top 10 tour de france 2021

Rating the 2021 Tour de France top 10

From Uran to Pogacar, we assess the performances of this year's best GC riders

The  2021 Tour de France  was wrapped up in Paris on Sunday, with  Tadej Pogačar (UAE Team Emirates) topping the overall standings with his second victory in as many years. 

His victory seemed ingrained since the very first week, and similarly the podium ended up being a very clear-cut affair, with debutant Jonas Vingegaard (Jumbo-Visma) and Richard Carapaz (Ineos Grenadiers) the only riders able to get near the yellow jersey in the Pyrenees. 

Filling out the rest of the top 10 were a couple of surprise packages, a couple of consistent performances, and a couple of disappointments. Cyclingnews  takes a look at where the 2021 Tour de France leaves its top-10 finishers, and what now lies ahead.

10. Rigoberto Urán (EF Education-Nippo)

Age: 34 

Highlight: Two top 10s, 10th overall, and a couple of decent attacks in the first half of the race. 

Tour report: 10th in the Tour de France is nothing to be sniffed at, and half the squads in this year’s race would have taken that result had it been offered to them at the Grand Départ in Brest, but this wasn’t what EF or Urán would have settled for heading into the Pyrenees.

On the face of it, this was another impressive ride from the talismanic Colombian but it comes with caveats because, for the second year running, the wheels fell off the Urán bus in the second half of the race, and for the second straight year the veteran faded when it mattered most. There’s only so long the American team can consider Urán as a genuine Grand Tour leader, and certainly one worth divesting their complete efforts into.

Get The Leadout Newsletter

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

At 34, Urán is far from a finished athlete – he could do this all again next year – but it’s time for EF to also consider when to bring Hugh Carthy back to the Tour and where their next generation of GC candidacy is going to come from.

Best non-Tour results of 2021: The stage win and second place in the Tour de Suisse was a timely reminder of Urán’s undoubted class and how far he’s come since his injuries of 2019.

Tour 2022? It really depends on the route. If the ASO sticks three time trials in the parcours then Carthy heads back to the Giro and Urán, along with the rest of the team, can hit the Tour looking for stage wins.

9. Pello Bilbao (Bahrain Victorious)

Highlight: A top 10 on the Col du Portet.

Tour report: Bilbao was one of many riders in the top 10 who was almost anonymous in the GC battle. Sure, he followed in the mountains, but the top three – and certainly Pogačar – were so dominant that many riders including Bilbao were effectively riding a different race.

This was still a commendable result for the former Astana rider who moved into a GC position once Jack Haig left the race in an ambulance. He was dogged in the mountains, turned out a couple of average time trials but paced himself when the road went uphill. The fact that he’s raced four Grand Tours since last August and been in the top 20 in each of them is a more impressive stat than his ninth in Paris.

It must be mentioned that Bilbao’s hotel room – along with those of all of his teammates – were searched by 50 police officers in Pau, and that, while nothing was found, the team have been placed under a preliminary investigation for doping. The team deny all wrongdoing.

Best non-Tour results: Won a stage in the Tour of the Alps.

Tour 2022? Several key climbers are out of contract at Bahrain Victorious but, with no major signings on the horizon, Bilbao may have done enough to secure himself a leadership role in one of the three Grand Tours. That’s unlikely to be the Tour de France but it’s not impossible to imagine him in a free role at the Giro or Vuelta and asked to ride support in July.

8. Guillaume Martin (Cofidis)

Highlight: A couple of top 10s and the ability to flip his focus to the GC halfway through the race.

Tour report: Martin came into the Tour de France aiming for stage wins and with little to no determination to target the GC. That appeared to be a sound approach given his somewhat underwhelming ride in the Critérium du Dauphiné but, two days in the breaks during the opening half of the race propelled him into the top 10 before the road to Quillan catapulted him from ninth to second overall.

That sort of a head-start ahead of the final week ensured that Martin’s approach changed and, although he dropped to ninth before rising to eighth again, this was a best-ever finish by the Frenchman.

Best non-Tour results: He won the Classic Alpes-Maritimes in May and also picked up sixth in Paris-Nice.

Tour 2022? Even though the route isn’t out until October, there’s little chance of Martin targeting the GC in another Grand Tour unless he takes on the Vuelta after the Tour and looks to hold form into the second half of the year. France’s top finisher will be back at the Tour next year.

7. Alexey Lutsenko (Astana-PremierTech)

Highlight: Lutsenko was never lower than 14th overall in the race, which demonstrates his consistency.

Tour report: With Jakob Fuglsang having an off Tour and the rest of the team threatening but never quite making a lasting impression, it was down to Lutsenko to fly the flag for a squad that, minus a clutch of national championships, has been devoid of regular wins and inspiration.

It wasn’t spectacular or pretty; Lutsenko ground his way up the climbs and rattled off a couple of strong time trials but in a results business his seventh place in Paris rescued the race for Astana. This was easily Lutsenko’s best result in a three-week race and, following on from his second place in the Critérium du Dauphiné, the 28-year-old has seemingly remoulded himself as a stage racer.

Best non-Tour results: A stage win and second overall at the Dauphiné.

Tour 2022? With Alexander Vlasov and a host of riders heading to the exit door, Astana need new faces to step up. Without a huge budget, that might mean riders like Lutsenko are forced to spin plates in events that aren’t typically their specialty. That said, he’s won a stage and finished in the top 10 in the last two years, so he clearly has a knack for peaking at the right time.

6. Enric Mas (Movistar Team)

Highlight: Fourth on the stage to Luz Ardiden provided a timely reminder of his ability.

Tour report: As in 2020, Mas only began to find his best form just when the race was heading into its final throws, but his attacks at Luz Ardiden were entertaining nonetheless and, for the briefest of moments, it looked as though a maiden Tour stage win was on the horizon.

Those moves were also the only time a rider inside the top 10 and outside the top three put in repeated digs against Pogačar but Movistar ultimately want more than just an opportunist and sixth in Paris is arguably a small step back given that Mas was fifth last year and a number of high profile riders crashed or cracked. The Spaniard and his team did well to avoid the crashes but Movistar didn’t sign the 2018 Vuelta runner-up in order to see Ben O’Connor and Jonas Vingegaard finish so far ahead of him.

Best non-Tour results: Won a stage in the Volta a la Comunitat Valenciana.

Tour 2022? Mas is consistent, he just doesn’t win a lot and at some point the bosses at Movistar might decide to change tact and pivot him towards a Giro/Vuelta combination. 

5. Wilco Kelderman (Bora Hansgrohe)

Highlight: Looked on the money in the first two stages and climbed well during the entire three weeks.

Tour report: Seventh, third and fifth in his last three Grand Tours – it really was a shocking decision for DSM to let him walk out the door last year given their lack of experience. It’s true, Kelderman doesn’t have the acceleration of the pure climbers, his time trialing seems to be going backwards ever so slightly, and he hits the deck with frustrating regularity, but he’s still a formidable stage racer. His TT on stage 5 was average by his standards but in the Alps and the Pyrenees especially, he rode his own race and paced himself faultlessly. 

Best non-Tour results: Fourth in the Critérium du Dauphiné.

Tour 2022? With Jai Hindley on the way and Vlasov also expected to link up with Bora over the winter, it’s not clear how the German team will split their Grand Tour arsenal. With top-10 results in all three major events, it could be Kelderman who is dispatched to target either the Giro or the Vuelta.

4. Ben O’Connor (AG2R Citroën)

Highlight: Winning the stage into Tignes and igniting not just his Tour but his entire team’s season.

Tour report: Not quite the revelation of the Tour de France but O’Connor certainly left his mark. After the opening week in which he crashed, it looked as though the Australian would play a minor role in the race but everything changed on the road to Tignes with a stage win that also vaulted the Australian into second overall.

Holding that position was always going to be a tall order but the 25-year-old clung on to a top-five before Urán dramatically cracked, which allowed him into fourth. For a Tour de France debut, this was the realms of dreamland, especially given that here was rider who was struggling for a top-level contract last year.

Some might say that without the time he was afforded in the break he would never have been inside the top 10 but racing doesn’t work like that; it’s not a 100-metre dash but a complex journey in which subplots and tactics are often just as important as who has the strongest legs. O’Connor more than held his own in the GC battle and fully deserved his position in Paris.

Best non-Tour results: He’s been consistent in a number of week-long stage races this year, proving that his Tour was no fluke.

Tour 2022? Team boss Vincent Lavenu was building a Classics team in the winter and moved on a number of his Grand Tour specialists but that’s all changed now with the emergence of O’Connor. He’ll be back at the Tour next year and that means Lavenu will need to sign a couple of climbers in order to give his leader some much needed support.

3. Richard Carapaz (Ineos Grenadiers)

Highlight: You can question the tactics, you can question the leadership, but you can’t fault Carapaz’s tenacity and determination. He’s now the first rider from Ecuador to make the Tour de France podium

Tour report: Ineos came into the Tour with four potential leaders but just a week into the race and only Carapaz remained in contention. He was the only rider to consistently try and dismantle Pogačar in the mountains but the fact remains that he was never able to drop the two riders above him in the GC, and his time trial – while decent – was never in the same ball park. All that said, at least he made a race of it. Just imagine how tepid the GC battle would have been without him.

Best non-Tour results: Winning the Tour de Suisse.

Tour 2022? Carapaz is world class, of that there’s no doubt, but unless his rivals make a tactical blunder as they did in the 2019 Giro or he can reach an entirely new level in 2022, he just doesn’t have the weapons to hurt both Roglič and Pogačar. He couldn’t even crack Roglič’s debutant teammate.

If Ineos are serious about regaining the Tour title they need to draft in Bernal and do away with their multiple leader ethos. They have a way of riding and a particular style and that’s fine, it’s brought them success in the past, so their best bet would be to dispatch Carapaz to the Giro or alternatively stack everyone into their Tour team but remain entirely committed to Bernal.

2. Jonas Vingegaard (Jumbo-Visma)

Highlight: Finishing second on his debut.

Tour report: Originally not even in the team, Vingegaard was drafted into the eight-man selection after Tom Dumoulin took a well-needed break but the Dane seized his chance with arguably the best Tour debut since Pogačar’s in 2020.

Vingegaard was emphatic in the time trials and robust in the mountains, with his attack on Mont Ventoux providing a brief flicker of hope that the GC battle wasn’t over. He raced intelligently, despite being isolated at times, and looks like a genuine Grand Tour winner in waiting.

Best non-Tour results: Winning a stage in the UAE Tour ahead of Pogačar.

Tour 2022? A number of the Jumbo-Visma riders are on the wrong side of 30, so the Dane offers hope for the future and a post-Roglič world. It’s unlikely that the squad's strategy will change much next year with Roglič still the leader but Vingegaard is likely to ride as a support before having his own opportunity a year or two later. He will definitely have a chance to lead in another Grand Tour between now and then.

1. Tadej Pogačar (UAE Team Emirates)

Highlight of the 2021 Tour de France: It’ll be easier to list what he didn’t win.

Tour report: At times Pogačar looked like he was in a different race, toying with the breathless and desperate as he dropped them either one-by-one or all at once. The time trial on stage 5 was a marker but the attack on stage 8 with around 30 kilometres to go ended the Tour as a contest, while the back-to-back stage wins in the Pyrenees were typified by repeated and rapid accelerations. Pogačar is well and truly the poster boy of what modern cycling has become.

Best non-Tour results of 2021: Winning Tirreno-Adriatico.

Tour 2022? If he skips the Vuelta later this year then it’s possible he could take on a Giro-Tour combination next year. He’s unstoppable.

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

Daniel Benson was the Editor in Chief at Cyclingnews.com between 2008 and 2022. Based in the UK, he joined the Cyclingnews team in 2008 as the site's first UK-based Managing Editor. In that time, he reported on over a dozen editions of the Tour de France, several World Championships, the Tour Down Under, Spring Classics, and the London 2012 Olympic Games. With the help of the excellent editorial team, he ran the coverage on Cyclingnews and has interviewed leading figures in the sport including UCI Presidents and Tour de France winners.

One year on from Tour of the Gila victory, Killips aiming for record on Arizona Trail

Giro d'Italia 2024 – the comprehensive team guide

La Vuelta Femenina: Lidl-Trek win opening team time trial despite late crash

Most Popular

• Tour de France
• Stages - Results
• Previous winners
• Football Home
• Fixtures - Results
• Premier League
• Champions League
• Europa League
• All Competitions
• All leagues
• Snooker Home
• World Championship
• UK Championship
• Major events
• Olympics Home
• Tennis Home
• Calendar - Results
• Australian Open
• Roland-Garros
• Mountain Bike Home
• UCI Track CL Home
• Men's standings
• Women's standings
• Cycling Home
• Race calendar
• Vuelta a España
• Giro d'Italia
• Dare to Dream
• Alpine Skiing Home
• Athletics Home
• Diamond League
• World Championships
• World Athletics Indoor Championships
• Biathlon Home
• Cross-Country Skiing Home
• Cycling - Track
• Equestrian Home
• Figure Skating Home
• Formula E Home
• Calendar - results
• DP World Tour
• MotoGP Home
• Motorsports Home
• Speedway GP
• Clips and Highlights
• Rugby World Cup predictor
• Premiership
• Champions Cup
• Challenge Cup
• All Leagues
• Ski Jumping Home
• Speedway GP Home
• Superbikes Home
• The Ocean Race Home
• Triathlon Home
• Hours of Le Mans
• Winter Sports Home

Tour de France 2021 standings and results - Final general classification, points jersey, KOM classification

Updated 18/07/2021 at 20:28 GMT

Find out who is leading the way in the general classification (GC, yellow jersey), points classification (green jersey), mountains classification (polka dot jersey) and young rider’s classification (white jersey). Tadej Pogacar returns bidding to defend his crown, while Primoz Roglic is back to attempt to make amends on last year.

‘Stupid! Chaos!’ – Fan causes huge crash that brings down entire peloton

'Don’t want to go and just get another tracksuit' - Thomas aiming for third Olympic medal

19 hours ago

Who is top of the GC standings (yellow jersey)?

• 1. Tadej Pogacar (Slo) UAE Team Emirates 82:56:36
• 2. Jonas Vingegaard (Den) Jumbo-Visma 0:05:20
• 3. Richard Carapaz (Ecu) Ineos Grenadiers 0:07:03
• 4. Ben O'Connor (Aus) AG2R Citroën Team 0:10:02
• 5. Wilco Kelderman (Ned) Bora-Hansgrohe 0:10:13
• 6. Enric Mas Nicolau (Spa) Movistar Team 0:11:43
• 7. Alexey Lutsenko (Kaz) Astana-Premier Tech 0:12:23
• 8. Guillaume Martin (Fra) Cofidis 0:15:33
• 9. Pello Bilbao Lopez De Armentia (Spa) Bahrain Victorious 0:16:04
• 10. Rigoberto Uran (Col) EF Education-Nippo 0:18:34

Who is top of the points classification (green jersey)?

• 1. Mark Cavendish (GBr) Deceuninck-QuickStep 337
• 2. Michael Matthews (Aus) Team BikeExchange 291
• 3. Sonny Colbrelli (Ita) Bahrain Victorious 227
• 4. Jasper Philipsen (Bel) Alpecin-Fenix 216
• 5. Wout Van Aert (Bel) Jumbo-Visma 171

Who is top of the mountains classification (polka dot jersey?)

• 1 Tadej Pogacar (Slo) UAE Team Emirates 107
• 2 Wout Poels (Ned) Bahrain Victorious 88
• 3 Jonas Vingegaard (Den) Jumbo-Visma 82
• 4 Wout Van Aert (Bel) Jumbo-Visma 68
• 5 Nairo Quintana (Col) Team Arkea-Samsic 66

Who is top of the young rider's classification (white jersey)?

• 3. David Gaudu (Fra) Groupama-FDJ 0:21:50

'I was quite emotional' – Pogacar dedicates win to fiancée's late mother

21/04/2024 at 17:42

'It was quite emotional' – Pogacar dedicates win to girlfriend's late mother

'a titan of our times' – pogacar storms to solo victory.

• International edition
• Australia edition
• Europe edition

Pogacar wins Tour de France as Van Aert denies Cavendish record – as it happened

Tadej Pogacar took the title for the second year in a row as Wout van Aert denied Mark Cavendish a record 35th Tour stage win

• 18 Jul 2021 Tour de France: general classification
• 18 Jul 2021 Stage result
• 18 Jul 2021 Tadej Pogacar wins the 2021 Tour de France!
• 18 Jul 2021 Van Aert denies Cavendish to win stage 21!
• 18 Jul 2021 One circuit to go!
• 18 Jul 2021 Preamble

Time to get out of the saddle. I’ll leave you with Jeremy Whittle’s report from Paris. Thanks for joining me today, and for following us throughout this year’s Tour. It’s been real. Bye!

Tadej Pogacar makes his way on to the podium, a Tour de France champion for the second time at the age of 22. Who would dare bet against him making it a hat-trick next year?

“Thanks to everyone who came to support us,” he says. “I cannot describe how happy and proud I am to be part of this team and this journey. It’s been a difficult year with Covid, the organisers did such a good job. Thanks also to my family, my girlfriend, my friends. I am super happy.”

Here is the final kilometre:

With a mountain stage and a TT already to his name 🇧🇪 @WoutvanAert won on the Champs to deny 🇮🇲 Mark Cavendish his 35th win. Here is the final KM ⬇️ Une nouvelle victoire de prestige pour 🇧🇪 @WoutvanAert ! Le Belge s'offre les Champs-Elysées. #TDF2021 pic.twitter.com/igdSgeRFlm — Tour de France™ (@LeTour) July 18, 2021

No 35th stage win or outright record for Mark Cavendish today, then – but here’s a list of his 34 stage wins to date, including four this year. He’ll be 37 by the time the next Tour starts, but you wouldn’t bet against him being back on the start line.

Mark Cavendish's 34 Tour de France stage wins

• Stage 5 – Cholet to Châteauroux
• Stage 8 – Figeac to Toulouse
• Stage 12 – Lavelanet to Narbonne
• Stage 13 – Narbonne to Nîmes
• Stage 2 – Monaco to Brignoles
• Stage 3 – Marseille to La Grande-Motte
• Stage 10 – Limoges to Issoudun
• Stage 11 – Vatan to Saint-Fargeau
• Stage 19 – Bourgoin-Jallieu to Aubenas
• Stage 21 – Montereau-Fault-Yonne to Paris (Champs-Élysées)
• Stage 5 – Épernay to Montargis
• Stage 6 – Montargis to Gueugnon
• Stage 11 – Sisteron to Bourg-lès-Valence
• Stage 18 – Salies-de-Béarn to Bordeaux
• Stage 20 – Longjumeau to Paris (Champs-Élysées)
• Stage 5 – Carhaix to Cap Fréhel
• Stage 7 – Le Mans to Châteauroux
• Stage 11 – Blaye-les-Mines to Lavaur
• Stage 15 – Limoux to Montpellier
• Stage 21 – Créteil to Paris (Champs-Élysées)
• Stage 2 – Visé (Belgium) to Tournai (Belgium)
• Stage 18 – Blagnac to Brive-la-Gaillarde
• Stage 20 – Rambouillet to Paris (Champs-Élysées)
• Stage 5 – Cagnes-sur-Mer to Marseille
• Stage 13 – Tours to Saint-Amand-Montrond
• Stage 7 – Livarot to Fougères
• Stage 1 – Mont Saint-Michel to Utah Beach (Sainte-Marie-du-Mont)
• Stage 3 – Granville to Angers
• Stage 6 – Arpajon-sur-Cère to Montauban
• Stage 14 – Montélimar to Villars-les-Dombes (Parc des Oiseaux)
• Stage 4 – Redon to Fougères
• Stage 6 – Tours to Châteauroux
• Stage 10 – Albertville to Valence
• Stage 13 – Nîmes to Carcassonne

Tour de France: general classification

• Tadej Pogacar (UAE-Emirates) 82h 56m 36s
• Jonas Vingegaard (Jumbo-Visma) +5’20”
• Richard Carapaz (Ineos) +7’03”
• Ben O’Connor (AG2R-Citroen) +10’02”
• Wilco Kelderman (Bora-Hansgrohe) +10’13”
• Enric Mas (Movistar) +11’43”
• Alexey Lutsenko (Astana) +12’23”
• Guillaume Martin (Cofidis) +15’33”
• Peio Bilbao (Bahrain) +16’04”
• Rigoberto Uran (EF-Nippo) +18’34”

“This Tour has just been amazing, it’s such a rollercoaster. To finish with a win like this, is beyond expectations,” says Van Aert. “A victory like this is priceless – my team put me in perfect position.”

The Belgian will now head to Tokyo for the Olympics, where he might fancy his chances of gold in both the time trial and road race – and the keirin, pole vault and the marathon too.

Stage result

• Wout Van Aert (Jumbo-Visma)
• Jasper Philipsen (Alpecin-Fenix)
• Mark Cavendish (Deceuninck-QuickStep)
• Luka Mezgec (Bike-Exchange)
• André Greipel (Israel Start-Up Nation)
• Danny van Poppel (Intermarché-Wanty)
• Michael Matthews (Bike-Exchange)
• Alex Aranburu Deba (Astana)
• Cyril Barthe (B&B Hotels)
• Max Walscheid (Qhubeka-Nexthash)

All riders finished with same time – 2h 39m 37s

Today’s win means that Wout Van Aert has won three stages on this year’s Tour – a time trial, a mountain stage and a bunch sprint. He’s the ultimate all-rounder.

I thought the extra 350m between the final corner and the finish line would play into Cavendish’s hands, but in the end it set up Van Aert to power into the lead. Cavendish got clear of Matthews but got caught in a battle with Alpecin-Fenix’s Jasper Philipsen, and ended up boxed in by the railings as Van Aert proved uncatchable.

Tadej Pogacar wins the 2021 Tour de France!

Behind all the mayhem, Tadej Pogacar (UAE-Team Emirates) rolls over the line to win his second Tour de France . He has been the dominant rider for almost the entire race, winning by more than five minutes. Jonas Vingegaard (Jumbo Visma) and Richard Carapaz (Ineos) finish a distant second and third.

Van Aert denies Cavendish to win stage 21!

It’s not to be for Mark Cavendish , boxed in by an extraordinary late charge from Wout Van Aert! He’ll have to settle for the green jersey and a share of Eddy Merckx’s record – for now.

1km to go: As the trains weave through the Place de la Concorde, it’s looking like a two-way battle between QuickStep and BikeExchange ... but Van Aert isn’t out of it yet ...

2km: Matthews’ BikeExchange team move forward, along with Cofidis. QuickStep have lost prime position but are looking to regroup as they go into the tunnel a final time ...

3km: Alaphilippe drops off, his part in the leadout done. Four QuickStep riders are out in front of Cavendish, with Wout van Aert lurking ominously behind them ...

4km: Bahrain-Victorious move to get their man, Sonny Colbrelli, in a good position as Cavendish slots in behind Michael Morkov in the QuickStep lead-out train ...

5km: A few last-ditch attacks on the hill up to the Arc de Triomphe, but they’re quickly snuffed out. Bora-Hansgrohe take the front, but it’s still all a little tentative ...

One circuit to go!

The breakaway is caught as the bell rings for the final 6.7km lap. Cavendish’s QuickStep team still look to be in control of things – can they help him get stage win No 35? We’re about to find together.

10km to go: Franck Bonnamour, winner of this year’s combativity award, is one of those to make the move – but he’s quickly caught and the front three will surely be too. QuickStep are still setting the pace, with Greipel’s Israel StartUp Nation also involved.

12km to go: Back around the Arc de Triomphe we go, an enormous tricolore fluttering in the archway. A couple of lads from the B&B Hotels team break out, probably just to earn their sponsors some more airtime. Happy to help.

15km to go: We have just over two circuits of the Champs-Élysées to go, with QuickStep still controlling the race and Pogacar tucked away in midfield. History awaits.

18km to go: The sprinters’ trains are entering wind-up mode, slowly increasing the pace and starting to jostle for position. The leading trio have a gap of 30 seconds, but nobody in the peloton is too concerned.

“Was any reason given for going back to the procession and sprint after 1989?” asks Robert Morgan. “It seems strange to reject a format that gave us one of the most memorable finishes ever.”

Good question, and one I don’t have an immediate answer for. Perhaps the fact that it was a French rider (Fignon) who was denied in such painful fashion has something to do with it.

23km to go: Alaphilippe and Gilbert give up the jig, with Schelling joined by Michael Valgren and Brent Van Moer. I’ll be honest, I can’t see any of these making it over the line.

🇫🇷 The @PAFofficiel here to congratulate the riders! 🇫🇷 La @PAFofficiel vient saluer les coureurs ! #TDF2021 pic.twitter.com/AtTR7l0jWW — Tour de France™ (@LeTour) July 18, 2021

Orlando emails in to say that the relatively weak field of sprinters this year undermines Cavendish’s achievement this year. Boo, everyone. Boo!

But seriously, point taken. None of the last four finale winners – Groenewegen, Kristoff, Ewan and Bennett – are here, after all. André Greipel is retiring, Marcel Kittel has already retired – but in a way that shows the fleeting nature of sprint success, and makes Cavendish’s comeback all the more remarkable.

28km to go: That first breakaway has been swalled up, with Bora’s Ide Schelling trying to go away on his own. He is followed by Julian Alaphilippe and Philippe Gilbert and they eke out a 15-second gap.

30km to go: Here’s how the green jersey race stands after that intermediate sprint. If Matthews wins the stage, Cav needs to finish eighth or higher.

1. Mark Cavendish (Deceuninck-Quick Step) 317 2. Michael Matthews (BikeExchange) 279 3. Sonny Colbrelli (Bahrain Victorious) 223

Intermediate sprint: Stefan Bissegger gets over the line first but in the real battle behind the breakaway, Cavendish beats Matthews to the line. Barring disaster, he’ll take the green jersey home.

“If the gap going into the final day was a handful of seconds would there be competition for yellow?” asks Niall Scott. It’s a possibility but outside of that aforementioned 1989 time trial, it hasn’t happened – even in 2007, when Cadel Evans trailed Alberto Contador by just 23 seconds before the final day.

It’s one of sport’s strange unwritten rules – partly tradition, partly down to the sheer difficulty of carving out any kind of lead on a flat stage with GC contenders fiercely protected by their teams.

42km to go: We have a breakaway! The stage 16 winner, Patrick Konrad of Bora-Hansgrohe, is part of it, alongside Stefan Bissegger (EF Education-Nippo) and Harry Sweeny (Lotto-Soudal). Julian Alaphilippe is leading the peloton with the three-man group pulling 30 seconds clear.

50km to go: The riders will complete this circuit of the Champs-Élysees eight times before the finish line, with an intermediate sprint during the third lap. Cavendish hasn’t quite secured the green jersey yet: Michael Matthews can still catch him, but probably needs to win the intermediate and the stage, and for Cavendish to have a major off-day.

55km to go: The pack have cruised through the grounds of the Louvre and are passing the finish line for the first time. It’s a little different this year, 350m further up the slight incline that leads to the Arc de Triomphe. That will make position on the final corner less crucial than it usually is ...

60km to go: The pack are heading north now, back towards the Seine where they will cross over and begin circling the Champs-Élysees. Cavendish has won four times on the cobbles before – four in a row between 2009 and 2012.

Still can't believe I could witness Cav pass into sporting legend today @niallmcveigh . I've been a fan ever since he first arrived in mid-2000s, watched him go from brash kid to sprinting royalty then an early twilight via crashes & illness. To see this now: he deserves it all. — Guy Hornsby (@GuyHornsby) July 18, 2021

65km to go: The last time this final stage didn’t end in a bunch sprint was in 2005, when Alexander Vinoukorov pulled off a breakaway win. Nobody showing any intention of trying something similar today as the pack enters Paris, turning right away from the banks of the Seine.

“Has the Tour always terminated at Champs-Élysées. and has the yellow jersey ever been lost on the last stage of the Tour?” asks William Hill (presumably not that one).

It’s seen as a grand Tour tradition but in fact, the Champs-Élysées finish was only introduced in 1975. The race has always finished in Paris, but traditionally ended on a track – either at the Parc des Princes or the Vélodrome de Vincennes.

As for the yellow jersey changing hands, it doesn’t happen on these processional final stages leading up to a bunch sprint at the line – but back in 1989 there was a time trial to Paris, with Greg LeMond pipping the man in yellow, Laurent Fignon , by eight seconds.

70km to go: The pack have passed the Palace of Versailles and are headed for their last stretch of woodland before they enter Meudon on the way into Paris proper.

Chris Froome has been named the Tour’s nicest rider by the on-road camera crew. Not the biggest prize he’s claimed in Paris, but he’s happy nonetheless. “I’m incredibly proud to have got through a Tour that was as intense as this one,” he says.

“[There have been] as few finishers as we’ve had in the past 20 years in the race. So really proud to be getting to Paris, and to be back in the Tour de France after the accident I had.” Will be back in 2022? “I hope so, I hope so.”

Jumbo Visma’s Jonas Vingegaard is set to finish second in the Tour de France today. The Dane only signed up to the team in April, and was expected to work as a lieutenant for Primoz Roglic after they finished first and second in the Tour of the Basque County.

After Roglic was forced out early in the race, Vingegaard took his chance to make the podium instead. It’s quite the breakthrough for the 24-year-old, who not so long ago was working in a fish factory and training after his shift finished.

Today’s route initially took the peloton away from Paris, but they’re now circling back towards Versailles. Incidentally, if you’d rather go and put your head in the fridge for the next 90 minutes*, you can sign up for sport alerts via the Guardian app, and get a notification when the result comes in! Details below.

How do I sign up for sport breaking news alerts?

• Download the Guardian app from the iOS App Store on iPhone or the Google Play store on Android by searching for 'The Guardian'.
• If you already have the Guardian app, make sure you’re on the most recent version.
• In the Guardian app, tap the Menu button at the bottom right, then go to Settings (the gear icon), then Notifications.
• Turn on sport notifications.

*Don’t put your head in the fridge – not for 90 minutes, anyway

85km to go: They are going at a leisurely, Sunday afternoon pace out there with the Champs-Élysées still a long way off.

Incidentally, there’s been no champagne reception on the road; the winning team didn’t do so last year on account of their Emirati backers and have stuck with that, despite a relaxation of alcohol laws in some parts of the country. Beyond them, it seems nobody without a stake in today’s outcome has much to celebrate.

At the top of that Cat 4 climb, Mikkel Bjerg rides clear of his UAE-Emirates teammates to claim his first King of the Mountains point and prompt much mirth from Pogacar and the rest of the team behind him.

Today is the final Tour stage for sprint legend André Greipel , who announced earlier this week he will retire at the end of the season. ‘The Gorilla’ has won 22 Tour stages in his career – 11 at the Tour, seven at the Giro and four in the Vuelta.

Today, @AndreGreipel has an announcement to make. "I look to the future with a lot of happiness." ___ 🇫🇷 #TDF2021 pic.twitter.com/Tr8Iq7PbCT — Israel Start-Up Nation / Israel Cycling Academy (@TeamIsraelSUN) July 17, 2021

Pogacar had a chat with former Tour winner Alberto Contador on Eurosport before the race about his imminent second Tour title.

“It’s something just incredible … it’s hard to explain how I feel, it’s something beyond a dream. Last year was really different, there was no pressure, I was happy with second place … this year I had the yellow jersey from the first week, but I’m proud of both, just the same.”

He’s asked whether he might race in the Vuelta, and doesn’t rule it out – although his focus is on the Olympics and then enjoying a bit of recovery time after going “full gas” since February.

One rider has not started today’s stage – Astana’s Jakob Fuglsang has retired from the race early in order to save his legs for the upcoming Olympic road race in Japan.

Fuglsang, who took the silver medal in Rio, has struggled in this year’s race, and has put it down to mild side-effects from his second dose of the Covid-19 vaccine.

Bradley Wiggins is out on the back of the Eurosport moped, still bravely sticking with his sheepskin jacket despite the searing heat. He heaps praise on Pogacar for “winning his own race” and not following the traditional, team-driven path.

The yellow-jersey winner is currently rolling up the final classified climb of this year’s Tour – a Category 4 bump in the road – with his teammates still alongside him.

In other bike flair news, the Qhubeka-NextHash team are using orange helmets and equipment to recognise Nelson Mandela Day.

🇫🇷 #TDF2021 The significance behind our #MandelaDay orange... 🧡 "Living in harmony is about accepting yourself and others as they are" #BicyclesChangeLives 🖐️ pic.twitter.com/OPx4zhnQkA — Team Qhubeka NextHash (@QhubekaAssos) July 18, 2021

“Form dips, class is forever. Cav’s fans always supported him and never deserted him,” writes Tracey Gerrard. “I recognise he’s a Marmite character but those who love him do so with the same passion he has for cycling. I’ve followed him throughout his career, some bike riders are good, some are excellent but he is la crème de la crème .”

My A-Level French is a little rusty, but I think that means he’s good.

On the road, today’s stage has begun in the south-western suburbs of Paris. They’re passing through Saint-Germain-de-Laye, a town whose name and coat of arms are known around the world thanks to Paris Saint-Germain FC.

Pogacar moves clear at the front with his UAE-Team Emirates teammates, whose white kits and bikes are kitted out with yellow trim. They pose together for a photo opportunity as the pack labours up the hill behind them.

Here is the general classification heading into today’s final stage. Pogacar is on course to win by more than five minutes – the biggest winning margin since Vincenzo Nibali in 2014.

• Tadej Pogacar (UAE-Emirates)

Don’t forget to join Scott Murray too, as the battle for the Claret Jug heats up:

The on-bike banter synonymous with the final jaunt into Paris has begun:

⚪🔴 Please! An autograph please! ⚪🔴 Monsieur, Monsieur un autographe s'il vous plait ! #TDF2021 pic.twitter.com/bUMQYK8WO3 — Tour de France™ (@LeTour) July 18, 2021

The Tour’s top boys are leading the way as they set out from the leafy Paris suburb of Chatou. Tricolores line the route as Tadej Pogacar and Mark Cavendish are joined by the polka-dot and white jersey wearers, Wout Poels and Jonas Vingegaard. Those last two jerseys belong to Pogacar, too, but he only has room on his back for one.

It’s a big day of sport elsewhere, not least Silverstone, where Max Verstappen has crashed out of the British GP after a first-lap collision with Lewis Hamilton. Throw open another window and check in with Daniel Harris:

Good afternoon. Hot enough for you? The mercury is rising towards 30 degrees in Paris, where the Tour de France will conclude in around three hours. The final stage is seen as a procession save for the final sprint along the Champs-Élysées, although it probably won’t feel like that for most of the pack after three weeks of racing.

This edition of the Tour has been defined by two people (OK, maybe three people ). Firstly, the relentless, remarkable Tadej Pogacar, who is about to follow up last year’s last-gasp win with a very different victory. The Slovenian has been supremely dominant, in control of this race throughout the entire month of July.

More on him later, of course, but at the finish line today all eyes will be on the 2021 Tour’s other superstar, Mark Cavendish . Just coming back to the race felt like a huge achievement; not even the man himself could have expected four stage wins and the chance to rewrite cycling history.

Win today, and Cavendish will overtake Eddy Merckx’s record of Tour stage wins. The Belgian’s tally of 34 stage wins is a symbol of his all-round dominance. Nobody was supposed to actually beat it, but here we are. Cav’s moment of truth will arrive at around 7pm local time (6pm BST); before then, a chance to sip some champagne in the sun.

• Tour de France
• Mark Cavendish

Most viewed

Tour de France 2021: Results

Top 10 Tour de France 2021 1. Tadej Pogacar 2. Jonas Vingegaard + 5.20 3. Richard Carapaz + 7.03 4. Ben O’Connor + 10.02 5. Wilco Kelderman + 10.13 6. Enric Mas + 11.43 7. Alexey Loetsenko + 12.23 8. Guillaume Martin + 15.33 9. Pello Bilbao + 16.04 10. Rigoberto Uran + 18.34

Click on the links in below scheme for race reports and results.

Tour de France 2021 – results

More about the tour de france, tour de france 2021: van aert wins at champs-élysées, gc triumph pogacar.

Tour de France 2021: Van Aert wins Bordeaux ITT, Pogacar seals GC triumph

Tour de France 2021: Second solo triumph Mohoric in Libourne

Tour de France 2021: Pogacar wins in Luz-Ardiden

Tour de France 2021: Pogacar wins at Portet to cement lead

All the Stages of the 2021 Tour de France

A map of every stage from this year’s race, which takes place from June 26-July 18.

Gear-obsessed editors choose every product we review. We may earn commission if you buy from a link. How we test gear.

→ Get Bicycling All Access to stay on top of the latest training tips, nutrition advice, gear reviews, and more!

STAGE 1 BREST - LANDERNEAU (197.8km)

STAGE 2 PERROS GUIREC - MÛR-DE-BRETAGNE GUERLÉDAN (183.5km)

STAGE 3 LORIENT - PONTIVY (182.9km)

STAGE 4 REDON - FOUGÈRES (150.4km)

STAGE 5 CHANGÉ - LAVAL ESPACE MAYENNE (27.2km)

STAGE 6 TOURS - CHÂEAUROUX (160.6km)

STAGE 7 VIERZON - LE CREUSOT (249.1km)

STAGE 8 OYONNAX - LE GRAND-BORNAND (150.8km)

STAGE 9 CLUSES - TIGNES (144.9km)

STAGE 10 ALBERTVILLE - VALENCE (190.7km)

STAGE 11 SORGUES - MALAUCÈNE (198.9km)

STAGE 12 SAINT-PAUL-TROIS-CHÂTEAUX - NÎMES (159.4km)

STAGE 13 NÎMES CARASSONNE (219.9km)

STAGE 14 CARCASSONNE - QUILLAN (183.7km)

STAGE 15 CÉRET - ANDORRE-LA-VIEILLE (191.3km)

STAGE 16 PAS DE LA CASE - SAINT-GAUDENS (169km)

STAGE 17 MAURET - SAINT-LARY-SOULAN COL DU PORTET (178.4km)

STAGE 18 PAU - LUZ ARDIDAN (129.7km)

STAGE 19 MOURENX - LIBOURNE (207km)

STAGE 20 LIBOURNE - SAINT ÉMILION (30.8km)

Laura is the summer 2021 editorial intern for Popular Mechanics, Runner's World, and Bicycling. Her work can also be found at Oprah Daily. She is a student at Howard University in Washington, D.C. where she studies English and Art History. When she isn't fighting the temptation to use passive voice, you can typically find her hunched over her Strat or working on her zine.

.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

The Fastest Men and Women of the Grand Tours

What Do Riders Eat During the Tour de France?

How Fast Do the Pros Ride in the Tour de France?

Challengers of the 2024 Giro d'Italia and TdF

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?

• Tour de France
• Giro d'Italia
• La Vuelta ciclista a España
• World Championships
• Milano-Sanremo
• Amstel Gold Race
• Tirreno-Adriatico
• Liège-Bastogne-Liège
• Il Lombardia
• La Flèche Wallonne
• Paris - Nice
• Paris-Roubaix
• Volta Ciclista a Catalunya
• Critérium du Dauphiné
• Tour des Flandres
• Gent-Wevelgem in Flanders Fields
• Clásica Ciclista San Sebastián
• UAE Team Emirates
• Arkéa - B&B Hotels
• Astana Qazaqstan Team
• Alpecin-Deceuninck
• Bahrain - Victorious
• BORA - hansgrohe
• Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale Team
• EF Education-EasyPost
• Groupama - FDJ
• INEOS Grenadiers
• Intermarché - Wanty
• Lidl - Trek
• Movistar Team
• Soudal - Quick Step
• Team dsm-firmenich PostNL
• Team Jayco AlUla
• Team Visma | Lease a Bike
• Grand tours
• Top competitors
• Final GC favorites
• Stage profiles
• Riders form
• Countdown to 3 billion pageviews
• Favorite500
• Profile Score
• Stage winners
• All stage profiles
• Race palmares
• Complementary results
• Finish photo
• Contribute info
• Contribute results
• Contribute site(s)
• Results - Results
• Info - Info
• Live - Live
• Game - Game
• Stats - Stats
• More - More
•   »  

Sprint | Olette (66.9 km)

Points at finish, kom sprint (1) montée de mont-louis (86.3 km), kom sprint (2) col de puymorens (133.1 km), kom sprint (1) port d'envalira (146.7 km), kom sprint (1) col de beixalis (176.5 km), youth day classification, team day classification, race information.

• Date: 11 July 2021
• Start time: 12:30
• Avg. speed winner: 36.777 km/h
• Race category: ME - Men Elite
• Distance: 191.3 km
• Points scale: GT.A.Stage
• UCI scale: UCI.WR.GT.A.Stage - TM2022
• Parcours type:
• ProfileScore: 234
• Vert. meters: 4572
• Departure: Céret
• Arrival: Andorra la Vella
• Race ranking: 1
• Startlist quality score: 1646
• Won how: 19.5 km solo
• Avg. temperature:

Race profile

• Montée de Mont-Louis
• Col de Puymorens
• Port d'Envalira
• Col de Beixalis

Grand Tours

• Vuelta a España

Major Tours

• Volta a Catalunya
• Tour de Romandie
• Tour de Suisse
• Itzulia Basque Country
• Milano-SanRemo
• Ronde van Vlaanderen

Championships

• European championships

Top classics

• Omloop Het Nieuwsblad
• Strade Bianche
• Gent-Wevelgem
• Dwars door vlaanderen
• Eschborn-Frankfurt
• San Sebastian
• Bretagne Classic
• GP Montréal

Popular riders

• Tadej Pogačar
• Wout van Aert
• Remco Evenepoel
• Jonas Vingegaard
• Mathieu van der Poel
• Mads Pedersen
• Primoz Roglic
• Demi Vollering
• Lotte Kopecky
• Katarzyna Niewiadoma
• PCS ranking
• UCI World Ranking
• Points per age
• Latest injuries
• Youngest riders
• Grand tour statistics
• Monument classics
• Latest transfers
• Favorite 500
• Points scales
• Profile scores
• Reset password
• Cookie consent

About ProCyclingStats

• Cookie policy
• Contributions
• Pageload 0.0892s