The grupetto strikes back
If you've ever crawled home at the back of a group ride the day after blowing up, stage 11 was for you. Twenty-four hours after rolling into Le Lioran dead last — the lanterne rouge of the day, deep in grupetto territory — Søren Wærenskjold won the Tour de France stage into Nevers.
And not quietly. The Uno-X Mobility sprinter launched from distance and held off Olav Kooij and Jasper Philipsen at the end of what became the fastest road stage in Tour history: 161.3 km from Vichy at an average of roughly 50.9 km/h. Tim Merlier, winner of two sprints already this Tour, could only manage fifteenth in the chaos.
How it unfolded
Julian Alaphilippe lit the fuse at kilometre 13, dragging Anthon Charmig, Nelson Oliveira and Mathis Le Berre clear in the day's breakaway. On a day raced at over 50 an hour, they never stood a chance — but they made everyone hurt. When the sprint trains finally wound it up in Nevers, the established fast men were all there. It just turned out the strongest man in France that afternoon had been the slowest one the day before.
No change at the top: Tadej Pogačar stays in yellow with Vingegaard at 3′36″ and Evenepoel at 4′06″ — the full standings are on our Tour tracker.
This is why we love the sport. The grupetto isn't where Tours are lost. Sometimes it's where stage winners spend the night before.
