Belgian Tim Wellens wins Tour de France Stage 15
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Belgian rider Tim Wellens of UAE Team Emirates in action during the 15th stage of the Tour de France.
PHOTO: EPA
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- Tim Wellens won Stage 4, marking UAE Team Emirates' fifth win; Pogacar holds a 4min 13sec lead over Vingegaard.
- Wellens' victory was praised by UAE team principal Gianetti, highlighting his dedication to the team and tactical brilliance.
- Vingegaard recovered from an early crash; stage 16 features the ascent of Mont Ventoux, ahead of the final rest day.
AI generated
CARCASSONNE – Tim Wellens of UAE Team Emirates won a baking and hilly Stage 15 of the Tour de France at Carcassonne on July 20 after a 45km solo rampage towards the walled citadel.
Teammate Tadej Pogacar held on to the overall lead with a 4min 13sec advantage on Jonas Vingegaard, who had to fight to catch up when caught behind an early mass fall.
Wellens, 34, had been part of an early break that was whittled down to five, before the Belgian champion’s sudden acceleration caught the others napping.
“If there is one rider in the Tour de France who deserves a victory, it is Tim Wellens,” said UAE team principal Mauro Gianetti. “He is so dedicated to the team, dedicated to Tadej, always five centimetres from Tadej, in training camp, in race, in morale, in everything.
“Today he was in the break without looking to be in it. He was in a position to not work in the first 50km when it was very hard, and the energy he saved in the first part of the breakaway he gave in the final. It was clever, like always, attacking just before the long descent.
“When he was away, the others behind started looking at each other. Another fantastic day for the team and especially for Tim.”
This was a fifth win for Team UAE, with Pogacar previously having won four on a thoroughly dominant Tour for the team.
Wellens was so far ahead at the finish line he had time to high five dozens of Belgian fans on the run in on the eve of the Belgian national holiday.
He has also won stages on the Giro d’Italia and the Vuelta a Espana.
On July 20, the 167 riders embarked towards Carcassonne on yet another nervy stage.
After a mass fall early on with Florian Lipowitz and Vingegaard involved, the Pogacar group raced on, leaving two-time winner Vingegaard and a clique of 30 riders to exhaust themselves catching up.
Pogacar entered the Pyrenees on July 17 tucked in at second to surprise yellow jersey Ben Healy but emerged with two more stage wins and a four-minute advantage atop the overall standings in his bid for a fourth Tour de France title.
July 21 is the final rest day before the 2025 edition soars into the Alps on July 22’s Stage 16 with the 15.7km ascent of Mont Ventoux at 8.8 per cent gradient to its 1,910m-high summit. AFP
