The GC battle began early in week 1 and hasn’t let up since.
With only one week completed, the 2023 Tour de France is shaping up to be one of the most riveting and talked about editions in years. It was a brilliant move by TdF organizers, A.S.O., to shake up tradition by having the first three stages take place in Spain’s hilly Basque country. With GC contenders fighting alongside stage hunters, fast and hard racing was the norm from the gun. Placing the Pyrenees early was also a master stroke of planning by the organizers that provided the perfect buildup to the epic battle on Puy de Dôme in stage 9.
With 12 stages remaining, this Tour de France is far from over and week two is sure to bring more action and drama between GC contenders and stage hunters. In the meantime, here’s a look back at a few of the riders who found the thrill of victory – and the agony of defeat – in the first week.
VICTORY
Tadej Pogačar (UAE) Even though he looked like he was in trouble after finishing stage 5 more than a minute down (1:04) on his GC rival Jonas Vingegaard, Pogačar’s early gains in time bonuses and stage 6 win were impressive. On stage 9 he gained another 8 seconds on Vingegaard in the final kilometers of Puy de Dôme, saying afterwards, “It was a good day. It wasn’t very hard before the last climb. The legs were turning well. Jonas was strong but I was really able to give it my all. I am very happy to have taken some time and put him under pressure.”
Jasper Philipsen (Alpecin–Deceuninck) Three stage wins! What more can one say? He’s the fastest in the peloton right now and has one of the best, if not the best, leadout trains. And he’s wearing the green points leader jersey. Expect more stage wins from him. On winning three stages and the green jersey, Philipsen had this to say, “If you had told me this a week ago, I would have thought you crazy.”
Michael Woods (Israel–Premier Tech) He came back from being dropped on stage 9 to catching Jorgenson with 600 meters to go on the epic Puy de Dôme. At age 37, Woods thought a stage win was behind him and confessed afterwards that the only plan he had was to keep going: “At four kilometers from the finish I didn’t even think about winning, I just thought I had to ride a time trial to the top. Whatever the result, I would be proud of myself.”
Neilson Powless (EF Education-Easy Post) In the breakaways almost every day fighting for KOM polka dot jersey points. Powless has worn the polka dot jersey every stage except for one. He now leads the KOM competition with 46 points and looks to be well-positioned to keep the jersey until the Alpes, or with some luck, all the way to Paris.
Jai Hindley (Bora-Hansgrohe) He was in 7th place on the GC @22″ before stage 5. After winning stage 5 he wore the yellow jersey and was 47″ ahead of Jonas Vingegaard. Even though he lost time the next day and on the Puy de Dôme, he’s still in 3rd place on the GC @ 2:40″ and ahead of 4th place, Carlos Rodríguez, who sits @4:22″.
Victor Lafay (Cofidis) The winner of stage 2 who surprised the sprinters by taking a flyer with 1 kilometer remaining. His gutsy riding not only got him noticed by other teams, but also brought Cofidis their first Tour de France win in 15 years. No longer an unknown, expect to see more from Lafay in the future.
DEFEAT
Mark Cavendish (Astana) Before heading into the Tour de France, Cavendish announced that 2023 would be his last year as a professional cyclist and that he would ride the Tour de France with the goal of breaking the record for most stage wins. (Presently, both he and Eddy Merckx share the record at 34 wins each.) When Cavendish came close on stage 7 where he finished 2nd behind Jasper Philipsen many hoped that this was a sign of good things to come. However, bad luck often follows good luck, and all hopes were dashed on stage 8 when Cavendish crashed out with a broken collarbone.
Matteo Jorgenson Everyone thought he had enough time. Even the Eurosport TV commentators thought he had it in the bag. But with 400 meters to go on the steep ramparts of Puy de Dôme, Jorgenson was passed by Michael Woods and lost his chance for a stage victory. Incredibly, after riding solo for 50 kilometers, Jorgenson lost everything in a matter of seconds. It was a gamble from the start, but as he explained afterwards, it was his only option: “I knew I couldn’t compete with Michael Woods and Neilson [Powless]. I had to get away in a small group or solo. It became a solo. You have to hope that they blow themselves up behind you, because one minute at the bottom of the climb was not enough. But I did what I could.”
Fabio Jakobsen Missing out on the sprint in stage 3 and then crashing hard in stage 4 were just the beginning of bad things to come for Jakobsen. On Sunday, after six years with Patrick Lefevere’s Belgian squad, Jakobsen learned that the team will have no room for him in 2024. “Tim Merlier is here for three years, so if I stayed another two years I would have to share with Remco and with another top sprinter. I want to go to the Tour, which won’t happen at Soudal-QuickStep,” said Jakobsen.
