Jasper Philipsen won Tour stage 17 in Voiron after a chaotic day of attacks, splits and late pursuit.
The Alpecin-Premier Tech sprinter came off Mathieu van der Poel’s wheel and launched a decisive sprint. Mauro Schmid of Team Jayco-AlUla finished second, with Olav Kooij of Decathlon CMA CGM third.
The victory ended a frustrating wait for Philipsen, who had struggled to match his own expectations earlier in the race. He said his Tour had been a “rollercoaster of emotions” after arriving in excellent condition.
Philipsen said he had prepared extremely well and believed he was in the “shape of my life”. Yet he said the first 12 stages were “horrible” because he could not find the feeling he wanted.
He credited his team for continuing to back him through the difficult spell. Philipsen also admitted he had been angry and disappointed after failing to take a stage win sooner.
Tour stage 17 chaos ends in reduced sprint
The 175km stage took 75km before the breakaway formed. Mads Pedersen of Lidl-Trek animated much of that racing and tried to enter several moves.
Pedersen later won the most combative rider prize. He also took the maximum 25 points at the intermediate sprint, which came 147km into the stage.
Immediately after that sprint, Jasper Stuyven attacked and tried to ride the final 25km alone. With 16km remaining, he had opened a 45-second lead.
Stuyven, who has not won since Milan-San Remo in 2021, held the chase at bay for several kilometres. Behind him, Pedersen’s group was caught by a larger breakaway containing several sprinters.
Philipsen, Pedersen, Michael Matthews and Aaron Gate were among those still chasing victory. More than 40 riders began to close on Stuyven as the finish approached.
His advantage dropped to 31 seconds with 10km left. Alpecin-Premier Tech and Jayco-AlUla then drove the chase, cutting the gap to 20 seconds by 5km to go.
Stuyven was caught with 3.5km remaining. Several counter-attacks followed, but none survived to the line.
Philipsen said the win had cost him “a few years” of his life. He had spent part of the finale stuck between groups and thought the chance had gone.
Green jersey fight tightens after Philipsen stage win
Philipsen’s stage victory also reshaped the points competition. Pedersen finished eighth, while Philipsen took 50 points for the win.
The Belgian reduced the gap to Pedersen to seven points. Philipsen said the coming stages would be difficult, but he would keep fighting until Paris.
The stage did not alter the top of the general classification. Tadej Pogačar of UAE Team Emirates-XRG remained in yellow, ahead of Remco Evenepoel and Isaac del Toro.
Adam Yates, Pogačar’s teammate, also drew attention amid questions over whether the Tour leader could be at risk of illness.
Stage 17 result
- 1. Jasper Philipsen (Alpecin-Premier Tech) 3:41:13
- 2. Mauro Schmid (Team Jayco-AlUla), same time
- 3. Olav Kooij (Decathlon CMA CGM), same time
- 4. Lewis Askey (NSN Pro Cycling), same time
- 5. Rick Pluimers (Tudor Pro Cycling), same time
- 6. Clément Russo (Groupama-FDJ United), same time
- 7. Huub Artz (Lotto-Intermarché), same time
- 8. Mads Pedersen (Lidl-Trek), same time
- 9. Michael Matthews (Team Jayco-AlUla), same time
- 10. Aaron Gate (XDS Astana), same time
General classification after stage 17
- 1. Tadej Pogačar (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) 60:04:17
- 2. Remco Evenepoel (Red Bull-Bora-hansgrohe) +4:32
- 3. Isaac del Toro (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) +6:51
- 4. Paul Seixas (Decathlon CMA CGM) +7:11
- 5. Juan Ayuso (Lidl-Trek) +9:22