Wärenskjold wins eleventh Tour stage in sprint – fastest section in history

Already at the halfway point of the stage, the average speed was over 52 kilometers per hour. The flat route with only two small categorized climbs of the easiest category offered ideal conditions for a high tempo. "Eine Engstelle sechs Kilometer vor dem Ziel nahm das Peloton ohne Zwischenfälle, dann begann die Vorbereitung auf den 'Sprint Royal'." This is how the Deutsche Presse-Agentur described the decisive phase of the race.

The winner and his path

Wärenskjold already had a remarkable backstory: in 2022 he had won the U23 world championship title in the time trial. His stage victory on Wednesday is considered his greatest success to date. In the sprint, the 26-year-old had taken the initiative early and held on for a narrow lead at the line.

Behind the top three, further riders placed with Milan Fretin (Belgium/Cofidis) and Huub Artz (Netherlands). Philipsen, who had already won two sprint stages in this Tour, did not finish higher than 15th. The best German in the sprint was Pascal Ackermann in 46th place.

Moment of shock involving Zimmermann

A moment of shock was provided by the German Georg Zimmermann, who crashed in the feed zone around 30 kilometers before the finish. The severity of his injuries was initially unclear. Zimmermann was apparently unable to finish the race in the front of the field and dropped back from the group.

Wärenskjold had crashed the day before and injured his hand in the process. Despite this setback, he prevailed on Wednesday in Nevers and celebrated the biggest success of his career. His Norwegian team Uno-X thus had a day entirely defined by speed.

The general classification remains stable

In the overall standings, the bunch sprint changed nothing at the top. Tadej Pogacar continues to lead the classification. The four-time overall winner from Slovenia, who rides for UAE Emirates-XRG, has a 3:36-minute lead over his Danish chaser Jonas Vingegaard, who rides for Visma-Lease a Bike.

Belgium's Remco Evenepoel sits in third place, 4:06 minutes back. Florian Lipowitz from Germany follows in seventh place at 4:44 minutes. Lipowitz is thus one of the best German riders in the overall classification.

Pogacar had already worn the Yellow Jersey for the 60th time in his career and continues to sit comfortably at the top of the overall standings. At 27 years old, he counts among the dominant figures of the current cycling scene.

The remaining places in the top ten of the overall standings also remained unchanged after the eleventh stage: Juan Ayuso (Spain) trails by 4:22 minutes, Paul Seixas (France) is 4:35 minutes back. Isaac del Toro from Mexico occupies eighth place at 5:08 minutes.

France's Lenny Martinez follows in tenth place at 6:34 minutes. Britain's Tom Pidcock sits well back in 35th place at 11:49 minutes and is unlikely to play a role in the overall classification. Marco Haller from Austria occupies 109th place after eleven stages.

The twelfth stage on Friday covers 179.1 kilometers from the Circuit Nevers Magny-Cours, a former Formula 1 racetrack in the south of France, to Chalon-sur-Saône. The route with three category-four climbs offers good conditions for another bunch sprint.

Outlook on the twelfth stage

Thus the sprinters are likely to get another chance after the record day in Nevers. Wärenskjold and Kooij will count among the favorites, even though the profile with the three smaller climbs certainly favors breakaways.

The 113th Tour de France ends on July 26 with the traditional final stage from Thoiry over 133 kilometers to the Champs-Élysées in Paris. Before that, mountain stages in the Alps are still on the program, including the queen stage to Alpe d'Huez.

With the speed record of 50.91 kilometers per hour, the peloton around Wärenskjold has written a new chapter in the long history of the Tour de France. The old record by Cipollini from 1999 was beaten by more than half a kilometer per hour.

The Norwegian's stage victory marks a turning point in his career. After the U23 world championship title in the time trial in 2022, he had shown promising results in recent years, but a success in one of the three Grand Tours had eluded him until now. The coup in Nevers could give him further confidence for the upcoming stages.

For German cycling, the eleventh stage was mixed: while Zimmermann had to worry about his result after his crash, Ackermann, in 46th, was unable to get involved in the battle for the top. Lipowitz, however, continues to perform strongly in the overall classification and belongs to the extended group of favorites.

Overall, the eleventh stage exemplifies just how versatile the Tour de France is: while the classification riders around Pogacar and Vingegaard spent a quiet day in the peloton, the sprinters were given a stage that they used with a record-setting performance.

Attention now turns to the coming days, in which the peloton rolls toward the Alps. The climbing specialists will then look for their chance, while the sprinters around Wärenskjold must meanwhile try to seize the Yellow Jersey or stage victories in the flatter sections.