INEOS Grenadiers’ Thymen Arensman took a thrilling stage 14 victory in the Tour de France, soloing to the top of Superbagnères and hanging on for the win.
The Dutch rider built a lead of around three minutes on the ascent of Superbagnères before extending it on one of France’s fastest descents. Team leader Tadej Pogacar was largely content to police Jonas Vingegaard up the final climb, allowing Arensman to hold off the Slovenian and his teammate.
Arensman became the third Dutch rider to win a mountain-top finish in the Pyrenees since 1973, a feat he will remember for the rest of his life. The stage marked INEOS Grenadiers’ first win since 2022, giving them much-needed momentum ahead of the rest day.
Remco Evenepoel’s abandoned Tour de France bid raises questions about his preparation for the season. Despite being in third place overall before abandoning, the Belgian rider struggled on the notorious Tourmalet climb, eventually getting dropped by the peloton. Evenepoel’s team believes he will recover well and still achieve goals this season.
Florian Lipowitz has emerged as a surprise contender for the podium, finishing fourth on stage 14 after initially being seen as an underdog. Lipowitz’s teammate Primoz Roglic remains in contention, but is seven seconds behind Pogacar.
The general classification sees Tadej Pogacar still leading, but the gap with Jonas Vingegaard has narrowed to four minutes and 13 seconds. The battle for the white jersey, awarded to the leader of the young rider classification, is heating up between Lipowitz and Onley.
Source: https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/6503504/2025/07/19/tour-de-france-stage-14-analysis