Tadej Pogacar sealed a sensational Tour de France-Giro d’Italia double by winning the stage 21 time trial into Nice.
The Slovenian finished the Tour with a sixth stage victory and became the first man to win cycling’s two biggest races in the same year since Italian Marco Pantani in 1998.
The Tour’s finale was held outside of Paris for the first time since 1903 as the French capital prepares to host next month’s Olympics.
Wearing the yellow jersey Pogacar, 25, finished the stage a blistering one minute and three seconds clear of second-placed Jonas Vingegaard.
The win secured his third Tour de France title and extended his overall lead over nearest rival and two-time winner Vingegaard to six minutes and 17 seconds.
Tour debutant Remco Evenepoel finished third on the stage and completed the general classification podium.
The 2024 edition will also be remembered for Mark Cavendish’s record 35th stage victory in Saint Vulbas in the opening week.
After his time trial the legendary British sprinter said this year’s Tour is likely to have been his last race.
How the 2024 Tour de France was won
Pogacar dominated this year’s Tour de France.
He won six stages, the first rider to do so at a single edition since Cavendish in 2009.
He also spent 19 days in the yellow jersey, holding it exclusively from stage four.
This year’s Tour was arguably won on stage 15 where, already ahead by almost two minutes, Pogacar stormed to victory on a gruelling climb up to Plateau de Beille to extend his lead over Vingegaard by another 69 seconds.
Four days later he had overall victory wrapped up, ascending to Isola 2000 where he put a further one minute and 42 seconds into his nearest rivals.
The Slovenian looked a level above Vingegaard, who he finished second behind at the last two editions, with the Dane still recovering from a broken collarbone and ribs suffered in April.
But even a fully fit Vingegaard would have struggled to match Pogacar’s pace.
His Tour de France dominance matches his performance at this year’s Giro d’Italia, where he blew away the competition to win by nine minutes and 56 seconds.
He has also won the Classics Liege–Bastogne–Liege and Strade Bianche this season.
In July Pogacar said he was “99% sure” he would not compete at this year’s Vuelta a Espana, where he could become the first ever rider to win all three Grand Tours in the same calendar year.
He will represent Slovenia in the men’s road race at the Olympics in Paris on 3 August.
Girmay takes historic green jersey
By finishing safely in Nice, sprinter Biniam Girmay made history, becoming the first ever black African winner of the Tour de France points classification.
He had a sensational race. On day three he became the first Eritrean to win a stage at the Tour, and he went on to record two more victories – on stage eight and stage 12.
The green jersey winner, 24, was one of only six black African riders in the top-level WorldTour peloton of 534 in 2023, the year he made his Tour de France debut.
The ‘African king’ has battled through visa issues and loneliness since he moved to Europe seven years ago.
The King of the Mountains classification was won by Richard Carapaz while Belgian Evenepoel, 24, claimed the white jersey as the best rider in the general classification under the age of 25.
Source Agencies
