Tadej Pogacar continued his dominance at the Tour de France, winning his fourth stage and substantially extending his overall lead. The Slovenian cyclist launched a decisive attack in the Alps with nine kilometers remaining, erasing nearly three minutes to catch and surpass stage leader Matteo Jorgenson of the United States.
Pogacar’s yellow jersey rivals, Jonas Vingegaard and Remco Evenepoel, were unable to respond to his relentless pace and ultimately lost one minute and 42 seconds to the Giro d’Italia winner. Pogacar’s lead over defending champion Vingegaard now stands at an imposing five minutes and three seconds with only two stages remaining.
Simon Yates finished third, with Jorgenson holding off the Briton to claim second place.
After his victory, the 25-year-old Pogacar described the stage as “100% perfect” and expressed relief at being able to “enjoy tomorrow” after extending his lead in the yellow jersey.
The two-time Tour de France winner raced conservatively until the final climb into the resort of Isola 2000. His blistering attack there proved too much for his rivals, both those around him and those ahead on the road.
“We were here training for a whole month between the Giro and Tour,” Pogacar said. “I knew this climb super well. I was speaking with teammates in the training camp about how we wanted to race, and we did it exactly how we wanted.”
Only two stages now stand between Pogacar and a third Tour de France title. On Saturday, the peloton remains in the mountains, finishing on the Col de la Couillole. The tour concludes with a time trial into Nice on Sunday. However, given Pogacar’s dominance this season, Friday’s stage 19 may be remembered as the day the 2024 Tour was won.
Having won the Giro d’Italia in May, Pogacar could become the first man since Marco Pantani in 1998 to win both the Giro and the Tour de France in the same year.
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