Ben Healy claims Tour de France’s sixth stage; Mathieu van der Poel regains yellow jersey
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Ben Healy rejoicing at the finish line to win the sixth stage of the Tour de France.
PHOTO: AFP
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- Van der Poel regained the race lead from Pogacar, capitalising on a mid-race escape.
- Healy secured Ireland's first stage win since 2020, breaking away solo with 32km remaining.
- Pogacar relinquished the overall lead strategically, while van der Poel conserved energy after Healy's attack.
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NORMANDY, France – Ireland’s Ben Healy won Stage 6 of the Tour de France in Normandy on July 10 with a long solo break, as Dutchman Mathieu van der Poel reclaimed the overall leader’s yellow jersey by one second.
Sixth at the start of the day, van der Poel climbed above overnight leader Tadej Pogacar to retake the race lead.
Healy, 24, became the first Irish stage winner since Sam Bennett on the Champs-Elysees in 2020.
American champion Quinn Simmons came second, and Michael Storer put Team Tudor on the Tour podium for the first time in third.
Healy said: “It’s really what I’ve worked all for – not just this year, but the whole time. It’s really incredible, and hours and hours of hard work from so many people, so to pay them back today is really, really amazing.”
Healy and van der Poel were part of a nine-man mid-race escape. The Irishman broke solo, knowing that if he waited for the final ascent, he had little chance of beating the proven climbing experts.
He made his move on a flat section, 32km out. As he accelerated, the eight others dithered as the distance widened.
“I knew I needed to get away from the group and pick my moment,” Healy added. “And I think I timed it well and hopefully caught them by surprise a little bit.
“But I knew what I had to do: Just head down and do my best ride to the finish.”
For Pogacar, allowing the Dutch powerhouse to sneak into the escape meant he got rid of the overall lead and relieved himself of media duties and the draining hullabaloo that comes with wearing the yellow jersey.
Once Healy had broken away, even van der Poel sat up, saving energy, possibly for the run to the Mur de Bretagne on July 11.
Stage 6 was intense from the off over a series of hills between Bayeux and Vire, with the peloton putting the hammer down at 47kmh average over the first three hours. AFP
