Jai Hindley enters the final block of mountain stages in the podium of the Tour de France. Whilst the explosive racing of Jonas Vingegaard and Tadej Pogacar has taken over the spotlight, the Australian continues a very strong and consistent race and faces a tough challenge to remain in the Top3 at the Grand Colombier.
"I’ve never ridden the Grand Colombier but I think it will be super tough and yeah, it’s the Tour de France so it’s going to be really hard and we’ll be racing up there full noise. It should be cool," Hindley said at the end of stage 12. Another hard day on the bike, which the leader of BORA - hansgrohe survived. After a very strong opening week he looks to continue his run of form all the way into Paris.
The heat and the overall fatigue that this Tour is putting on the riders will be felt for many this afternoon on the slopes of the 17-kilometer ascent, Hindley has got 1:42 minutes over Carlos Rodríguez, his closest chaser in the overall classification. However he remains wary that much of the race is still left to run, and many stages will be just as he important.
“We have a lot of tough stages coming up. I’m sure the time trial will be crucial, it’s a really tough TT. Stage 17 with Col de la Loze, I think this climb is pretty epic and will probably be one of the toughest of the race, also going to high altitude, and then with a tricky descent and then finishing on the landing strip there," he concludes. "That’s a monster day, and if you’re not having a good day on that stage, you can lose a lot of time. And I think also [stage] 15, the finish to Mont Blanc, that’s also epic with a really tough finish. I’m actually pretty keen.”
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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.
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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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- 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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🇫🇷 #TDF2023 Taking place in the Ain department, the big challenge of the day awaits the riders on the Grand Colombier, at around 17.5km with an average gradient of over 7%. 📍 Châtillon-sur-Chalaronne ➡️ Grand Colombier 🚩 Start 13:45 🏁 Finish ca. 17:20 🛣️ 168.8km
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