"He didn't have the legs" - Tadej Pogacar's reaction to tricky sprint between Wout van Aert and Jasper Philipsen
Cycling
Stage 3 of the Tour de France was a calmer day in the peloton but the sprint was anything but. The tricky finish saw a right-hand bend towards the line and that messed up the sprint of Wout van Aert, who had to settle for another disappointing result.
Alpecin-Deceuninck had the perfect leadout and delivered Jasper Philipsen to the victory, his first in this year's edition. The final sprint saw a tight battle as van Aert was on the wheel of the Belgian, and as the two started their sprint they were side to side, but with van Aert freewheeling over the final meters as he did not want to take extreme risks.
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The Jumbo-Visma rider had to settle for a fifth place on the day, overtaken by a few riders in the final meters. Helicopter footage showed him running out of space as Jasper Philipsen closed in, which led to there being doubts if the Alpecin rider would keep his win or be relegated.
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Eventually there were a few repetitions of the helicopter footage, in which Tadej Pogacar also saw in person with Philipsen, commenting that “he didn't have the legs". Ultimately Philipsen was not relegated and confirmed to be the day's winner, rather the finale was criticized over it's non-straight format.
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Rúben SilvaEditor-in-Chief
A founding contributor to CyclingUpToDate since its launch in January 2022, Ruben Silva has played a central role in shaping the site’s editorial direction and long-term growth. Before joining the project, he built his experience through independent blogging at Echelons Hub and by producing race previews for Ciclismo Internacional, developing a strong analytical voice rooted in daily engagement with professional cycling.
Beyond editorial work, he has been closely involved in the expansion and coordination of CyclingUpToDate’s wider network, helping establish and support sister platforms across multiple languages. This includes ongoing collaboration with CiclismoAlDia (Spanish), CiclismoAtual (Portuguese), WielrennenUpToDate (Dutch), and RadsportAktuell (German), contributing to a shared editorial vision and consistent international coverage.
He also helps oversee editorial governance across the network, setting standards for accuracy and consistency and coordinating updates or corrections when needed.
Originally from the Porto metropolitan area in Portugal, he holds a bachelor’s degree in Geography. His path into cycling journalism was shaped not through formal media training, but through independent reporting, community engagement, and sustained on-the-ground involvement in the sport.
Over the course of his career, he has conducted approximately 100 interviews across road cycling and cyclocross, ranging from one-to-one conversations and online formats to press conferences and on-site pre- and post-race coverage. His interviews include leading riders, team managers, and prominent figures within cycling media: Tadej Pogacar, Jonas Vingegaard, Mathieu van der Poel, Primoz Roglic, Wout van Aert, Joao Almeida and Tom Pidcock; managers like Patrick Lefevere and Joxean Matxin; and YouTube personality Bryan Kennedy (BKXC)...
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- Congrats! It is done so now is time for CX.averagecyclist15-11-2026
- It's going to happen at some point. It will happen to Tadej as well, we all get older. Jonas was in pretty great form at the tour. I still consider him a top two or three cyclist in the world, until he's not.awp15-11-2026
- mij, I am not so sure of that. I have been on a spine ward at a Denver hospital that had quite a few spinal injuries from mountain biking.BDBigGuy15-11-2026
- Pogi takes care of his teammates in races and training. Tadej Pogačar is widely praised within the cycling peloton for his fair and egalitarian leadership, actively supporting his UAE teammates both on the road during races and behind the scenes at training camps. Rather than acting like an untouchable superstar, he has intense team loyalty by sharing daily chores, giving up personal glory to help domestiques, and publicly praising their sacrifices. Unlike some Grand Tour contenders, like Vingegaard, who occasionally train away from their squads, Pogi consistently attends team training camps alongside his domestiques, making the exact same sacrifices to build friendship. I love how Pogačar shares his teammates-domestiques, either when they succeed or win in races or when they simply just do a good job for him. It has to be a great moral boost for them. And then they work even harder and go even deeper for Pogi. This is teamwork.PogiSloFans15-11-2026
- Yeah, what he said!Lozza15-11-2026
- I’m sure Jasper Philipsen would disagree with you.Lozza15-11-2026
- Article says he was “out for a spin around the town”, implying not off-road.Lozza15-11-2026
- let’s be honest, Alpecin is all about one rider - MVDP. I’m sure he gets whatever he needs, the rest get the scraps.mij15-11-2026
- there are more vicious injuries on a road bike than a mountain bike far and away.mij15-11-2026
- That'll be one crazy rider
Rafionain-Glas15-11-2026
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🔥Mucha polémica por esta acción e el sprints final de la Etapa 3 del 🇫🇷Tour de Francia 🤔¿Philipsen cierra a Van Aert contra las barreras? Que opinan amigos? 🇫🇷 #TDF #TDF2023 #Noticiclismo #Ciclismo
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