Remco Evenepoel wins Tour time trial, Tadej Pogacar takes yellow jersey
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TOPSHOT - Soudal Quick-Step team's Belgian rider Remco Evenepoel cycles during the 5th stage of the 112th edition of the Tour de France cycling race, 33 km individual time trial starting and finishing in Caen, northwestern France, on July 9, 2025. (Photo by Anne-Christine POUJOULAT / AFP)
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CAEN – Belgian Remco Evenepoel lived up to his favourite’s tag in the individual time trial by winning Stage 5 of the Tour de France on July 9, with defending champion Tadej Pogacar’s second place enough to take hold of the leader’s yellow jersey from Mathieu van der Poel.
Soudal Quick-Step rider Evenepoel, the Olympic and world time trial champion, covered the 33km around Caen in 36 minutes 42 seconds, 16 seconds ahead of Pogacar (UAE Team Emirates), with Italian Edoardo Affini (Visma-Lease a Bike) rounding out the podium.
Slovenia’s Pogacar, seeking a fourth title, holds a 42-second lead over Evenepoel in the overall classification.
Two-time winner Jonas Vingegaard, who began the day just 8sec behind Dutchman van der Poel, had a poor day as the Dane could finish only 13th in the stage – 1min 21sec behind Evenepoel – to slip to 1min 13sec behind Pogacar in the overall standings.
Evenepoel said: “I knew I had a good chance and the legs were there, and everything has to go as the plan is.
“In the end I think it was pretty good, I didn’t really feel like I could go any faster and happy too with this second stage win for our team (after compatriot Tim Merlier on Stage 3), it’s really nice.”
He added: “I kind of pushed steady, harder on the uphills than the downhills of course, but my strongest point was keeping my pace in the end as in the first 10km. We saw I was still gaining time in the last 8km, so I paced it perfectly.”
Earlier in the day, French cyclist Emilien Jeanniere was forced to abandon the race after cycling 174km with a fractured left shoulder blade, his team announced ahead of the stage.
The 26-year-old, riding in his first Tour, crashed at the end of July 7’s third stage in Dunkirk.
His team said he suffered facial injuries, multiple bruises and had stitches for a number of cuts. He even had to get a dentist to fix a broken tooth.
Remarkably, Jeanniere went on to complete the gut-busting 174km Stage 4 from Amiens to Rouen on July 8, struggling home in 147th place, more than 15 minutes behind stage winner Pogacar.
His team said further medical examinations on the morning of July 9 had “revealed a fracture of the left shoulder blade” and he had withdrawn from the race.
Team Lotto also announced Belgian rider Jasper de Buyst, who was suffering from a fever on July 9, would take no further part.
AFP, REUTERS
