- Jasper Philipsen wins stage 3 of Tour de France after sprint controversy
- Philipsen’s victory validated after review of chaotic sprint finish
- Van Aert frustrated as Philipsen’s lead-out secures victory
Jasper Philipsen of Belgium, riding for the Alpecin-Deceuninck team, claimed the 193.5km third stage of the 2023 Tour de France after the race jury meticulously scrutinized the chaotic bunch sprint finish in Bayonne.
Philipsen’s victory was in question for some time after the riders crossed the finish line, as he appeared to veer across the finishing straight and impede the progress of his Jumbo-Visma adversary Wout Van Aert.
Philipsen endured a lengthy and tense wait, during which he viewed sprint replays on his phone, with his friend and former teammate Tadej Pogacar also craning his neck to examine the sprint’s nuances.
Adam Yates, Pogacar’s UAE Team Emirates teammate, won the 2023 Tour’s first sprint stage.
In the end, Philipsen’s victory was verified. “It was tense, but it’s the Tour de France and there are no presents,” he stated. Everyone gives their all, and I’m quite pleased with our team’s performance today.
The 25-year-old, who won two stages in last year’s Tour, claimed his sixth victory in the Grand Tour competition ahead of Phil Bauhaus of Bahrain Victorious and Caleb Ewan of Lotto Dstn.
Mark Cavendish finished sixth in his first opportunity to become the Tour de France record stage victor. The wait for an unprecedented stage victory persists.
Mathieu van der Poel’s lead-out helped Philipsen win. “Mathieu did a fantastic job,” he said. “He has undeniable pace. You are aware that no other exit will succeed.”
Van Aert, who won last year’s Tour, was frustrated again. When asked if he believed the sprint was fair, Van Aert replied, “It’s difficult to say.” I have no right to pass judgment.”
After losing against French breakout artist Victor Lafay in San Sebastián, he hurled his water bottle on the ground. When he returned to the Jumbo-Visma team bus, there was reportedly bike tossing and door slamming as well.
Jonas Vingegaard, the defending Tour de France champion and teammate of Van Aert, was also criticized by the Belgian public and media for not supporting Van Aert more in the pursuit of Lafay in the final stages of Sunday’s finale.
If anyone made a mistake on Sunday, you can blame me,” the sports director of the team, Grischa Niermann, said. “We did not anticipate an attack by Lafay in the final kilometer. “This is not PlayStation,”
From Amorebieta-Etxano to Bayonne, the third stage was level and crossed from the Spanish to the French Basque Country.
Appropriately, the focus shifted from pintxos to Laurent Pichon, with the ArkéaSamsic team’s Pichon leading the peloton across the border as the race entered France for the first time.
The veteran French rider had been accompanied in his attack by Neilson Powless of the EF Education EasyPost team, but the American fell back into the peloton after accumulating more points in the King of the Mountains classification, leaving Pichon alone in front, plowing a lonely furrow. The 36-year-old Breton was caught by the peloton with approximately 40 kilometers remaining in the race.
Earlier, as the race left San Sebastián, a second tack attack, which replicated the vandalism of Sunday when thumbtacks caused multiple punctures, delayed the peloton once more. On an otherwise mundane stage, however, the only real drama occurred after the finish line, following countless repetitions of what appeared to the majority to be a fair sprint. However, Philipsen’s acceleration suggests that he will be the man to defeat on the flat stages of this year’s Tour de France.
