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Pogacar Wins Record‑Equalling Fifth Tour de France Title

The 27‑year‑old sealed the race after building a decisive mountain lead that rendered the shortened Paris finale a formality.

Cycling - Tour de France - Stage 21 - Paris, France - July 26, 2026 UAE Team Emirates XRG's Tadej Pogacar wearing the yellow jersey celebrates after completing stage 21 REUTERS/Stephanie Lecocq
Cycling - Tour de France - Stage 21 - Paris, France - July 26, 2026 UAE Team Emirates XRG's Tadej Pogacar wearing the yellow jersey in action with other cyclists as they ride past the Arc de Triomphe during stage 21 REUTERS/Gonzalo Fuentes
Cycling - Tour de France - Stage 21 - Paris, France - July 26, 2026 UAE Team Emirates XRG's Tadej Pogacar wearing the yellow jersey and UAE Team Emirates XRG's Isaac Del Toro wearing the white jersey in action with other cyclists during stage 21 REUTERS/Stephanie Lecocq
Tadej Pogacar joined Jacques Anquetil, Eddy Merckx, Bernard Hinault and Miguel Indurain as the most successful riders in Tour de France history

Overview

  • Pogacar clinched his fifth overall victory when he finished the shortened final stage in Paris on Sunday, July 26, securing a margin of 6 minutes 26 seconds over Remco Evenepoel.
  • He built the commanding lead in the high mountains, taking yellow on Stage 6 and extending it with a record performance on Alpe d’Huez that left the general classification effectively settled.
  • Two high‑impact incidents reshaped the race: Jonas Vingegaard crashed out on Stage 15 and withdrew, and Sepp Kuss crashed twice late on Stage 20, the second crash narrowly avoided a fall down a ravine thanks to safety netting.
  • Richard Carapaz won the penultimate queen stage on Alpe d’Huez and secured the King of the Mountains polka‑dot jersey, while Pogacar delayed attacks on Stage 20 to protect teammate Isaac Del Toro’s third place and the white best‑young‑rider jersey.
  • Organisers shortened Stage 21 after emergency services were redeployed to fight large wildfires in southwest France, and Pogacar’s win ties him with Anquetil, Merckx, Hinault and Indurain while bringing his career total to 26 Tour stage victories.