“I didn’t recognise him. He’s lost his joy for life” – Serious concerns raised over Julian Alaphilippe as former world champion endures Tour de France nightmare

Julian Alaphilippe’s performances and visibly subdued demeanour at the 2026 Tour de France have prompted stark concern from Jerome Coppel and Jerome Pineau, with both former professionals questioning what remains of the rider who once shaped the race through his aggression and exuberance.

The two-time world champion finished last on stage 11 in Nevers, more than seven minutes behind Soren Waerenskjold, after being dropped from a modest four-rider breakaway and later losing contact with the peloton.

“But what hurts me most is his interview this evening,” Coppel told RMC. “I didn’t recognise him. He has lost his joy for life. You can sense that mentally, things are not right.”

Coppel was alarmed not only by Alaphilippe’s result, but by the sight of him forcing an attack on terrain designed for the sprinters before fading badly once the road began to rise.

“We would like to see the Julian we knew, who was always at the front,” he said. “I feel sad for him because I know how he trains, the sacrifices he makes and his love for the Tour. It is hard to see him attacking on a stage like this, one designed for the sprinters. It is an admission of weakness.”

Alaphilippe spent close to 100 kilometres at the front alongside three companions, but was unable to follow on the category-four Cote de Billy-Chevannes, 36 kilometres from the finish. He was subsequently caught and dropped by the peloton before crossing the line 174th and last.

Former rider and team manager Pineau delivered an even harsher verdict on the 34-year-old’s current level. “There is clearly something wrong,” he said. “He is dragging himself around. He is there because he carries a name, because he is a brand. But unfortunately, you can say the Julian era is over. It has become too difficult for him to have an impact and it is sad. It is the end of a phenomenon. He is going to have to make the right decisions for the end of his career.”

Alaphilippe offered a bleak assessment of his own condition after the stage, having briefly spoken to the waiting media before disappearing into the Tudor team bus. “I felt good at the start, then it began to get hot,” he said. “I immediately had the same sensations as in recent days, which is to say nothing particularly good.”

Stage 11 continued a Tour in which Alaphilippe has been unable to threaten a stage victory or recreate the attacking presence that made him one of the race’s most recognisable figures.

His preparation had already been compromised by illness and an interrupted spring. He withdrew from Itzulia Basque Country, failed to finish the Amstel Gold Race and La Fleche Wallonne, and missed Liege-Bastogne-Liege while Tudor prioritised his recovery.

Fifth place at GP Gippingen provided some encouragement before the Grand Depart, but no comparable result has followed in the opening half of the Tour. His stage 11 move was his most sustained appearance at the front, yet ended with him being distanced on a fourth-category climb.

The contrast with his best years is severe. Alaphilippe has won six Tour stages, claimed the mountains classification in 2018 and spent 14 days in yellow during his unexpected general classification challenge in 2019.

He won in Epernay and the Pau individual time trial during that campaign before finishing fifth overall in Paris. Another victory followed on the opening stage of the 2021 Tour, weeks before he retained the rainbow jersey at the World Championships.

His most recent success came at the Grand Prix Cycliste de Quebec in September 2025, but he has not carried that form into the current season. Alaphilippe remains under contract with Tudor through 2027 and has not indicated that retirement is imminent.

Six years after carrying yellow deep into the mountains and five years after his last Tour stage victory, his most prominent contribution to the 2026 race ended with him being dropped from the breakaway and finishing alone at the back of the field.