Tour de France: Mayhem on Stage 20 as emotional Kaden Groves completes Grand Tour set, Tadej Pogacar closes on fourth title

Paris [France], July 27 (ANI): Slovenia’s Tadej Pogacar (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) emerged from a potential banana skin of a penultimate stage in the sodden Jura Mountains unscathed – just – to all but secure his fourth Tour de France triumph.

A needless crash in the peloton on the home straight played out just metres from the world champion in yellow, who crossed the line with a wry smile after counting his lucky stars.

Pogacar will start Sunday’s final stage of the Tour in Paris with his unassailable lead of 4’24" over Denmark’s Jonas Vingegaard (Visma-Lease a Bike) intact.

The incident came seven minutes after Australia’s Kaden Groves (Alpecin-Deceuninck) became the 114th rider in history to complete a clean sweep of Grand Tour stage wins – soloing clear of the day’s breakaway to end his debut Tour in style, as per a press release.

Groves had tears streaming down his face as he crossed the line to win a 10th Grand Tour stage not in a sprint – as you might expect – but after proving himself to be the strongest rider in the pack over a relentless succession of climbs during a chaotic and rain-swept 184km stage through the foothills of the Jura Mountains of eastern France.

As heavy showers lashed down and made many of the roads slippery and treacherous, Groves managed to stay on two wheels and keep out of trouble.

The fastest finisher of a stellar 13-man breakaway that also included the likes of Tim Wellens (UAE) and Matteo Jorgenson (Visma), 25-year-old Groves did not rely on his sprint but instead kicked clear with 16km remaining – leaving a trail of devastation in his wake.

Dutchman Frank van den Broek (Picnic PostNL) took second place at 54", ahead of compatriot Pascal Eenkhoorn (Soudal Quick-Step), with a chase group led home moments later by Italy’s Simone Velasco (XDS Astana).

A key cog of the breakaway was Frenchman Jordan Jegat (TotalEnergies), whose position on the fringe of the top 10 initially served to jeopardise the chances of the move. But Jegat was rewarded for his persistence by riding up to 10th place on GC on the eve of the Paris finale at the expense of Australia’s Ben O’Connor (Jayco-AlUla), who ultimately gave up the chase and succumbed to his fate.

It took over an hour of fast and furious racing for the breakaway to establish itself, with Groves among a 10-rider move that bridged over to a leading trio that had formed around Stage 15 winner Wellens and the American all-rounder Jorgenson.

Also in the break were Ewen Costiou (Arkea-B&B Hotels), Harry Sweeny (EF Education-EasyPost), local rider Romain Gregoire (Groupama-FDJ), Matteo Trentin (Tudor Pro Cycling), Jake Stewart (Israel-Premier Tech) and the Spanish champion Ivan Romeo (Movistar).

When the yellow jersey group eventually sat up, the gap quickly grew above two minutes – prompting O’Connor’s Jayco-AlUla team-mate Mauro Schmid to come to the front to protect the Australian’s place in the top 10 from that man Jegat.

But when the Swiss champion skidded out in the rain, the wind was taken from the sails of the main pack, and the gap steadily grew.

On the toughest of three climbs, the Cat.2 Cote de They, a countermove involving Wout van Aert (Visma) emerged from the peloton – but it was too little, too late. Jegat rode clear of the break, coaxing a response from Sweeny – and the two quickly built up a solid lead.

Perhaps taking a leaf from his team-mate Ben Healy’s books – the Irish Stage 5 winner renowned for his long-distance raids – Sweeny rode clear with over 50km remaining after a dispute with his French colleague.

Over the undulating terrain, the Australian amassed a lead of almost a minute before being pegged back on the final classified climb, the Cat.4 Cote de Longeville, with around 25km remaining.

A nasty crash on the descent saw Spain’s Romeo slam into the curb at speed and dashed the chances of local rider Gregoire, as Groves edged up the road in pursuit of Dutchman Van den Broek and Britain’s Stewart.

Groves then caught his colleagues off guard with an attack 16km from the finish, the Australian powering clear as the other two watched each other and delayed their response. This allowed Groves to build up a quick lead of 45 seconds, which gave him a crucial buffer going over the last unclassified hill of the stage.

With no harmony in the chase behind, Groves kept his head down and pressed home his advantage. Brought to his maiden Tour as Jasper Philipsen’s lead-out man, Groves guided the Belgian to a win on the opening day before becoming elevated to Alpecin’s main sprinter following Philipsen’s early withdrawal.

But with Groves struggling in the sprints while the team’s focus lay on Van der Poel – who won Stage 2 and enjoyed two stints in yellow – Groves admitted he had to pivot and refocus his efforts elsewhere.

“There are so many emotions to win here," a tearful Groves said after the biggest victory of his career. “The team, we came here with so many different plans with Jasper and Mathieu [Van der Poel]. In the end, I get my own opportunities, and they haven’t gone the right way.

“But today I had super legs. I just suffered to the line, and as a reward, we get a Tour stage. The team gave me a free role in the last days. We were not sure if I should go for it today or wait until tomorrow."

“But when the rain falls, I always have a super feeling normally. In the cold weather. It is my first time winning solo – and it is in a Tour stage. It is pretty incredible."

“There is so much pressure at the Tour. Having won in the Vuelta and the Giro, I always get asked whether I am good enough to win in the Tour – and now I have shown them."

“I tried to play my cards right and get into an early move. But the uphill start made that incredibly difficult. When I made the selection, I knew that Jorgenson and Wellens would watch each other, so I tried to distance myself from them."

“Then after the crash, Van den Broek goes full, so I closed that. Then he and Jake Stewart watched each other, and I have a gap of 16 kilometres to go. I rode full until the final 200 metres. I’m going to celebrate with my team tonight, and I will enjoy tomorrow," he concluded.

World champion Pogacar will ride onto the Champs-Élysees in the yellow jersey while his big rival Vingegaard will be keeping the Slovenian’s polka dot jersey warm – Pogacar having wrapped up a third victory in the KOM competition during the course of Saturday’s stage.

Italy’s Jonathan Milan (Lidl-Trek) is guaranteed to win the green jersey regardless of the outcome of the result on the Champs-Élysees. Unlike in previous years, the traditional Paris finale will involve three ascents of the Butte de Montmartre, which should play into the hands of the puncheurs.

Having missed out on adding to his four stage wins during the Alps in the final week, perhaps Pogacar will look to cap his fourth Tour triumph by riding to glory in the yellow jersey on the famous cobblestone boulevard.

The action from the last stage of the Tour de France 2025 will be live on EUROSPORT and EUROSPORT HD from 22:00 hrs (10:00 PM IST) onwards on Sunday, 27th July 2025. (ANI)

(This content is sourced from a syndicated feed and is published as received. The Tribune assumes no responsibility or liability for its accuracy, completeness, or content.)

Sports