Remco Evenepoel Secures Stage Win, Lipowitz Crashes Out
Remco Evenepoel claimed consecutive stage victories in the Tour de France, reducing Tadej Pogacar’s overall lead. Evenepoel won the stage 16 time trial from Evian to Thonon-les-Bains, finishing 28 seconds ahead of Pogacar. This marks Evenepoel’s third career time trial win in the Tour, and he now sits second overall, just over four and a half minutes behind Pogacar.
The Olympic road and time trial champion expressed his satisfaction with his current form, stating it feels “amazing to be in this good shape in the Tour.” He also acknowledged Pogacar as a “superstar,” adding that the race is “not over yet” with several challenging stages remaining.
Despite Evenepoel’s success, his team, Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe, faced a setback with the withdrawal of teammate Florian Lipowitz. Lipowitz, who finished third in the Tour last year and was fifth in the general classification before the stage, crashed on a tight right-hand bend during a downhill section. He was carried off on a stretcher, and it was later confirmed he sustained a broken collarbone. This incident makes Lipowitz the second podium finisher, following Jonas Vingegaard, to exit the race within 72 hours.
The crash occurred at kilometer 19.8 on a right turn, causing Lipowitz to slide across the road into a sidewalk kerb. Evenepoel described the victory as a “bittersweet pill to swallow” due to his teammate’s injury, wishing him a swift recovery and noting he would miss Lipowitz for the remainder of the week. Patxi Vila, director sportif for Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe, shared similar sentiments, expressing mixed feelings about the stage outcome.
Doping Test Controversy Deepens
Amidst the ongoing race, a debate surrounding the ITA drug testing agency’s nocturnal activities has intensified. The agency conducted 2 am and 5 am visits to Jonas Vingegaard and Tadej Pogacar, respectively, last Sunday. These tests, conducted outside the usual 6 am to 11 pm window, have drawn considerable criticism, despite being authorized by the Paris prosecutor’s office.
Jonathan Vaughters, manager of the EF Education EasyPost team, commented on the authorization process, suggesting that obtaining a warrant from a French judge, who might not be a sports scientist or haematologist, would not be difficult given the sport’s history. Vaughters, while supportive of the ITA’s efforts, believes the bar for obtaining such warrants might not be very high.
Pascal Chanteur, vice-president of the CPA, the professional riders association, also questioned the Paris prosecutor’s decision, stating that “the judge knew nothing of cycling.” The CPA supports night-time testing when sufficient evidence exists, but Chanteur also suggested that the differing test times for Vingegaard and Pogacar were likely due to the ITA’s limited resources rather than any specific significance.
The French sports code mandates that testing procedures must maintain strict proportionality between the infringement of an athlete’s rights and the objectives of anti-doping efforts. Olivier Banuls, the ITA’s director of testing, previously stated that the agency focuses on targeted testing rather than mass testing to avoid wasting resources. The results of the tests on both riders remain undisclosed.
Pogacar, a four-time Tour champion, currently leads Evenepoel by 4 minutes, 32 seconds with five stages left. Evenepoel remarked that Pogacar is on track to win a fifth Tour de France, an achievement that would place him alongside cycling legends like Eddy Merckx, Miguel Indurain, Jacques Anquetil, and Bernard Hinault. The race is scheduled to conclude on Sunday in Paris.
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Source: theguardian.com
