Disaster scenes at the Tour de France: Einer Rubio abandons after colliding with a UAE Team Emirates car on Alpe d’Huez
Cycling
Stage 19 of the Tour de France ended in the worst possible way for Einer Rubio. The Movistar Team Colombian, who was delivering an outstanding ride and was on track to finish sixth on Alpe d’Huez, was forced to abandon after colliding with a UAE Team Emirates-XRG car midway up the iconic French climb.
The incident, not shown on the host broadcast, was revealed by Norway’s Tobias Halland Johannessen in comments to TV2.
“I saw Rubio, from Movistar, go into the UAE car. It didn’t look good at all. I wonder if he broke the glass with his face. I hope he’s okay,” said the Uno-X Mobility rider.
Shortly afterwards, Movistar Team confirmed the Colombian’s withdrawal.
A disaster on a day he was flying
The withdrawal is even more painful because Rubio was producing one of his best Tour performances. The Colombian climber had a realistic shot at finishing sixth on the stage, a result of real weight both sporting-wise and for the UCI ranking, where every point matters for a Movistar Team fighting to consolidate its position.
All that work was ruined in a matter of seconds.
Einer Rubio, Movistar Team.
An organisational embarrassment
What happened reflects poorly on the Tour de France organisation. Alpe d’Huez once again offered the familiar scenes of a road completely packed with thousands of fans, to the point that riders had barely any room to advance.
In that context, it is hard to fathom how a team car was allowed to circulate among the riders. With the crowd narrowing the carriageway, any sudden braking was a trap.
And that is precisely what happened. Rubio had to slow due to the mass of spectators spilling onto the road and ended up hitting the UAE Team Emirates-XRG vehicle, bringing to an end a stellar ride that was pointing to a prestige result.
It is not the first time that the lack of crowd control on Alpe d’Huez has created extreme danger, but this incident underlines that the race management is once again under scrutiny. When the road is completely clogged with fans, keeping vehicles among the riders multiplies the risk of a crash.
The Tour de France boasts every year about Alpe d’Huez’s unique atmosphere. However, when that spectacle ends with a rider abandoning after smashing into a race car, the takeaway is very different: a true organisational embarrassment that cost Movistar Team a major result and a valuable haul of UCI points.
Juan LarraCycling Journalist
Juan Larra is a writer for Cyclinguptodate and editor-in-chief of Ciclismoaldia, where he has played a central role since its inception. Under his leadership, the website has become a trusted source for professional cycling coverage, offering in-depth analysis, news, and feature stories.
A sports journalist with over 20 years of experience, Juan earned his degree in Journalism from the University of Seville in 2007. He began his career covering a wide range of sports—including football, basketball, Formula 1, MotoGP, tennis, and cycling—for platforms such as the official La Liga app, Vodafone and Movistar websites, NBA Blogdebasket, and Cadena Cope, honing his skills in writing and editorial management.
In addition to his work at Ciclismoaldia, Juan contributes to Cyclinguptodate and serves as editor-in-chief for the tennis-focused site Tenisaldia. Throughout his career, he has conducted exclusive interviews with cyclists and sports figures, provided detailed analysis of competitions ranging from local Spanish races to major international events, and acted as a special correspondent at prestigious races including Paris-Roubaix, the Tour de France, and the Vuelta a España.
Juan’s combination of experience, expertise, and direct access to athletes has established him—and the platforms he leads—as authoritative voices in professional cycling.
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