"I managed to calm him down" - Mathieu van der Poel and Jasper Philipsen work together towards Tour de France coup in Voiron
Cycling
Alpecin - Premier Tech are a team of classics specialists and today's stage 17 at the Tour de France was a day where that ability became incredibly useful. Jasper Philipsen took a victory from a breakaway sprint; mentored by Mathieu van der Poel and aided by their teammates that were constantly in the right place at the right time.
The stage featured 174 kilometers, 2400 meters of climbing and an average speed of above 47Km/h. That is a solid display of a day where the speed was high from start to finish. With the day's breakaway seemingly established early in the day, Mathieu van der Poel looked alive to the occasion on plenty occasions.
When Mads Pedersen headed up the road with a small group, Edward Planckaert covered the attack and the Belgian's lack of proper cooperation led the move of the Dane to collapse - and later on for the finale to be decided in a sprint. But even then, Jasper Philipsen had to deliver, getting himself in a breakaway after it had looked to be firm; and then also have the legs in the sprint.
“It was a rollercoaster of emotions. I had to wait until stage seventeen. I prepared well and am in the form of my life, but the first twelve days were terrible," an emotional Philipsen admitted." I couldn't find myself or the feeling I was hoping for. To then win after seventeen stages… I really won for the team. They kept believing in me".
"I have to thank everyone. I was like an angry bird at the table. I was disappointed that I couldn't win a stage. The team had to deal with that. This one is for them. We kept fighting until this stage". Philipsen was often angry after the sprint finishes in the first weeks of the Tour, missing out on wins, even though on several instances Mathieu van der Poel had delivered him to the line in pole position.
Van der Poel and Philipsen have once again worked together to achieve glory for Alpecin - Premier Tech
With the general consensus being that stage 17 would be won by a breakaway, Philipsen's chances were not bright. The sprinter brought the triumph back to the Alpecin bus, but it came at a cost of his own efforts as he did not rely on a regular peloton sprint to achieve it.
He was not part of the initial breakaway groups and struggled on the climbs - but then found himself attacking off the peloton in time of still catching the breakaway locomotive.
“This victory cost me a few years of my life. I was fighting between the groups," he described. "I thought the stage was lost, but the team kept believing. We tried to make a plan. In the end, they were super strong and brought me well towards the finish line.”
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Philipsen doubted himself and deleted Instagram during difficult Tour
Philipsen had a very difficult first week at the Tour, specially after expectations were set high following an overall win at the Baloise Belgium Tour that pointed towards excellent form.
“I did everything I could. I had a good preparation with the team. Maybe I wasn't myself because of the heat, or maybe it was something else. But the fact was that I wasn't at the level I was hoping for. Mentally, it was a rollercoaster. The shit you get on Instagram. I tried to stay in our own bubble with my teammates and work towards our own goals," he said, admitting that he also deleted Instagram from his phone following the criticism he had received.
This win put him further in range of the green jersey, now only 7 points behind Mads Pedersen - whilst Biniam Girmay was dropped out of the fight this Wednesday.
“Pedersen also picked up a lot of points in the intermediate sprints. The next stages will be tough, but we are going to fight until Paris,”
Mathieu van der Poel guided Jasper Philipsen to a much needed win
Mathieu van der Poel was a key part of this victory, leading out Philipsen in the final kilometer, but above all guiding and coordinating Alpecin's efforts throughout the day.
“I tried to react to everything all day and stay in the mix. I think we rode a very strong race as a team I stayed calm all day myself," Mathieu van der Poel shared with several news outlets including Wielerflits. "Olav Kooij was still in our group, so I knew the race was still going to be fought.”
When Pedersen was at the head of the race, and behind even Quinn Simmons looked to outsprint him at the intermediate sprint, it was understandable that Philipsen was getting pressured from all sides by Lidl-Trek. At such moments, the presence of van der Poel was key for Philipsen who had been at his limit just to be part of the front group.
“I told Jasper quite quickly that he needed to stay calm, to focus fully on the finish. As I said yesterday: we really had our sights set on this. That worked out well too. When the peloton was completely split apart, we had someone in a group everywhere. That is certainly part of the win.”
As a leadout man, van der Poel delivered perfectly once again, and helped the team's main goal for the Tour: “I think fifty points were handed out at the finish today, so he has gained some ground again. Jasper was half in a panic at the intermediate sprint, but I managed to calm him down pretty quickly so he could just focus on winning the stage. Then the points come naturally. He finished it off very nicely," the stage 9 winner concluded.
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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