 mph).

"I don't ride to Col de Beixalis much in training because it's so hard, but I knew if I had a good gap, I'd stay away till the finish. Wout van Aert did a great job for me in the valley. It means a lot to me to win a Tour de France stage," Kuss said.

Dutch rider Wout Poels finished third and took over the polka dot jersey for the best climber.

"It's obviously going to be a great battle for the mountains jersey," Poels said.

Race leader Tadej Pogacar enjoyed an uneventful day and remained on course for his second overall victory.

The defending champion was only questioned toward the end of the stage as Jonas Vingegaard followed Ben O'Connor's example with two attacks.

Pogacar answered both without any problems and increased his overall lead to more than five minutes over Rigoberto Uran and Vingegaard.

"I felt good, and I wasn't worried at all about the last climb. I just needed to follow the other riders there, as I did," Pogacar said. "My team did a great job at protecting me all day long, providing me with everything I needed. The key today was to keep myself hydrated, to have water available all the time, and my teammates did that job perfectly."

Guillaume Martin, who was second overall ahead of the stage, dropped back to ninth.

Before the final tussles on Col de Beixalis, riders had to overcome the 2,408-meter Port d'Envalira, where Nairo Quintana made a break after a strong headwind forced riders across the road. Quintana was first to the summit before he was hauled back. Quintana tried again on Col de Beixalis before Kuss took over.

Nacer Bouhanni, who had been suffering since a big crash on Stage 13, quit after the intermediate sprint with 124.5 kilometers remaining.

The rest of the riders have a chance to recover on the tour's second rest day Monday before more climbs await on Tuesday.

2022 Tour de France: Who are the Seven Americans Competing?

As the 2022 tour de france kicks off, here’s everything you need to know about the seven americans competing this year., by julia elbaba • published july 1, 2022.

The 2022 Tour de France is officially underway.

The event, known to be the world's "most prestigious and most difficult" race, includes seven determined Americans seeking the iconic Tour de France trophy and a cash prize of $528,000. 

The action, consisting of 176 riders from around the world, kicks off on Friday, July 1 with the Grand Depart in Copenhagen, Denmark and concludes on July 24.

Americans competing in the different stages of the epic competition can be watched on Peacock and the NBC Sports app.

Get Philly local news, weather forecasts, sports and entertainment stories to your inbox. Sign up for NBC Philadelphia newsletters.

Here are the seven Americans competing in the 2022 Tour de France:

Sepp Kuss 

View this post on Instagram A post shared by Sepp Kuss (@seppkuss)

Sepp Kuss is the American to watch.

Last year, the 27-year-old won stage 15 of the Tour de France, becoming the first American to win a stage of the event since Tyler Farrar, who won stage 3 in 2011.

U.S. & World

Stories that affect your life across the U.S. and around the world.

AT&T data breach leaked millions of customers' information online. Were you affected?

Hyundai, Kia recalled 3.4 million vehicles over a fire risk. They remain on the road unrepaired

Making his third appearance at the prestigious event, Kuss has also won a stage of the Vuelta de España.

Kuss currently rides for Jumbo-Visma.

Neilson Powless

View this post on Instagram A post shared by Neilson Powless (@neilsonpowless)

Neilson Powless was the first US Native American to compete in the Tour de France. He is a member of the Oneida Indian Nation.

Now competing in his third Tour de France, the 25-year-old Powless won the 2021 San Sebastian Classic in Spain, becoming only the second American to achieve that.

Powless currently rides for EF Education-EasyPost.

Brandon McNulty

View this post on Instagram A post shared by Brandon McNulty (@brandon_mcnulty)

Brandon McNulty is competing in his second Tour de France.

The 24-year-old’s first tour was in the 2022 Giro d'Italia where he finished 15th overall.

In 2021, he rode in the Tour de France, serving as a domestique for teammate and race winner Tadej Pogacar. A domestique is a rider who works to help and lead their team.

McNulty currently rides for UAE Team Emirates.

Joe Dombrowski 

View this post on Instagram A post shared by Joe Dombrowski (@joedombro)

Although Joe Dombrowski has been around for a while, he is making his Tour de France debut this year. 

The 31-year-old won a stage in the 2021 Giro d'Italia and has made four appearances in the Vuelta de Espana.

Dombrowski currently rides for Astana Qazaqstan but has spent time with Team Emirates, Splitstream, Bontrager-Livestrong and Team Sky.

Matteo Jorgenson

View this post on Instagram A post shared by Matteo Jorgenson (@matteojorgenson)

Matteo Jorgenson is also making his Tour de France debut and will ride in a support role for Spanish Movistar Team lead rider Enric Mas.

The 23-year-old has competed in one other tour in his young career -- the 2021 Giro d'Italia.

Kevin Vermaerke

View this post on Instagram A post shared by Kevin Vermaerke (@kvermaerke)

Kevin Vermaerke is making his Tour de France debut this year.

The 21-year-old has competed in two other tours, winning the ub-23 Liege-Bastogne-Liege and finishing fourth in the Critérium du Dauphiné.

Vermaerke currently rides for Team DSM.

Quinn Simmons

View this post on Instagram A post shared by Quinn Simmons (@skin.quimmons)

Quinn Simmons is the youngest American competing at this year's Tour de France.

In 2021, the 21-year-old got himself in some trouble for actions he took on Twitter. In the incident, Simmons tweeted a black hand emoji and said "Buh-bye" in response to a cycling journalist who told supporters of former president Donald Trump to unfollow her.

Simmons was reinstated after issuing an apology and denying racist intent.

Simmons currently rides for Trek-Segafredo.

This article tagged under:

• Skip to main content
• Keyboard shortcuts for audio player

Tadej Pogačar Has Won His 2nd Tour De France In A Row

James Doubek

Tadej Pogačar of Slovenia celebrates in Paris after claiming his second Tour de France victory in a row on Sunday. Anne-Christine Poujoulat/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

Tadej Pogačar of Slovenia celebrates in Paris after claiming his second Tour de France victory in a row on Sunday.

Slovenian powerhouse Tadej Pogačar officially claimed his second Tour de France victory on Sunday after dominating the field for most of the race's three weeks.

Pogačar, 22, pulled ahead in the general classification standings on a rainy stage eight and never gave up the leading rider's yellow jersey, winning three of the race's 21 stages.

Last year, Pogačar came to an unexpected victory after his rival Primož Roglič faltered in the penultimate stage time trial. At the time he was the youngest winner of the Tour in 116 years.

"I can't compare both Tour de France victories, I can't say which one is more beautiful," Pogačar said, according to The Associated Press. "This time, I took the yellow jersey quite earlier. It has been totally different."

A Pro Cyclist Rode An Unofficial, Solo Tour De France And Beat The Pack

Twenty-four-year-old Danish rider Jonas Vingegaard finished second overall, with Ecuadorian star Richard Carapaz, age 28, finishing third. Carapaz is the first Ecuadorian to ever finish in the top three in the Tour's history.

Pogačar was a favorite to win going into the race. Roglič, also of Slovenia, was another favorite but was caught up in multiple crashes early in the race and dropped out to recover from his injuries.

Mark Cavendish resurrects his cycling career

Meanwhile, Mark Cavendish, 36, a native of the Isle of Man, resurrected a career that had seemed to be on a downturn, winning four stages of the Tour.

Mark Cavendish, pictured on his fourth win of this year's Tour de France on July 9, matched the record Tour wins of the legend Eddy Merckx. Thomas Samson/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

Mark Cavendish, pictured on his fourth win of this year's Tour de France on July 9, matched the record Tour wins of the legend Eddy Merckx.

In doing so, Cavendish reached a total of 34 Tour de France stage wins in his career, matching the record set between 1969 and 1975 by Eddy Merckx, who is generally considered the greatest cyclist of all time.

Cavendish broke out in tears after his first win of this year's Tour, his first in five years. He was only selected to be on the team at the last minute after another rider's injury.

"I didn't think I'd ever get to come back to this race," he said in an emotional post-race interview.

"I don't know what to say man" First words from the 🇮🇲 Manx Missile, fresh from a 31st stage win. @MarkCavendish #TDF2021 pic.twitter.com/9tMygrixNA — Tour de France™ (@LeTour) June 29, 2021

American Sepp Kuss breaks through

And this year American audiences also saw the first American win a stage of the Tour since 2011: Sepp Kuss of Durango, Colo.

Sepp Kuss became the first American to win a stage of the Tour de France since 2011 this year, with a win in the 15th stage on July 11. Philippe Lopez/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

Sepp Kuss became the first American to win a stage of the Tour de France since 2011 this year, with a win in the 15th stage on July 11.

"He's been tremendous," writer Patrick Redford of the website Defector told All Things Considered . "I mean, he's 26 years old, so some people are potentially talking him up as the next American winner of the Tour. He's looked incredibly strong."

Several of the riders from the Tour are now readying to travel to Tokyo, where they'll take part in this year's Olympics.

North Americans Competing in the 2022 Tour de France

From talented domestiques to Tour rookies, the North Americans competing in this year’s Tour de France should give us plenty to root for.

The 2022 Tour de France looks to be a banner year for North Americans, with ten Americans and Canadians set to start the race on Friday in Copenhagen, Denmark. And while we’re still waiting to cheer for another bona fide overall contender, this year’s group should give us plenty to get excited about with two Americans expected to help one of their teammates win the Tour, a Canadian climber looking to win a stage or two, and four American rookies (including three of the five youngest riders in this year’s race) hoping to finish the race and make the most of whatever chances they’re given by their teams.

Sepp Kuss (Jumbo-Visma)

American Sepp Kuss, a stage winner in last year’s Tour, headlines the list of North Americans competing in the 2022 Tour de France. Riding his third Tour for Jumbo-Visma, the 27-year-old’s primary responsibilities will be supporting Primož Roglič and Jonas Vingegaard in the mountains. When it comes to doing his job, he’s one of the best in the world. But as we saw last year when he won Stage 15 in Andorra (and a stage at the Tour of Spain in 2019), he’s able to make the most of his own chances when he gets them. If all goes as planned he won’t get many of those this year, as Jumbo’s hoping to go toe-to-toe with Tadej Pogačar and UAE Team Emirates in a battle to win the Tour, but if he does, another stage win is a possibility.

Brandon McNulty (UAE Team Emirates)

Speaking of Pogačar, after helping the Slovenian win his second Tour de France last year, American Brandon McNulty is once again set to race for UAE Team Emirates, again with the goal of helping his teammate win the race overall. The good news for McNulty is that his team is even stronger this year thanks to the additions of New Zealand’s George Bennett and Spain’s Marc Soler, so McNulty will have extra help. And if Pogačar puts the yellow jersey out of reach as early as he did last year, McNulty might even get a few chances to challenge for a stage win during the Tour’s third week. So far he’s had his best season to date as WorldTour pro, winning two races in Mallorca to start the season and then a stage at Paris-Nice in March. A Grand Tour stage win is the logical next step for the 24-year-old to take.

Michael Woods (Israel-Premier Tech)

Canada’s Mike Woods comes to the Tour de France fresh from winning La Route d'Occitanie, a four-day stage race in the French Pyrenees that many riders use to put the finishing touches on their form for the Tour de France. Woods won the race’s “Queen Stage” by more than a minute, which was more than enough to win the race overall. But despite the success, we don’t expect to see Woods challenge for a high finish on the Tour’s General Classification. Instead, the 35-year-old is most likely hunting for stage wins–and he’ll have lots of chances as several stages have profiles that suit his strengths as a climber. So don’t be surprised to see Woods lose lots of time on the Tour’s opening stages in the hopes of staying safe and fresh for mountains, while dropping far enough out of contention so that he’s not viewed as a threat when he goes on the attack to win stages later in the Tour (possibly as soon as Stage 7’s summit finish on the Super Planche des Belles Filles).

Neilson Powless (EF Education-EasyPost)

Despite being registered in the USA, EF Education-EasyPost almost came to the Tour without an American rider, as the team’s cosmopolitan roster presents lots of hard choices when it came to choosing the eight riders most capable of supporting Rigoberto Uran’s GC chances while also challenging for stage wins along the way. But Powless made the cut, most likely for two reasons: he finished fourth overall at the recent Tour de Suisse; and somehow managed to avoid the COVID-19 outbreak that forced half of the team’s riders to abandon the race before the start of Stage 6. Look for Powless to hunt stage wins while doing his best to support Uran’s bid for a top-5 finish overall.

Joe Dombrowski (Astana)

After finishing the Tour of Italy and the recent La Route d'Occitanie, we weren’t expecting to see Joe Dombrowski on the start list for the Tour de France, but his team seems to be taking a “let’s throw everything against the wall and see what sticks” approach to the Tour de France, which means the American climber got a spot on the roster. Surprisingly, this is Dombrowski’s first Tour de France despite having raced in the WorldTour since 2013, but as far as we’re concerned, it’s better late than never. With so much racing in his legs these past two months, we suspect the 31-year-old will take it easy during the first week, staying out of trouble in the hopes of getting a few chances to take a breakaway stage win in the mountains during the Tour’s second and third weeks.

Matteo Jorgenson (Movistar)

Another American making his Tour debut, Jorgenson’s an impressive up-and-comer who’s chosen a rather unique WorldTour path by riding for a predominantly Spanish team. But the decision has given him a chance to develop within a program that’s won over 15 Grand Tours, while getting a chance to ride in some pretty important races outside of Spain. And the team clearly views him as a future team leader: when announcing their roster for the Tour, the team gave him a prominent place in the press release, calling him their “American hopeful.” Expect the 22-year-old to spend much of his time supporting Spain’s Enric Mas, the team’s GC captain, while also getting a few opportunities to go on the attack himself once the GC race has settled down a bit, most likely in the Tour’s third week.

Quinn Simmons (Trek-Segafredo)

Less than two months removed from his 21st birthday, Quinn Simmons is the youngest rider in the entire 2022 Tour de France. The American won the Junior road race at the World Championships in 2019, and then went straight to the WorldTour, skipping the Under-23 category altogether. Despite turning pro during the COVID-truncated 2020 season, Simmons still made his mark (on and off the bike), and last year won his first professional race and completed his first Grand Tour. Now he heads to the Tour, where he and teammates are focusing on stage wins. Strong, aggressive, and undaunted by the rigors of WorldTour racing despite his young age, we won’t be surprised if he wins a stage.

Kevin Vermaerke (Team DSM)

The second-youngest rider in this year’s race, American Kevin Vermaerke is a rookie in the truest sense of the word as the 2022 Tour de France will be the first Grand Tour of the 21-year-old’s career. That’s a rare feat as most riders use the Tours of Italy or Spain to make their Grand Tour debuts, but Vermaerke–as evidenced by his aggressive riding at the recent Critérium du Dauphiné–looks ready to make the leap. And he’s on the perfect team for it: Team DSM comes to the Tour hunting for stage wins, and its “all for one; one for all” approach means Vermaerke should get opportunities to go on the attack and hunt for a stage win.

Hugo Houle (Israel-Premier Tech)

Hugo Houle’s been a fixture of recent Tours de France, as the Canadian raced the last three editions as a key domestique with Astana. He moved to Israel-PremierTech this past off-season, where he’ll take-on a similar role. His team has several cards to play when it comes to winning stages with Woods and Denmark’s Jakob Fuglsang coming to the race in top form (and Great Britain’s Chris Froome hoping to get there soon). So the ceiling for Houle is a top-10 ride in one of the Tour’s two individual time trials in addition to the hard work he’ll put in supporting his teammates.

Antoine Duchesne (Groupama-FDJ)

Another Canadian veteran, Antoine Duchesne’s been riding for top-tier French teams since 2014. Riding the Tour de France for the second time since finishing the race in 2016, the 30-year-old will spend the Tour as “domestique” for his French team, grabbing water bottles, jackets, and snacks for his team’s protected riders. If he does get a chance to go on the attack himself it will likely be later in the Tour, on days when his more accomplished teammates are either taking it easy–or (if things go pear-shaped) out of the race.

Since getting hooked on pro cycling while watching Lance Armstrong win the 1993 U.S. Pro Championship in Philadelphia, longtime Bicycling contributor Whit Yost has raced on Belgian cobbles, helped build a European pro team, and piloted that team from Malaysia to Mont Ventoux as an assistant director sportif. These days, he lives with his wife and son in Pennsylvania, spending his days serving as an assistant middle school principal and his nights playing Dungeons & Dragons.

.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);} Tour de France

2024 Tour de France May Start Using Drones

The 2024 Tour de France Can’t Miss Stages

Riders Weigh In on the Tour de France Routes

2024 Tour de France Femmes Can't-Miss Stages

How Much Money Do Top Tour de France Teams Make?

2024 Tour de France/ Tour de France Femmes Routes

How Much Did Tour de France Femmes Riders Earn?

5 Takeaways from the Tour de France Femmes

Who Won the 2023 Tour de France Femmes?

Results From the 2023 Tour de France Femmes

Previewing Stage 8: 2023 Tour de France Femmes

Who’s #1? Ranking the Top 2024 Tour de France Contenders

This is the second edition of Bicycling’ s Power Rankings for the 2024 Men’s Tour de France, where we rank the top contenders leading up to July’s race. This continuously updated list will give you an in-depth look at the riders that have the best shot to stand atop the podium at the end of the Tour—and how they’re performing in the races leading up to July.

These rankings will be constantly refreshed, so you can see who’s up and who’s down on the road to the 2024 Tour de France.

The 2024 Tour de France is expected to bring together the sport’s four best grand tour riders: Denmark’s Jonas Vingegaard (Visma-Lease a Bike), winner of the last two Tours de France; Slovenia’s Tadej Pogačar (UAE Team Emirates), winner of the 2020 and 2021 Tours de France; Belgium’s Remco Evenepoel (Soudal-Quick Step), winner of the 2022 Vuelta a España; and Slovenia’s Primož Roglič (BORA-hansgrohe), a 3-time winner of the Vuelta and the winner of last year’s Giro d’Italia.

Each rider is taking a different path to the Tour de France, with each choosing to mix race days with extended periods of time spread all over Europe at training camps–either alone or with their teammates. And while some of their paths will cross at certain races throughout the first half of the season, they won’t all race together until the Tour.

Three of the five riders in our last power ranking haven’t raced since, but the other two made headlines in an important Spanish stage race–one for his domination and the other for his continued improvement.

Below, you’ll find the first edition of Bicycling ’s Men’s Tour de France Power Rankings.

Jonas Vingegaard

Read the complete analysis.

Race Days : 11

Race Wins : 7

Best Result : 1st-place, General Classification - Tirreno-Adriatico

Next Race : Tour of the Basque Country, April 1-6

The Tour’s 2-time defending champion, Vingegaard hasn’t raced since winning two stages and the General Classification at the Tirreno-Adriatico stage race in March. Instead of racing, the Dane stayed in Italy to recon the opening stages of the upcoming Tour de France (the race is starting in Italy) [Link to TDF Course Overview.], and then went to his home in Lugano, Switzerland to train for the next race on his program, the Tour of the Basque Country, where he’ll race for the first time against his former teammate, Slovenia’s Primož Roglič (BORA-hansgrohe).

Tadej Pogačar

Race Days : 9

Race Wins : 6

Best Result : 1st-place, General Classficiation - Volta Ciclista a Catalunya

Next Race : Liège-Bastogne-Liège, April 21

Winner of back-to-back Tours in 2020 and 2021–and runner-up to Vingegaard in 2022 and 2023–Pogačar has cemented his place as the Dane’s top challenger with a third-place finish in last Saturday’s Milan-Sanremo and the overall victory at last week’s Volta Ciclista a Catalunya.

The Slovenian left no doubt as to who was the strongest rider in Catalunya, finishing second in an uphill sprint on Stage 1 and then blowing the doors off everyone on back-to-back summit finishes on Stages 2 and 3.

At that point, with more than a 2-minute lead, most riders would have shifted into defense-mode. But not Pogačar, who said earlier in the week that one of his career goals is to win all seven of the sport’s most important week-long stage races. Instead of riding to defend his lead, Pog continued to attack, winning Saturday’s Stage 6–which took the race over the monstrous Coll de Pradell–and then just for good measure, Sunday’s Stage 7–in a small group sprint.

By the end of the week Pogačar had a 3:41 advantage over the race’s next-best rider–Spain’s Mikel Landa (Soudal-Quick Step). He’s now won six races in only nine days of racing. Wow.

That could have been enough of a performance to vault him over Vingegaard at the top of our ranking, but here’s the thing: Pogačar’s first goal of the season is May’s Giro d’Italia, a race which could leave the Slovenian a bit depleted heading into the Tour. No one has won the Giro and the Tour de France in the same season since Italy’s Marco Pantani in 1998, and those were–for many reasons–different days.

But we can’t ignore how strong the Slovenian is currently (a rider competing against him last week said that everyone is basically racing for second-place whenever he shows up on the start list), and if he maintains–or even improves upon–his current level of fitness, the Italian grand tour will be his race to lose.

Remco Evenepoel

Race Days : 14

Race Wins : 4

Best Result : 2nd place, General Classification - Paris-Nice

Like Vingegaard, Evenepoel hasn’t raced since our first power ranking. And like Vingegaard, he stuck around after his last race–France’s Paris-Nice–to take an early look at some key stages in the upcoming Tour de France.

But while Vingegaard focused on the Tour’s opening stages, Evenepoel focused on the Tour’s final weekend, which takes place in and around Nice.

While Evenepoel was training, his team’s big off-season signing, Spain’s Mikel Landa, raced well at the Volta Ciclista a Catalunya. The Spaniard was by-far the best of the men trying to keep up with Pogačar in the mountains and finished second overall. That’s a good sign for Evenepoel and his team, which will be doing everything it can to measure up to the depth of teams like Visma and UAE at this year’s Tour.

Up next for the Belgian is Spain’s Tour of the Basque Country, where he’ll join forces with Landa to take on Vingegaard and Roglič. It will be interesting to see how Evenepoel approaches the race: he could do everything possible to win the overall, but a better move might be to save a little bit for the Ardennes classics that he’s slated to ride after leaving Spain.

Primož Roglič

Race Days : 8

Race Wins : 0

Best Result : 3rd place, Stage 7, Paris-Nice

Roglič is the biggest unknown of the riders on this list. He’s raced just once–at Paris-Nice earlier this month–and didn’t do much to make anyone think he has the leg to challenge men like Vingegaard and Pogačar at the Tour.

But the Slovenian has not been shy about the fact that he is taking a slow and steady approach to preparing for the Tour de France, a strategy that could pay off for him if his younger rivals burn too many matches too early in the season.

His next race will be the Tour of the Basque Country. This will be Roglič’s biggest test so far, both because of the terrain–the Tour of the Basque Country is one of the hardest races of the season–and the competition–Vingegaard, Evenepoel, and Egan Bernal are all expected to start the race.

But here’s the good news: Roglič is a two-time winner of the event, and he knows these roads well. Anything other than a top-3 finish would be a disappointment.

Egan Bernal

Race Days : 27

Best Result : 3rd place, General Classficiation - Volta Ciclista a Catalunya

Bernal keeps piling on the race days, perhaps trying to make-up for the time he lost when a crash in early 2022 nearly ended his career.

The Colombian just finished third overall at the Volta Ciclista a Catalunya, his fourth stage race of the season, and scored his first WorldTour podium finish since 2021. That’s a big deal for a rider who wasn’t even sure if he’d race again–let alone be a contender in some of the sport’s biggest races.

But as much as we’re impressed with his consistent improvement so far this season, we’re more excited about the tenacity he’s displayed. Last year he seemed happy just to be racing again, but now he looks like he wants to start winning again–and we love it.

INEOS must love it as well, but the British team is still playing it safe with the Colombian, and they still haven’t announced which grand tour he’ll be targeting this summer. It will be either the Tour de France or the Vuelta a España, but our guess is that the team will ultimately send him to the Tour.

Under Consideration

A 3-time runner-up at the Tour of Spain, Spain’s Enric Mas (Movistar) has failed to finished the last two Tours de France. But he rode well in Catalunya, finishing fifth overall. If he keeps it up, he could be on track to equal (and possibly better) his fifth-place overall finish at the Tour in 2020.

Denmark’s Mattias Skjelmose (LIDL-Trek) hasn’t raced since winning a stage and finishing fourth overall at Paris-Nice. He’s next slated to race at the Tour of the Basque Country, where we’re eager to see how he does.

• >", "name": "top-nav-watch", "type": "link"}}' href="https://watch.outsideonline.com">Watch
• >", "name": "top-nav-learn", "type": "link"}}' href="https://learn.outsideonline.com">Learn
• >", "name": "top-nav-podcasts", "type": "link"}}' href="https://www.outsideonline.com/podcast-directory/">Podcasts
• >", "name": "top-nav-maps", "type": "link"}}' href="https://www.gaiagps.com">Maps
• >", "name": "top-nav-events", "type": "link"}}' href="https://www.athletereg.com/events">Events
• >", "name": "top-nav-shop", "type": "link"}}' href="https://shop.outsideonline.com">Shop
• >", "name": "top-nav-buysell", "type": "link"}}' href="https://www.pinkbike.com/buysell">BuySell
• >", "name": "top-nav-outside", "type": "link"}}' href="https://www.outsideonline.com/outsideplus">Outside+

Become a Member

Get access to more than 30 brands, premium video, exclusive content, events, mapping, and more.

Already have an account? >", "name": "mega-signin", "type": "link"}}' class="u-color--red-dark u-font--xs u-text-transform--upper u-font-weight--bold">Sign In

Outside watch, outside learn.

• >", "name": "mega-backpacker-link", "type": "link"}}' href="https://www.backpacker.com/">Backpacker
• >", "name": "mega-climbing-link", "type": "link"}}' href="https://www.climbing.com/">Climbing
• >", "name": "mega-flyfilmtour-link", "type": "link"}}' href="https://flyfilmtour.com/">Fly Fishing Film Tour
• >", "name": "mega-gaiagps-link", "type": "link"}}' href="https://www.gaiagps.com/">Gaia GPS
• >", "name": "mega-npt-link", "type": "link"}}' href="https://www.nationalparktrips.com/">National Park Trips
• >", "name": "mega-outsideonline-link", "type": "link"}}' href="https://www.outsideonline.com/">Outside
• >", "name": "mega-outsideio-link", "type": "link"}}' href="https://www.outside.io/">Outside.io
• >", "name": "mega-outsidetv-link", "type": "link"}}' href="https://watch.outsideonline.com">Outside Watch
• >", "name": "mega-ski-link", "type": "link"}}' href="https://www.skimag.com/">Ski
• >", "name": "mega-warrenmiller-link", "type": "link"}}' href="https://warrenmiller.com/">Warren Miller Entertainment

Healthy Living

• >", "name": "mega-ce-link", "type": "link"}}' href="https://www.cleaneatingmag.com/">Clean Eating
• >", "name": "mega-oxy-link", "type": "link"}}' href="https://www.oxygenmag.com/">Oxygen
• >", "name": "mega-vt-link", "type": "link"}}' href="https://www.vegetariantimes.com/">Vegetarian Times
• >", "name": "mega-yj-link", "type": "link"}}' href="https://www.yogajournal.com/">Yoga Journal
• >", "name": "mega-beta-link", "type": "link"}}' href="https://www.betamtb.com/">Beta
• >", "name": "mega-pinkbike-link", "type": "link"}}' href="https://www.pinkbike.com/">Pinkbike
• >", "name": "mega-roll-link", "type": "link"}}' href="https://www.rollmassif.com/">Roll Massif
• >", "name": "mega-trailforks-link", "type": "link"}}' href="https://www.trailforks.com/">Trailforks
• >", "name": "mega-trail-link", "type": "link"}}' href="https://trailrunnermag.com/">Trail Runner
• >", "name": "mega-tri-link", "type": "link"}}' href="https://www.triathlete.com/">Triathlete
• >", "name": "mega-vn-link", "type": "link"}}' href="https://velo.outsideonline.com/">Velo
• >", "name": "mega-wr-link", "type": "link"}}' href="https://www.womensrunning.com/">Women's Running
• >", "name": "mega-athletereg-link", "type": "link"}}' href="https://www.athletereg.com/">athleteReg
• >", "name": "mega-bicycleretailer-link", "type": "link"}}' href="https://www.bicycleretailer.com/">Bicycle Retailer & Industry News
• >", "name": "mega-cairn-link", "type": "link"}}' href="https://www.getcairn.com/">Cairn
• >", "name": "mega-finisherpix-link", "type": "link"}}' href="https://www.finisherpix.com/">FinisherPix
• >", "name": "mega-idea-link", "type": "link"}}' href="https://www.ideafit.com/">Idea
• >", "name": "mega-nastar-link", "type": "link"}}' href="https://www.nastar.com/">NASTAR
• >", "name": "mega-shop-link", "type": "link"}}' href="https://www.outsideinc.com/outside-books/">Outside Books
• >", "name": "mega-veloswap-link", "type": "link"}}' href="https://www.veloswap.com/">VeloSwap
• >", "name": "mega-backpacker-link-accordion", "type": "link"}}' href="https://www.backpacker.com/">Backpacker
• >", "name": "mega-climbing-link-accordion", "type": "link"}}' href="https://www.climbing.com/">Climbing
• >", "name": "mega-flyfilmtour-link-accordion", "type": "link"}}' href="https://flyfilmtour.com/">Fly Fishing Film Tour
• >", "name": "mega-gaiagps-link-accordion", "type": "link"}}' href="https://www.gaiagps.com/">Gaia GPS
• >", "name": "mega-npt-link-accordion", "type": "link"}}' href="https://www.nationalparktrips.com/">National Park Trips
• >", "name": "mega-outsideonline-link-accordion", "type": "link"}}' href="https://www.outsideonline.com/">Outside
• >", "name": "mega-outsidetv-link-accordion", "type": "link"}}' href="https://watch.outsideonline.com">Watch
• >", "name": "mega-ski-link-accordion", "type": "link"}}' href="https://www.skimag.com/">Ski
• >", "name": "mega-warrenmiller-link-accordion", "type": "link"}}' href="https://warrenmiller.com/">Warren Miller Entertainment
• >", "name": "mega-ce-link-accordion", "type": "link"}}' href="https://www.cleaneatingmag.com/">Clean Eating
• >", "name": "mega-oxy-link-accordion", "type": "link"}}' href="https://www.oxygenmag.com/">Oxygen
• >", "name": "mega-vt-link-accordion", "type": "link"}}' href="https://www.vegetariantimes.com/">Vegetarian Times
• >", "name": "mega-yj-link-accordion", "type": "link"}}' href="https://www.yogajournal.com/">Yoga Journal
• >", "name": "mega-beta-link-accordion", "type": "link"}}' href="https://www.betamtb.com/">Beta
• >", "name": "mega-roll-link-accordion", "type": "link"}}' href="https://www.rollmassif.com/">Roll Massif
• >", "name": "mega-trail-link-accordion", "type": "link"}}' href="https://trailrunnermag.com/">Trail Runner
• >", "name": "mega-tri-link-accordion", "type": "link"}}' href="https://www.triathlete.com/">Triathlete
• >", "name": "mega-vn-link-accordion", "type": "link"}}' href="https://velo.outsideonline.com/">Velo
• >", "name": "mega-wr-link-accordion", "type": "link"}}' href="https://www.womensrunning.com/">Women's Running
• >", "name": "mega-athletereg-link-accordion", "type": "link"}}' href="https://www.athletereg.com/">athleteReg
• >", "name": "mega-bicycleretailer-link-accordion", "type": "link"}}' href="https://www.bicycleretailer.com/">Bicycle Retailer & Industry News
• >", "name": "mega-finisherpix-link-accordion", "type": "link"}}' href="https://www.finisherpix.com/">FinisherPix
• >", "name": "mega-idea-link-accordion", "type": "link"}}' href="https://www.ideafit.com/">Idea
• >", "name": "mega-nastar-link-accordion", "type": "link"}}' href="https://www.nastar.com/">NASTAR
• >", "name": "mega-shop-link-accordion", "type": "link"}}' href="https://shop.outsideonline.com/">Outside Shop
• >", "name": "mega-vp-link-accordion", "type": "link"}}' href="https://www.velopress.com/">VeloPress
• >", "name": "mega-veloswap-link-accordion", "type": "link"}}' href="https://www.veloswap.com/">VeloSwap

2-FOR-1 GA TICKETS WITH OUTSIDE+

Don’t miss Thundercat, Fleet Foxes, and more at the Outside Festival.

GET TICKETS

OUTSIDE FESTIVAL JUNE 1-2

Don't miss Thundercat + Fleet Foxes, adventure films, experiences, and more!

Matteo Jorgenson Soloes to Dwars Win, Wout van Aert’s Exit Causes Leadership Void for Flanders, Roubaix

Dwars door vlaanderen: american powers to victory and visma-lease a bike confirms van aert will miss flanders, roubaix, and amstel gold..

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 (Visma-Lease a Bike) soloed to victory Wednesday in a crash-marred Dwars door Vlaanderen just days before the Tour of Flanders .

Flanders favorites Wout van Aert and Mads Pedersen were among the big names who crashed in a nasty pileup with about 60km to go in the midweek classic that left question marks going into this weekend’s Belgian monument.

UPDATE : Visma-Lease a Bike officials confirmed Wednesday that Van Aert will miss both the Tour of Flanders and Amstel Gold Race.

“Unfortunately, Wout van Aert suffered several fractures in the crash at Dwars door Vlaanderen today,” a press note read. “A broken collarbone and several broken ribs were diagnosed in hospital. It is unclear how long his recovery will take. He will definitely miss the Tour of Flanders and Amstel Gold Race.”

A dozen riders went down to split the shattered group, with several top names being forced out of the race and their status unknown ahead of Sunday’s De Ronde.

A dirty dozen stayed clear of the melee to contest for the victory.

Jorgenson pounced with under 8km to go in a tactical masterclass from Visma-Lease a Bike to stake claim another major win in his breakout season.

“It’s unbelievable. This whole season has been unreal,” Jorgenson said. “The whole strategy was to have numbers in the final. I was on Wout’s wheel and it was a decisive moment in the race.

“We came together and it was an ugly fall. I saw the whole thing, and I saw that Wout would be out of the race. Tiesj and me continued with the plan, but my thoughts are with Wout and all the guys involved. I hope everyone is good. My thoughts are with Wout and I really hope he’s OK.”

The win comes on the heels of Jorgenson’s breakout victory at Paris-Nice, which helped him seal a spot in the Olympic Games this summer in Paris.

“After Paris-Nice, I refocused a bit, and now I have the Olympics in the pocket,” he said. “It’s been an insane season, I really cannot believe it.”

Jorgenson, who moved across to Visma-Lease a Bike this season, could suddenly find himself at the center of the team’s ambitions at Flanders on Sunday.

Pileup could have big Flanders implications

The mid-week classic featured a mix of climbs and pavé that served as a final dress rehearsal for Tour of Flanders looming on Sunday.

Long overlooked in the hype between Gent-Wevelgem and Flanders, the repositioned Dwars is now drawing a top field .

One key rider who decided not to race was world champion Mathieu van der Poel (Alpecin-Deceuninck), who might be counting his lucky stars that he opted not to race.

The crash happened about 65 kilometers to go on a descent leading to the Kanarieberg climb. Riders were positioning for the climb on a wide, smooth section of pavement when a cross of wheels sent riders falling like dominoes.

It was uncertain what caused the crash. Some suggested a gust of wind might have provoked the spill, but whatever the reason, the fallout could be disastrous for some of the top Flanders favorites.

Update Wout van Aert: Unfortunately, Wout van Aert suffered several fractures in the crash at Dwars door Vlaanderen today. A broken collarbone and several broken ribs were diagnosed in hospital. It is unclear how long his recovery will take. He will definitely miss the Tour… — Team Visma | Lease a Bike (@vismaleaseabike) March 27, 2024

Flanders favorites Van Aert (Visma-Lease a Bike), Pedersen and Jasper Stuyven (Lidl-Trek), and Intermarché-Wanty’s Girmay were among the riders who went down. Some were immediately transported to a local hospital.

Images caught Van Aert grimacing with heavy cuts and scrapes to his back with his jersey torn open.

Van Aert, Stuyven, Girmay, Harry Sweeny (EF Education-EasyPost), and Michele Gazzoli (Astana Qazaqstan) all exited the race in the immediate aftermath of the crash.

Final fireworks for the win

The riders clear and unbruised up the road contested for the win.

Alberto Bettiol (EF Education-EasyPost) seemed to have a line on victory when he suddenly sat up with about 18km to go. It was unsure if he punctured, suffered some other mechanical, or even was hit by cramps.

Jorgenson and Benoot were still represented for Visma-Lease a Bike in the reduced group that included Stefan Küng (Groupama-FDJ), Josh Tarling (Ineos Grenadiers), Dries De Bondt (Decathlon-Ag2r), and Jonas Abrahamsen (Uno-X Mobility).

“Our plan was to go on the climb, and Wout touched my wheel in the back. I hope he is doing OK. I don’t know anything else,” Benoot said. “I was a bit confused, but Matteo went on the climb, and we played it out with two on the final. Personally I am happy with my feeling, but really disappointed with what happened with Wout.”

With a 90-second lead with 15km to go, the winner was going to come from the leading group.

Benoot jumped first with about 10km to go, giving Jorgenson a free ride as Darling and De Bondt chased. A flurry of attacks saw Tarling lose the wheel, and Jorgenson jumped with 7km to go.

Popular on Velo

>", "path": "https://velo.outsideonline.com/road/road-racing/koppenberg-chaos-sees-tour-of-flanders-come-to-a-standstill-it-felt-like-we-were-doing-cyclocross/", "listing_type": "recirc", "location": "list", "title": "koppenberg chaos grinds tour of flanders to a standstill: ‘it felt like we were doing cyclocross’"}}'> koppenberg chaos grinds tour of flanders to a standstill: ‘it felt like we were doing cyclocross’, >", "path": "https://velo.outsideonline.com/road/road-racing/elisa-longo-borghini-wins-thrilling-three-up-sprint-to-take-womens-tour-of-flanders/", "listing_type": "recirc", "location": "list", "title": "elisa longo borghini wins thrilling three-up sprint to take women’s tour of flanders"}}'> elisa longo borghini wins thrilling three-up sprint to take women’s tour of flanders, >", "path": "https://velo.outsideonline.com/road/road-racing/michael-matthews-relegated-off-tour-of-flanders-podium/", "listing_type": "recirc", "location": "list", "title": "michael matthews relegated off tour of flanders podium in controversial ruling"}}'> michael matthews relegated off tour of flanders podium in controversial ruling, >", "path": "https://velo.outsideonline.com/road/road-racing/without-rival-mathieu-van-der-poel-dominates-tour-of-flanders-with-sensational-solo-victory/", "listing_type": "recirc", "location": "list", "title": "without rival: mathieu van der poel dominates tour of flanders with magnus sheffield in top-10"}}'> without rival: mathieu van der poel dominates tour of flanders with magnus sheffield in top-10, an american in france.

What’s it like to be an American cyclist living in France? Watch to get professional road cyclist Joe Dombrowski’s view.

Related content from the Outside Network

One way south, mountain bikers react to their first taste of non-alcoholic craft beer, video review: bmc urs 01 two gravel bike, kiel reijnen vuelta video diary: the painful decision to abandon.

Who are the North Americans racing in the Tour de France?

Kuss, Woods, Simmons and Powless amongst five US and three Canadian riders in the peloton

The Tour de France has long been the domain of European riders, and the peloton of 176 is still largely made up of riders from across the continent. Eight North American riders will take the start line across six teams at this year’s Tour. They all have Grand Tour experience, and a few have even put their names in the record books or at least earned an asterisk for special efforts. 

While they all share a similarity with the main task at hand for each team - support the team’s GC leader - each is capable of going for glory with a stage victory should an opportunity arise across the three weeks. The last North American to win a stage at the Tour was Hugo Houle (Israel-Premier Tech), who captured an emotional victory in Foix. A North American name is absent from the contenders' list to carry the maillot jaune, per nominations of the veterans by the teams, but anything can happen like Neilson Powless’ (EF Education-EasyPost) near take of the race lead on stage 5 last year.

Three of the US crew will also be in contention for the best young rider classification, but even that remains a tall order since Tadej Pogačar (UAE Team Emirates) has monopolised that distinction for the past three years and remains eligible. Matteo Jorgenson (Movistar) finished fourth in the young rider category last year, and he'll compete against Quinn Simmons (Lidl-Trek) and Kevin Vermaerke (Team dsm-firmenich). The last North American rider to win the white jersey as the best young rider was Tejay van Garderen (BMC Racing Team) in 2012, while Andrew Talansky (Garmin Sharp) finished second the next year.

Cyclingnews profiles the eight North Americans who will be on the start line when the race kicks off in Bilbao, Spain, on Saturday.

Neilson Powless (EF Education-EasyPost)

It will be Tour de France number four for Powless, the first tribally-recognised Native North American to take on the French Grand Tour. The EF Education-EasyPost rider made the break four times during the three weeks and fought for the stage win on two of the most prestigious stage finishes, settling for fourth at Arenberg and L'Alpe d'Huez.

“He rode more kilometres than anyone in the breaks last year, I think, and we hope he takes the next step this year,” team CEO Jonathan Vaughers said about the lone US rider on the US-based squad. 

That next step could be a stage win or even grabbing the yellow jersey on a climbing stage, which he almost accomplished last year. Powless lay four seconds off the yellow jersey at one point on stage 5, but Tadej Pogačar sprinted to the victory and took bonus seconds at the line to keep the 25-year-old at bay. Powless did go on to finish in Paris in 13th on GC, the best result in seven years for any North American. 

Get The Leadout Newsletter

The latest race content, interviews, features, reviews and expert buying guides, direct to your inbox!

“Obviously, if I could win a stage, that would be incredible. That would be my Tour made if that happens, but if we have Richie [Carapaz] or Rigo [Uran] up in GC and we can get someone on the podium, that would be incredible as well,” said Powless, who won the GC at this year’ five-stage Etoile de Bessèges.

Sepp Kuss (Jumbo-Visma)

Hailing from the small city of Durango in the Colorado Rocky mountains is Sepp Kuss, who comes into this year’s Tour having ridden 10 Grand Tours, this being his fourth Tour de France. 

Kuss has proven himself across the highest terrain, capped by a stage 15 win to Andorra la Vella in the 2021 Tour. He kept busy at last year’s Tour, doing mega turns in the Alps and Pyrenees on behalf of Jumbo-Visma teammate and eventual winner Jonas Vingegaard. Through all the battling to help Vingegaard to victory, Kuss found himself finish 18th on the GC.

He’s a top lieutenant now for any climbing day, and this year’s Tour provides a record seventy climbs across the 21 stages, so there’s plenty of opportunities to suffer and succeed. 

Matteo Jorgenson (Movistar Team)

Jorgenson returns with Spanish squad Movistar for his second Tour de France, with the squad set for a hectic start on home soil on the first three stages. Jorgenson emerged as a breakaway staple during the race last year, getting out front three times and finishing in the top five on each stage, including on the Megève summit finish, where he was within 10 seconds away from his first Grand Tour victory.

While his role is still to support GC contender, Enric Mas, Jorgenson has new confidence that could push him onto the podium on a stage, most likely one that showcases his climbing ability. Celebrating his 24th birthday during stage 1 in Bilbao, the rider from Idaho captured his first overall GC title at Tour of Oman in February. He rode a strong Paris-Nice and then finished second overall, plus a best young rider crown, at Tour de Romandie. 

He’s poised to prove himself at this year’s Tour and move up from his 21st overall placing in 2022.

Quinn Simmons (Lidl-Trek)

Another rider from the small town of Durango is Quinn Simmons, the new US Pro road race national champion who loves to be aggressive. In his first Tour in 2022, he charged ahead in five different stage breaks during the race, getting up the road five times, and by stage 19, he was rewarded as the most combative rider. While Colorado rider did not get on the podium, he helped teammate Mads Pedersen to a breakaway victory on stage 13, a rolling day in the Alps from Bourg d’Oisans to Saint-Etienne, Trek-Segafredo’s only victory in the Tour that year.

Wearing his new Lidl-Trek kit with the blue and white US stars on the shoulders and red stripes on the lower chest, Simmons will support team GC leader Mattias Skjelmose and look to create sparks on climbing days and any opportunities from a breakaway. He demonstrated his ability to climb at his first Grand Tour in 2021, taking third on stage 19 at the Vuelta. 

Kevin Vermaerke (Team dsm-firmenich)

When Team dsm-firmenich takes the start at the Grand Départ in Bilbao, US rider Kevin Vermaerke will return for his second Tour de France in support of Frenchman Romain Bardet. 

Vermaerke, just 22 years old, was named to the team as one of three riders who can pound out the kilometres across the mountainous terrain spread across all three weeks, and improve Bardet’s 2022 finish from sixth overall. If anything, Vermaerke would like to make it to Paris for his second Tour, as he crashed hard on stage 8 last year and had to abandon with a broken left collarbone.

The young California climber is in his fourth season at the WorldTour level and looking for his first big win at the top level. This season he has helped Bardet to a fifth-place GC finish at Tour de Suisse and seventh overall at Paris-Nice.

Lawson Craddock (Jayco-AlUla)

The 31-year-old Texan made his Grand Tour debut in the 2014 Vuelta a España in his first year on the WorldTour level riding for Giant-Shimano, and two years later arrived at the Tour de France. It was at the Vuelta in 2021 and 2022 that he carried the stars-and-stripes jersey to a pair of top 10 stage finishes as US Pro time trial national champion.

While there is just one time trial at this year’s Tour on stage 16, Craddock has proven his versatility in stage racing over the past 12 seasons. He had a podium on stage 11 at the 2019 Vuelta and a fifth on a rolling course into Bilbao on stage 5 last year. Jayco AlUla will count on Craddock to support Simon Yates when the road begins to climb, be it in the opening, familiar terrain of the Basque Country or in the final week in the Alps.

Michael Woods (Israel-Premier Tech)

Michael Woods has already shown great form in France this season, winning La Route d’Occitanie for a second time. He also confirmed he is still one of the top climbers in the peloton with a second place at CIC-Mont Ventoux. 

The veteran Canadian on the team, now 36, helped Houle to his stage 16 victory at the Tour last year and finished on the podium in third after having struggled through the early part of the Tour following a crash. He lines up for his fourth Tour as a co-leader on Israel-Premier Tech alongside Dylan Teuns. 

“I’m really excited for this year’s Tour de France. The course suits me quite well, especially the opening stages in the Basque Country. This is an area I’ve had a lot of success in, with my two Vuelta a España stage wins both taking place there. I really enjoy racing in this area,” Woods said, saying his ambition was to win a stage, which would be his first at the Tour de France.

Hugo Houle (Israel-Premier Tech)

Hugo Houle became a Canadian rock star at last year’s Tour de France, riding to a solo victory on stage 16 and becoming the first Canadian to win a Tour stage since Steve Bauer’s monumental ride in 1988. He also was part of a three-rider breakaway on stage 13 and finished on the podium, third in the sprint to Saint-Etienne. When he arrived in Paris, he was 24th overall.

Israel-Premier Tech came away with two stage wins last year in the Tour, the second notched on stage 5 across the Arenberg cobbles by Simon Clarke. The team has said it looks for stage wins again this year, and a versatile rider like Houle has chances on any undulating terrain. LIke Woods, Houle is a veteran at 32 years of age and rides to support his compatriot in any GC hopes. 

Guillaume Boivin (Israel-Premier Tech)

Guillaume Boivin brings a fast finish for his third consecutive appearance in the French Grand Tour. The 34-year-old from Montreal will primarily serve as a lead-out for New Zealand sprinter Corbin Strong, who makes his Grand Tour debut. However, Boivin, now in his 14th season, is very capable of fighting for a stage win himself.

Thank you for reading 5 articles in the past 30 days*

Join now for unlimited access

Enjoy your first month for just £1 / $1 / €1

*Read any 5 articles for free in each 30-day period, this automatically resets

After your trial you will be billed £4.99 $7.99 €5.99 per month, cancel anytime. Or sign up for one year for just £49 $79 €59

Try your first month for just £1 / $1 / €1

Jackie has been involved in professional sports for more than 30 years in news reporting, sports marketing and public relations. She founded Peloton Sports in 1998, a sports marketing and public relations agency, which managed projects for Tour de Georgia, Larry H. Miller Tour of Utah and USA Cycling. She also founded Bike Alpharetta Inc, a Georgia non-profit to promote safe cycling. She is proud to have worked in professional baseball for six years - from selling advertising to pulling the tarp for several minor league teams. She has climbed l'Alpe d'Huez three times (not fast). Her favorite road and gravel rides are around horse farms in north Georgia (USA) and around lavender fields in Provence (France), and some mtb rides in Park City, Utah (USA).

High stakes all around: Why the 2024 Itzulia Basque Country matters to Vingegaard, Roglic and Evenepoel

Mathieu van der Poel in a world of his own ahead of Tour of Flanders

Cancellara’s Classics column: Attack might be Mathieu van der Poel’s best form of defence in chaotic Tour of Flanders

Most Popular

By Fabian Cancellara March 25, 2024

By Barry Ryan March 23, 2024

By Fabian Cancellara March 23, 2024

By Kirsten Frattini March 23, 2024

By Alasdair Fotheringham March 23, 2024

By Paul Norman March 22, 2024

By Josh Ross March 21, 2024

By Barry Ryan, Alasdair Fotheringham March 20, 2024

By Barry Ryan March 19, 2024

By Dan Challis March 18, 2024

By Stephen Farrand March 17, 2024

This copy is for your personal, non-commercial use only. To order presentation-ready copies for distribution to your colleagues, clients or customers visit http://www.djreprints.com.

https://www.barrons.com/news/danielle-collins-beats-elena-rybakina-to-win-miami-open-23c9b946

• FROM AFP NEWS

Collins Beats Rybakina To Win Miami Open

• Order Reprints
• Print Article

ADDS quotes

American Danielle Collins upset the odds to win the Miami Open title on Saturday, beating Elena Rybakina of Kazakhstan 7-5, 6-3 to claim her first WTA 1000 title in her final season on the tour.

The 30-year-old Collins, number 53 in the world, is the lowest-ranked woman ever to win the tournament, clinching her biggest career title in a two-hour triumph.

Collins announced in January that she will be retiring from the sport at the end of this year and her unexpected run to the final and victory over the world number four delighted the home crowd.

"I couldn't think of a better way to win my first 1000 title. It means the world to me," Collins said.

"The encouragement and support that I got, it was hard to hide the emotion because I think these are the moments that we live for and we don't always get to have them. It was really special," she said.

While she insists that her recent run of form won't lead her to reconsider her departure from the sport, Collins will rise to 22 in Monday's WTA rankings.

It was a disappointing second straight loss in a Miami final for Rybakina, who missed out to Petra Kvitova last year.

Both players looked strong on their serve in the early exchanges but Floridan Collins had to work hardest to hold her serve.

She saved four break points as she hung on for 4-3 and showed resistance again to deny a break point at 5-5 with a brilliant backhand winner after a long rally.

Collins broke at the end of the first set, capitalizing on a third break point to win the set when Rybakina went long.

Then the momentum shifted heavily in Collins's direction when she broke Rybakina's first service game of the second set.

The 24-year-old Rybakina, the 2022 Wimbledon champion, responded, breaking back at the first opportunity.

Neither player was able to truly dominate, but Collins struck the decisive blow when she broke to go 5-3 up as Rybakina at full stretch on the baseline went long.

The American had not defeated a top five player since a win over then world number two Paula Badosa at San Diego in October of 2022.

Perhaps it was inevitable then that Collins showed nerves at the end as she struggled to serve out, denying two break points and finally clinching on her fourth championship point.

"It's hard," Collins said. "You've got the crowd supporting you and pushing you to close it out and they wanted me to win so bad. It was like playing in front of my best friends and I didn't want to let the crowd down and it was tough.

"Elena does not give up and she just kept slinging those shots right and left, I just had to hang in there."

Rybakina had missed out on Indian Wells due to a gastrointestinal illness and said that with four of her five matches in Miami en route to the final having gone to three sets, she was not in peak condition.

"I was feeling the body, of course. Also, it was not easy tournament, because the first matches I was playing quite late, finishing, and then I was going to sleep around 2:00, 3:00. Then some matches were during the day. So the schedule was also up and down, and recovery, it doesn't help, for sure," she said.

"I had a lot of tough matches. Some of them went my way with a bit of luck here and there. This one didn't, and of course I was not expecting to be fresh in this final, and she played really well," she added.

Collins becomes the first American woman to take home the Miami Open title since Sloane Stephens in 2018 and the sixth overall, also joining Martina Navratilova, Chris Evert, three-time champion Venus Williams and eight-time champion Serena Williams.

The previous lowest-ranked women's champion was Kim Clijsters, who was ranked 38th when she won the title in 2005.

An error has occurred, please try again later.

This article has been sent to

• Cryptocurrencies
• Stock Picks
• Barron's Live
• Barron's Stock Screen
• Personal Finance
• Advisor Directory

Memberships

• Subscribe to Barron's
• Saved Articles
• Newsletters
• Video Center

Customer Service

• Customer Center
• The Wall Street Journal
• MarketWatch
• Investor's Business Daily
• Mansion Global
• Financial News London

For Business

• Corporate Subscriptions

For Education

• Investing in Education

For Advertisers

• Press & Media Inquiries
• Advertising
• Subscriber Benefits
• Manage Notifications
• Manage Alerts

About Barron's

• Live Events

Copyright ©2024 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved

This copy is for your personal, non-commercial use only. Distribution and use of this material are governed by our Subscriber Agreement and by copyright law. For non-personal use or to order multiple copies, please contact Dow Jones Reprints at 1-800-843-0008 or visit www.djreprints.com.

For more audio journalism and storytelling, download New York Times Audio , a new iOS app available for news subscribers.

Hamas Took Her, and Still Has Her Husband

The story of one family at the center of the war in gaza..

This transcript was created using speech recognition software. While it has been reviewed by human transcribers, it may contain errors. Please review the episode audio before quoting from this transcript and email [email protected] with any questions.

I can’t remember the word, but do you know the kind of fungi connection between trees in the forest? How do you call it?

Mycelium. We are just — I just somehow feel that we are connected by this kind of infinite web of mycelium. We are so bound together. And I don’t think we really realized that until all this happened.

[MUSIC PLAYING]

It’s quite hard to explain, to me in a sense, because some people would say, oh, I’m so hoping your father will come, and then everything will be OK. And it’s very hard to explain that really this group of people decided to bring us up together, shared all their resources over 75 years, grow into each other, fight endlessly with each other, love and hate each other but somehow stay together. And their children will then meet and marry and make grandchildren.

And there’s so many levels of connection. And I’m sitting here in the room, and I see their faces, some of them. And we are incredibly — it’s hard to explain how much these people are missing from our kind of forest ground. [CHUCKLES SOFTLY]

From “The New York Times,” I’m Sabrina Tavernise, and this is “The Daily.”

It’s been nearly six months since Hamas attacked Israel on October 7 and took more than 200 people into Gaza. One of the hardest hit places was a village called Nir Oz, near the border with Gaza. One quarter of its residents were either killed or taken hostage.

Yocheved Lifshitz was one of those hostages and so was her husband, Oded Lifshitz. Yocheved was eventually released. Oded was not.

Today, the story of one family at the center of the war.

It’s Friday, March 29.

OK, here we go. OK.

Good morning, Yocheved. Good morning, Sharone.

Good morning.

Yocheved, could you identify yourself for me, please? Tell me your name, your age and where you’re from.

[SPEAKING HEBREW]

OK, I’ll translate. My name is Yocheved Lifshitz. I’m 85 years old. I was born in 1938. When I was 18, I arrived at kibbutz Nir Oz. I came alone with a group of people who decided to come and form and build a community on a very sandy territory, which was close to the Gaza Strip.

And my name is Sharone Lifschitz. I am 52 years old. I was raised in kibbutz Nir Oz by my mom and dad. So I lived there until I was 20. And I live for the last 30-something years in London.

And, Sharone, what do you have next to you?

Next to me I have a poster of my dad in both English and Hebrew. And it says, “Oded Lifshitz, 83.” And below that it says, “Bring him home now.” And it’s a photo where I always feel the love because he is looking at me. And there’s a lot of love in it in his eyes.

And why did you want to bring him here today, Sharone?

Because he should be talking himself. He should be here and able to tell his story. And instead, I’m doing it on his behalf. It should have been a story of my mom and dad sitting here and telling their story.

The story of Oded and Yocheved began before they ever met in Poland in the 1930s. Anti-Semitism was surging in Europe, and their families decided to flee to Palestine — Yocheved’s in 1933, the year Hitler came to power, and Oded’s a year later. Yocheved remembers a time near the end of the war, when her father received news from back home in Poland. He was deeply religious, a cantor in a synagogue. And he gathered his family around him to share what he’d learned.

And he said, we don’t have a family anymore. They’ve all been murdered. And he explained to us why there is no God. If there was a God, he would have protected my family. And this means that there is no God.

And suddenly, we stopped going to synagogue. We used to go every Saturday.

So it was a deep crisis for him. The shock and the trauma were very deep.

Abstention.

Abstention. Soviet Union? Yes. Yes. The United Kingdom? Abstained.

Yocheved’s father lived long enough to see a state establish for his children. The UN resolution of 1947 paved the way for a new country for Jews. And the next spring, Israel declared its independence. Yocheved remembers listening to the news on the radio with her parents.

The General Assembly of the United Nations has made its decision on Palestine.

We had a country. So now we’ll have somebody who’s protecting us. It’s a country for the people, to rebuild the people. This was the feeling we had.

In other words, if God could not protect you, this nation maybe could?

Yes. But the next day, it was already sad.

Israel was immediately forced to defend itself when its Arab neighbors attacked. Israel won that war. But its victory came at a great cost to the Palestinian Arabs living there. More than 700,000 either fled or were expelled from their homes. Many became refugees in Gaza in the south.

Suddenly, Yocheved and Oded saw themselves differently from their parents, not as minorities in someone else’s country, but as pioneers in a country of their own, ready to build it and defend it. They moved to the south, near the border line with Gaza. It was there, in a kibbutz, where they met for the first time.

The first time I met him, he was 16, and I was 17. And we didn’t really have this connection happening. But when we arrived at Nir Oz, that’s where some sort of a connection started to happen. And he was younger than I am by a year and a half. So at first I thought, he’s a kid. But for some reason, he insisted. Oded really insisted. And later, turned out he was right.

What was it about him that made you fall in love with him?

He was cute.

He was a cute kid. He was a cute boy.

What’s so funny?

He was a philosopher. He wrote a lot. He worked in agriculture. He was this cute boy. He was only 20, think about it.

And then I married him. And he brought two things with him. He brought a dog and he brought a cactus. And since then we’ve been growing a huge field of cacti for over 64 years.

What did it feel like to be starting a new life together in this new country? What was the feeling of that?

We were euphoric.

And what did you think you were building together?

We thought we were building a kibbutz. We were building a family. We were having babies. That was the vision. And we were thinking that we were building a socialist state, an equal state. And at first, it was a very isolated place. There were only two houses and shacks and a lot of sand. And little by little, we turned that place into a heaven.

Building the new state meant cultivating the land. Oded plowed the fields, planting potatoes and carrots, wheat and cotton. Yocheved was in charge of the turkeys and worked in the kitchen cooking meals for the kibbutz. They believed that the best way to live was communally. So they shared everything — money, food, even child-rearing.

After long days in the fields, Oded would venture outside the kibbutz to the boundary line with Gaza and drink beer with Brazilian peacekeepers from the UN and talk with Palestinians from the villages nearby. They talked about politics and life in Arabic, a language Oded spoke fluently. These were not just idle conversations. Oded knew that for Israel to succeed, it would have to figure out how to live side by side with its Arab neighbors.

He really did not believe in black and white, that somebody is the bad guy and somebody is the good guy, but there is a humanistic values that you can live in.

Sharone, what was your father like?

My father was a tall man and a skinny man. And he was —

he is — first of all, he is — he is a man who had very strong opinion and very well formed opinion. He read extensively. He thought deeply about matters. And he studied the piano. But as he said, was never that great or fast enough for classical. But he always played the piano.

[PIANO MUSIC]

He would play a lot of Israeli songs. He wound play Russian songs. He would play French chansons.

And he had this way of just moving from one song to the next, making it into a kind of pattern. And it was — it’s really the soundtrack of our life, my father playing the piano.

[PLAYING PIANO]:

[CONVERSATION IN HEBREW]:

[PLAYING PIANO]

So one side of him was the piano. Another side was he was a peace activist. He was not somebody who just had ideals about building bridges between nations. He was always on the left side of the political map, and he actioned it.

[NON-ENGLISH CHANTING]:

I remember growing up and going very regularly, almost weekly, to demonstrations. I will go regularly with my father on Saturday night to demonstrations in Tel Aviv. I will sit on his shoulders. He will be talking to all his activist friends. The smoke will rise from the cigarettes, and I will sit up there.

But somehow, we really grew up in that fight for peace.

Yocheved and Oded’s formal fight for peace began after the Arab-Israeli war of 1967. Israel had captured new territory, including the West Bank, the Sinai Peninsula, and the Gaza Strip. That brought more than a million Palestinians under Israeli occupation.

Oded immediately began to speak against it. Israel already had its land inside borders that much of the world had agreed to. In his view, taking more was wrong. It was no longer about Jewish survival. So when Israeli authorities began quietly pushing Bedouin Arabs off their land in the Sinai Peninsula, Oded took up the cause.

He helped file a case in the Israeli courts to try to stop it. And he and Yocheved worked together to draw attention to what was going on. Yocheved was a photographer, so she took pictures showing destroyed buildings and bulldozed land. Oded then put her photographs on cardboard and drove around the country showing them to people everywhere.

They became part of a growing peace movement that was becoming a force helping shape Israeli politics. Israel eventually returned the Sinai Peninsula to Egypt in 1982.

[NON-ENGLISH SPEECH]

Whenever there is a movement towards reconciliation with our neighbors, it’s almost like your ability to live here, your life force, gets stronger. And in a way, you can think of the art of their activism as being a response to that.

And why did he and your mother take up that fight, the cause of the land? Why do you think that was what he fought for?

My father, he had a very developed sense of justice. And he always felt that had we returned those lands at that point, we could have reached long-term agreement at that point. Then we would have been in a very different space now. I know that in 2019, for example, he wrote a column, where he said that when the Palestinians of Gaza have nothing to lose, we lose big time. He believed that the way of living in this part of the world is to share the place, to reach agreement, to work with the other side towards agreements.

He was not somebody who just had ideals about building bridges between nations. Two weeks before he was taken hostage, he still drove Palestinians that are ill to reach hospital in Israel and in East Jerusalem. That was something that meant a lot to him. I think he really believed in shared humanity and in doing what you can.

Do you remember the last conversation you had with your father?

I don’t have a clear memory which one it was. It’s funny. A lot of things I forgot since. A lot of things have gone so blurred.

We actually didn’t have a last conversation. The last thing he said was, Yoche, there is a war. And he was shot in the hand, and he was taken out. And I was taken out. I couldn’t say goodbye to him. And what was done to us was done.

We’ll be right back.

Yocheved, the last thing Oded said was there’s a war. Tell me about what happened that day from the beginning.

That morning, there was very heavy shelling on Nir Oz. We could hear gunfire. And we looked outside, and Oded told me, there are a lot of terrorists outside. We didn’t even have time to get dressed. I was still wearing my nightgown. He was wearing very few clothes. I remember him trying to close the door to the safe room, but it didn’t work. He wasn’t successful in closing it.

And then five terrorists walked in. They shot him through the safe room door. He was bleeding from his arm. He said to me, Yoche, I’m injured. And then he fainted. He was dragged out on the floor. And I didn’t know if he was alive. I thought he was dead. After that, I was taken in my nightgown. I was led outside. I was placed on a small moped, and I was taken to Gaza.

And we were driving over a bumpy terrain that had been plowed. And it didn’t break my ribs, but it was very painful.

And I could see that the gate that surrounds the Gaza Strip was broken, and we were driving right through it.

And as we were heading in, I could see so many people they were yelling, “Yitbach al Yahud,” kill the Jews, slaughter the Jews. And people were hitting me with sticks. And though the drivers on the moped tried to protect me, it didn’t help.

What were you thinking at the time? What was in your mind?

I was thinking, I’m being taken; I’m being kidnapped. I didn’t know where to, but this decision I had in my head was that I’m going to take photographs in my mind and capture everything I’m seeing so that when I — or if and when I am released, I’ll have what to tell.

And when I came to a stop, we were in a village that’s near Nir Oz. It’s called Khirbet Khuza. We came in on the moped, but I was transferred into a private car from there. And I was threatened that my hand would be cut off unless I hand over my watch and my ring. And I didn’t have a choice, so I took my watch off, and I took my ring off, and I handed it to them.

Was it your wedding ring?

Yes, it was my wedding ring.

After that, they led me to a big hangar where the entrance to the tunnel was, and I started walking. And the entrance was at ground level, but as you walk, you’re walking down a slope. And you’re walking and walking about 40 meters deep underground, and the walls are damp, and the soil is damp. And at first, I was alone. I didn’t know that other people had been taken too. But then more hostages came, and we were walking together through the tunnels.

Many of whom were from kibbutz Nir Oz. These were our people. They were abducted but still alive. And we spoke quietly, and we spoke very little. But as we were walking, everybody started telling a story of what had happened to him. And that created a very painful picture.

There were appalling stories about murder. People had left behind a partner.

A friend arrived, who, about an hour or two hours before, had her husband murdered and he died in her hands.

It was a collection of broken up people brought together.

So you were piecing together the story of your community and what had happened from these snapshots of tragedies that you were looking at all around you as you were walking. What’s the photograph you’ll remember most from that day?

It would be a girl, a four-year-old girl. People kept telling her — walk, walk, walk. And we tried to calm her down. And her mom tried to carry her on her arms. It was the most difficult sight to see a child inside those tunnels.

What were you feeling at that moment, Yocheved?

Very difficult.

Where did they lead you — you and your community — from Nir Oz.

They led us to this chamber, a room, that they had prepared in advance. There were mattresses there. And that’s where we were told to sit.

I saw people sitting on the mattresses, bent down, their heads down between their hands. They were broken. But we hardly spoke. Everybody was inside their own world with themselves, closed inside his own personal shock.

Yocheved was without her glasses, her hearing aids, or even her shoes. She said she spent most days lying down on one of the mattresses that had been put out for the hostages. Sometimes her captors would let her and others walk up and down the tunnels to stretch their legs.

She said she was given a cucumber, spreading cheese, and a piece of pita bread every day to eat. They had a little bit of coffee in the morning and water all day long.

One day, a Hamas leader came to the room where she and others were being held. She said she believes it was Yahya Sinwar, the leader of Hamas, who is believed to be the architect of the October 7 attack. Two other hostages who were held with Yocheved also identified the man as Sinwar, and an Israeli military spokesman said he found the accounts reliable.

He came accompanied with a group of other men. He just made rounds between the hostages, I suppose. And he spoke in Hebrew, and he told us not to worry, and soon there’s going to be a deal and we’ll be out. And others told me, don’t speak. And I said, what is there for me to be afraid of? The worst already happened. Worst thing, I’ll be killed.

I want to say something, and I spoke my mind. I told Sinwar, why have you done what you just did to all of the same people who have always helped you? He didn’t answer me. He just turned around and they walked off.

Were you afraid to ask him why Hamas did what it did, to challenge him?

I wasn’t afraid.

I was angry about the whole situation. It was against every thought and thinking we ever had. It was against our desire to reach peace, to be attentive and help our neighbors the way we always wanted to help our neighbors. I was very angry. But he ignored what I said, and he just turned his back and walked away.

In this entire time, you had no answers about Oded?

What was the hardest day for you, the hardest moment in captivity?

It’s when I got sick. I got sick with diarrhea and vomiting for about four days. And I had no idea how this will end. It was a few very rough days. And probably because of that, they decided to free me.

They didn’t tell me they were going to release me. They just told me and another girl, come follow us. They gave us galabiya gowns to wear and scarves to wear over our heads, so maybe they’ll think that we are Arab women. And only as we were walking, and we started going through corridors and ladders and climbing up we were told that we’re going home.

I was very happy to be going out. But my heart ached so hard for those who were staying behind. I was hoping that many others would follow me.

It’s OK. Let’s go. It’s OK. Let’s go.

You go with this one.

Shalom. Shalom.

There was a video that was made of the moment you left your captors. And it seemed to show that you were shaking a hand, saying shalom to them. Do you remember doing that?

I said goodbye to him. It was a friendly man. He was a medic. So when we said goodbye, I shook his hand for peace, shalom, to goodbye.

What did you mean when you said that?

I meant for peace.

Shalom in the sense of peace.

An extraordinary moment as a freed Israeli hostage shakes hands with a Hamas terrorist who held her captive.

I literally saw my mom on CNN on my phone on the way to the airport. And it was the day before I was talking to my aunt, and she said, I just want to go to Gaza and pull them out of the earth. I just want to pull them out of the earth and take them. And it really felt like that, that she came out of the earth. And when she shook the hand of the Hamas person, it just made me smile because it was so her to see the human in that person and to acknowledge him as a human being.

I arrived in the hospital at about 5:30 AM. My mom was asleep in the bed. And she was just — my mom sleeps really peacefully. She has a really quiet way of sleeping. And I just sat there, and it was just like a miracle to have her back with us. It was just incredible because not only was she back, but it was her.

I don’t know how to explain it. But while they were away, we knew so little. We were pretty sure she didn’t survive it. The whole house burned down totally. So other homes we could see if there was blood on the walls or blood on the floor. But in my parents’ home, everything was gone — everything. And we just didn’t know anything. And out of that nothingness, came my mom back.

It was only when she got to the hospital that Yocheved learned the full story of what happened on October 7. Nir Oz had been mostly destroyed. Many of her friends had been murdered. No one knew what had happened to Oded. Yocheved believed he was dead. But there wasn’t time to grieve.

The photograph she had taken in her mind needed to be shared. Yocheved knew who was still alive in the tunnels. So she and her son called as many families as they could — the family of the kibbutz’s history teacher, of one of its nurses, of the person who ran its art gallery — to tell them that they were still alive, captive in Gaza.

And then in November came a hostage release. More than 100 people came out. The family was certain that Oded was gone. But Sharone decided to make some calls anyway. She spoke to one former neighbor then another. And finally, almost by chance, she found someone who’d seen her father. They shared a room together in Gaza before he’d gotten ill and was taken away. Sharone and her brothers went to where Yocheved was staying to tell her the news.

She just couldn’t believe it, actually. It was as if, in this great telenovela of our life, at one season, he was left unconscious on the floor. And the second season open, and he is in a little room in Gaza with another woman that we know. She couldn’t believe it.

She was very, very, very excited, also really worried. My father was a very active and strong man. And if it happened 10 years ago, I would say of course he would survive it. He would talk to them in Arabic. He will manage the situation. He would have agency. But we know he was injured. And it makes us very, very worried about the condition in which he was — he’s surviving there. And I think that the fear of how much suffering the hostages are going through really makes you unable to function at moment.

Yocheved, the government has been doing a military operation since October in Gaza. You have been fighting very hard since October to free the hostages, including Oded. I wonder how you see the government’s military operation. Is it something that harms your cause or potentially helps it?

The only thing that will bring them back are agreements. And what is happening is that there are many soldiers who have been killed, and there is an ongoing war, and the hostages are still in captivity. So it’s only by reaching an agreement that all of the hostages will be released.

Do you believe that Israel is close to reaching an agreement?

I don’t know.

You told us that after the Holocaust, your father gathered your family together to tell you that God did not save you. It was a crisis for him. I’m wondering if this experience, October 7, your captivity, challenged your faith in a similar way.

No, I don’t think it changed me. I’m still the same person with the same beliefs and opinions. But how should I say it? What the Hamas did was to ruin a certain belief in human beings. I didn’t think that one could reach that level that isn’t that much higher than a beast. But my opinion and my view of there still being peace and reaching an arrangement stayed the same.

You still believe in peace?

Why do you believe that?

Because I’m hoping that a new generation of leaders will rise, people who act in transparency, who speak the truth, people who are honest, the way Israel used to be and that we’ll return to be like we once were.

I go to many rallies and demonstrations, and I meet many people in many places. And a large part of those people still believe in reaching an arrangement in peace and for there to be no war. And I still hope that this is what we’re going to be able to have here.

Bring them home now! Bring them home now! Bring them home now! Bring them home now! Bring them home! Now! Bring them home! Now! Bring them home! Now! Bring them home!

Yocheved is now living in a retirement home in the suburbs of Tel Aviv. Five other people around her age from Nir Oz live there too. One is also a released hostage. She hasn’t been able to bring herself to go back to the kibbutz. The life she built there with Oded is gone — her photographs, his records, the piano. And the kibbutz has become something else now, a symbol instead of a home. It is now buzzing with journalists and politicians. For now, Yocheved doesn’t know if she’ll ever go back. And when Sharone asked her, she said, let’s wait for Dad.

So I’m today sitting in this assisted living, surrounded by the same company, just expecting Oded, waiting for Oded to come back. And then each and every one of us will be rebuilding his own life together and renewing it.

What are you doing to make it a home for Oded?

We have a piano. We were given a piano, a very old one with a beautiful sound. And it’s good. Oded is very sensitive to the sound. He has absolute hearing. And I’m just hoping for him to come home and start playing the piano.

Do you believe that Oded will come home?

I’d like to believe. But there’s a difference between believing and wanting. I want to believe that he’ll be back and playing music. I don’t think his opinions are going to change. He’s going to be disappointed by what happened. But I hope he’s going to hold on to the same beliefs. His music is missing from our home.

[SPEAKING HEBEW]:

[SPEAKING HEBREW] [PLAYING PIANO]

I know that my father always felt that we haven’t given peace a chance. That was his opinion. And I think it’s very hard to speak for my father because maybe he has changed. Like my mom said, she said, I hope he hasn’t changed. I haven’t changed. But the truth is we don’t know. And we don’t the story. We don’t know how the story — my father is ending or just beginning.

But I think you have to hold on to humanistic values at this point. You have to know what you don’t want. I don’t want more of this. This is hell. This is hell for everybody. So this is no, you know? And then I believe that peace is also gray, and it’s not glorious, and it’s not simple. It’s kind of a lot of hard work. You have to reconcile and give up a lot. And it’s only worth doing that for peace.

[PIANO PLAYING CONTINUES]

After weeks of negotiations, talks over another hostage release and ceasefire have reached an impasse. The sticking points include the length of the ceasefire and the identity and number of Palestinian prisoners to be exchanged for the hostages.

[BACKGROUND CONVERSATION IN HEBREW]:

Here’s what else you should know today. Sam Bankman-Fried was sentenced to 25 years in prison on Thursday, capping an extraordinary saga that upended the multi-trillion-dollar crypto industry. Bankman-Fried, the founder of the cryptocurrency exchange, FTX, was convicted of wire fraud, conspiracy, and money laundering last November.

Prosecutors accused him of stealing more than $10 billion from customers to finance political contributions, venture capital investments, and other extravagant purchases. At the sentencing, the judge pointed to testimony from Bankman-Fried’s trial, saying that his appetite for extreme risk and failure to take responsibility for his crimes amount to a quote, “risk that this man will be in a position to do something very bad in the future.”

Today’s episode was produced by Lynsea Garrison and Mooj Zaidie with help from Rikki Novetsky and Shannon Lin. It was edited by Michael Benoist, fact checked by Susan Lee, contains original music by Marion Lozano, Dan Powell, Diane Wong, Elisheba Ittoop, and Oded Lifshitz. It was engineered by Alyssa Moxley. The translation was by Gabby Sobelman. Special thanks to Menachem Rosenberg, Gershom Gorenberg, Gabby Sobelman, Yotam Shabtie, and Patrick Kingsley. Our theme music is by Jim Brunberg and Ben Landsverk of Wonderly.

That’s it for “The Daily.” I’m Sabrina Tavernise. See you on Monday.

• April 1, 2024   •   36:14 Ronna McDaniel, TV News and the Trump Problem
• March 29, 2024   •   48:42 Hamas Took Her, and Still Has Her Husband
• March 28, 2024   •   33:40 The Newest Tech Start-Up Billionaire? Donald Trump.
• March 27, 2024   •   28:06 Democrats’ Plan to Save the Republican House Speaker
• March 26, 2024   •   29:13 The United States vs. the iPhone
• March 25, 2024   •   25:59 A Terrorist Attack in Russia
• March 24, 2024   •   21:39 The Sunday Read: ‘My Goldendoodle Spent a Week at Some Luxury Dog ‘Hotels.’ I Tagged Along.’
• March 22, 2024   •   35:30 Chuck Schumer on His Campaign to Oust Israel’s Leader
• March 21, 2024   •   27:18 The Caitlin Clark Phenomenon
• March 20, 2024   •   25:58 The Bombshell Case That Will Transform the Housing Market
• March 19, 2024   •   27:29 Trump’s Plan to Take Away Biden’s Biggest Advantage
• March 18, 2024   •   23:18 Your Car May Be Spying on You
• Share full article

Hosted by Sabrina Tavernise

Produced by Lynsea Garrison and Mooj Zadie

With Rikki Novetsky and Shannon Lin

Edited by Michael Benoist

Original music by Marion Lozano ,  Dan Powell ,  Diane Wong and Elisheba Ittoop

Engineered by Alyssa Moxley

Listen and follow The Daily Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Amazon Music

Warning: this episode contains descriptions of violence.

It’s been nearly six months since the Hamas-led attacks on Israel, when militants took more than 200 hostages into Gaza.

In a village called Nir Oz, near the border, one quarter of residents were either killed or taken hostage. Yocheved Lifshitz and her husband, Oded Lifshitz, were among those taken.

Today, Yocheved and her daughter Sharone tell their story.

On today’s episode

Yocheved Lifshitz, a former hostage.

Sharone Lifschitz, daughter of Yocheved and Oded Lifshitz.

Background reading

Yocheved Lifshitz was beaten and held in tunnels built by Hamas for 17 days.

There are a lot of ways to listen to The Daily. Here’s how.

We aim to make transcripts available the next workday after an episode’s publication. You can find them at the top of the page.

Fact-checking by Susan Lee .

Additional music by Oded Lifshitz.

Translations by Gabby Sobelman .

Special thanks to Menachem Rosenberg, Gershom Gorenberg , Gabby Sobelman , Yotam Shabtie, and Patrick Kingsley .

The Daily is made by Rachel Quester, Lynsea Garrison, Clare Toeniskoetter, Paige Cowett, Michael Simon Johnson, Brad Fisher, Chris Wood, Jessica Cheung, Stella Tan, Alexandra Leigh Young, Lisa Chow, Eric Krupke, Marc Georges, Luke Vander Ploeg, M.J. Davis Lin, Dan Powell, Sydney Harper, Mike Benoist, Liz O. Baylen, Asthaa Chaturvedi, Rachelle Bonja, Diana Nguyen, Marion Lozano, Corey Schreppel, Rob Szypko, Elisheba Ittoop, Mooj Zadie, Patricia Willens, Rowan Niemisto, Jody Becker, Rikki Novetsky, John Ketchum, Nina Feldman, Will Reid, Carlos Prieto, Ben Calhoun, Susan Lee, Lexie Diao, Mary Wilson, Alex Stern, Dan Farrell, Sophia Lanman, Shannon Lin, Diane Wong, Devon Taylor, Alyssa Moxley, Summer Thomad, Olivia Natt, Daniel Ramirez and Brendan Klinkenberg.

Our theme music is by Jim Brunberg and Ben Landsverk of Wonderly. Special thanks to Sam Dolnick, Paula Szuchman, Lisa Tobin, Larissa Anderson, Julia Simon, Sofia Milan, Mahima Chablani, Elizabeth Davis-Moorer, Jeffrey Miranda, Renan Borelli, Maddy Masiello, Isabella Anderson and Nina Lassam.

Advertisement