Tour de France: Philipsen gets the first sprint thriller

After 193.5 kilometers from Amorebiata-Etxano to Bayonne – and thus after two stages in the Spanish Basque country to France – Philipsen put the German Phil Bauhaus and Caleb Ewan from Australia in their place. The professional from Alpecin-Deceuninck had already won the 15th stage and also the final sprint on the Champs-Elysees in Paris last year.

“It’s the Tour de France, nobody gets anything for free, everyone goes all-in. My colleagues did a great job, I’m happy that I was the first to cross the finish line. It was difficult at the finish, I just tried to find the shortest line,” said Philipsen, who had to worry about his day’s victory until the official result.

Philipsen gets his first sprint thriller

Jasper Philipsen has secured the first sprint decision at the 110th edition of the Tour de France. The 25-year-old Belgian won the third stage in Bayonne on Monday by a few centimeters and clinched his third overall victory of the day in a “big loop”.

Haller best Austrian

Of the six Austrians, Marco Haller (67th/Bora), Felix Gall (99th/AG2R) and Felix Großschartner (100th/UAE Emirates) crossed the finish line with the peloton. In the overall standings, Gall is still the best ÖRV driver in 36th place, 5:43 minutes behind. “We have now completed the first three days. It was still a bit tough, today I felt better. But it was also more of an easy stage compared to the last two stages. I think it was the waiting before the start and also a little bit of tension that made me not feel as good as I had hoped and expected. But the Tour has only just begun,” said Gall after the third stage.

The sprinters can hope for a mass finish again on Tuesday. The fourth stage covers 181.8 kilometers from Dax to Nogaro. The finish is on the Paul Armagnac motor racing circuit. The last 800 meters lead slightly uphill, but the finish line is dead straight.

Reuters/Stephane Mahe Philipsen was ahead for the third time in a stage of the tour

Leader Adam Yates safely brought the yellow jersey to France. The Briton crossed the finish line in Bayonne in 66th place, at the same time as winner Philipsen. Bayonne was 31st overall, but was a stage in the Tour de France for the first time since 2003. In the overall standings, Adam Yates is still six seconds ahead of Slovenia’s Tadej Pogacar and his twin brother Simon Yates, who also finished with the field.

Safety concerns come along

When returning to France, the tour entourage was also accompanied by security concerns, especially since there have been riots in France’s metropolises for days after the death of a 17-year-old during a police check. “We work closely with the authorities. I speak to the Ministry of the Interior morning, noon and evening. We remain focused and vigilant,” said Pierre-Yves Thouault, Vice Director of the race. Bordeaux, a major French city, will not be headed for until next Friday.

How vulnerable the tour is was shown on Sunday when strangers had apparently spread tacks on the street. Numerous professional cyclists had to change their wheels about 20 kilometers from the finish line due to punctures. On Monday there was also a noticeably large number of punctures. The reason for this was initially unknown.

Tour de France, second stage

1. Jasper Philipsen BEL 4:43:15 2. Phil Bauhaus GER -“- 3. Caleb Ewan AUS -“- 4. Fabio Jakobsen NED -“- 5. Wout van Aert BEL -“- 6. Mark Cavendish GBR -“- 7. Jordi Meeus BEL -“- 8. Dylan Groenewegen DOWN -“- 9. Mads Pedersen DEN -“- 10. Bryan Coquard FROM -“- 43. Jonas Vingegaard DEN 44. Jai Hindley AUS 58. Tadej Pogacar SLO 63. Simon Yates GBR 66. Adam Yates GBR

Marco Haller

AUT

-“-

99.

Felix Gall

AUT

-“-

100.

Felix Großschartner

AUT

-“-

140.

Patrick Konrad

AUT

1:32

151.

Michael Gogl

AUT

-“-

163.

Gregor Muehlberger

AUT