Mathieu van der Poel is without a doubt one of the stars of the Tour de France's first week. After several successful stages and a few days in the yellow jersey, the Dutchman has today joined the day's breakaway to recapture the lead of the Tour de France by a single second over Tadej Pogacar.
"I have no idea how I did this. I don't know how I got through the last thirty kilometers, but I'm happy to have regained the jersey by just one second," van der Poel said in an interview with several media outlets including Wielerflits after the finish. "I was pretty exhausted at the finish. I didn't feel great today, but I was in the right frame of mind. I was pushing myself all day, and by the end, I was completely exhausted."
It was a day that started off with van der Poel aiming for points at the intermediate sprint, possibly marking his change in approach to the green jersey. "That took so much energy that it took a long time before I got back to the front. The moment I broke through, I saw it happening. I decided to join the attack, and I was right there. Initially, I felt a bit of regret, because I was pushing myself. In the end, it was just a battle against myself."
It's not the first time the Alpecin-Deceuninck rider has been part of an elite Tour breakaway on a day well suited to his abilities, but stage 6 proved to be too much of an obstacle for the already-fatigued Dutchman. He can't be blamed after winning stage 2 to Boulogne-sur-Mer and keeping hold of the yellow jersey into the fifth stage's Caen time-trial. Despite struggling a lot in the final and being the last out of the group of eight to cross the finish line, it was enough to get the maillot jaune back in his shoulders.
"At one point, it looked good, but you know there's another acceleration coming from the peloton. I never thought about a big lead, and in the end, it's only a one-second difference." It was just about enough, miraculously, for the Alpecin-Deceuninck rider to go back into the podium, whilst he also made improvements in the points classification standings.
But tomorrow will already be a challenge to retain it, as he holds 1 second over Tadej Pogacar into the Tour de France. "I hope I can recover after today. If you see how Pogacar and Vingegaard have been riding these last few days... If they go all out on the Mûr-de-Bretagne, it will be very difficult".
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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)...
Within 18 months of launch, he helped grow CyclingUpToDate’s English-language platform into one of the most-read cycling news websites, built entirely from the ground up. As both a professional journalist and lifelong cycling enthusiast, his focus remains on delivering accurate, timely, and well-contextualized coverage.
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- many people advise him to grow slowly and rather do giro and/or vuelta instead of tdf. but i can totally understand that he is not satisfied with taking over once pogi declines, but instead beat him in his prime. so if he goes for tdf again, i‘m all for it. let‘s hope that pogi recovers soon!Ketterechts07-11-2026
- So gracious to offer something no-one would be prepared to pay for. The Giro is not the Tour and doesn’t command the same interest or attract the same “elite” (those willing to pay to be a part of something they consider has ego boosting potential). Roadside viewing will always largely remain free for everyone outside circuits. Introduction of a symbolic entrance to mountain climbs is worthy of exploration. Asking 1-2€ isn’t going to repulse real fans (most will spend 50-100€ on their outing that day all things included) but will prevent a portion of the total knobhead thrillseekers who will join in any large gathering as long as it’s free, just because they’re attracted to crowds, without which it it difficult for them to work up their anti-social behaviour.Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- How is radio going to help when someone went over a cliff or bridge or off the roadside into a forest unnoticed and is laying there unconscious?Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- Yep, next we’ll be accusing F1 drivers of avoiding Le Mans.Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- But on what is that opinion based? Are you holding him to a different standard than others? Are you saying he should do learn to like something he doesn’t Are you saying he hasn’t achieved enough Are you saying he pretends to be better than his results? It’s actually a really strange opinion to oust if you consider it objectively or rationally. Try applying it to others or yourself by asking if not EVERYONE should then be doing more? Nobody in athletics or swimming gets criticism for not expanding their repertoire when a rival or someone else does. In fact, most who move to another event get accused of running from their rival. Opinions are boring, the reasons behind them are what count.Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- for a medical chief to throw things like is just bad. There are already radios which were banned for spectacle. allow radios. Gps trackers are not a complete solutionabstractengineer07-11-2026
- Yeah man...PogiSloFans07-11-2026
- any rider less than 25 whether they are really ready for the position of leadership of GT is probably not the case. I think Pogi himself suffered when he was defeated by Jonas in the TDF twice. But that would be the team's job to ensure support so that they can bounce back. It requires a team and time to get back up and win after getting knocked down.abstractengineer07-11-2026
- I'm very glad he got the big late Quickstep Vuelta win and I hope he has a few left for Euskaltel-Euskadi.flyer07-11-2026
- My memories of Ivan Basso aren't good but I liked his sister Elisa ok.flyer07-11-2026
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