Pogačar leads Tour de France as mountain stages loom in Vosges and Jura

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9 days · 5 summary articles
Tadej Pogačar maintains his lead in the Tour de France 2026 as the race approaches crucial mountain stages. The Slovenian cyclist has shown a strong performance so far, but his rivals, including Jonas Vingegaard and his team Visma-Lease a Bike, are not giving up hope of catching up.
The next two stages, 14 and 15, are set to be challenging mountain stages in the Vosges and Jura mountains. Stage 14, taking place on Saturday, July 18, will cover 155.3 kilometers from Mulhouse to Le Markstein, featuring climbs like the Grand Ballon and the Col du Haag. Stage 15, on Sunday, will be even longer at 183.9 kilometers, starting in Champagnole and ending at the Plateau de Solaison, a category special climb that has never been featured in the Tour before.
Vingegaard, who is currently in second place, started the Tour strongly with a win in the team time trial in Barcelona and wore the yellow jersey early on. However, he has faced setbacks, including losing 44 seconds to Pogačar in a recent stage. "We staan als ploeg niet voor opgeven," said Vingegaard, expressing his team's resolve to continue fighting for the victory. Meanwhile, Pogačar has expressed his confusion over rivals who seem to be settling for second place. "Wenn du nur um den zweiten Platz kämpfst, ist das schade. In einer Grand Tour, wenn du ein starkes Team hast, gibt es so viele Möglichkeiten. Man muss immer versuchen, das Beste herauszuholen," he said.
Tom Pidcock has recovered his fourth position in the overall standings, adding to the competition for the podium spots.
The race has seen some dramatic moments, with Vingegaard losing time to Pogačar. However, with the mountain stages ahead, there is still opportunity for the standings to change.
In the meantime, the 13th stage was won by Swiss rider Mauro Schmid, with Pogačar safely maintaining his overall lead. The Tour de France is also experiencing a severe drought, with the landscape along the route described as "totally dry and grilled."
There are also internal rivalries within teams, such as between Florian Lipowitz and Remco Evenepoel. Team chief Ralph Denk has acknowledged some communication issues but expects the team to unite behind the strongest rider.
The stages can be watched on RTVE and Eurosport, with coverage starting at 13:10 hours.
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