Results Tour de Luxembourg 2026 Stage 4 - Davide Piganzoli on fire again as he takes narrowest time trial win; Mathieu van der Poel finishes 61st
CyclingSaturday, 19 September 2026 at 18:33
Davide Piganzoli has reinforced his lead at the Tour de Luxembourg, taking a narrow victory on Saturday's stage 4 time trial. The Visma | Lease a Bike leader put in a strong first half against the clock that proved decisive as he extended his lead over his general classification rivals.
Starting and finishing in Ettelbruck, the route was 20 kilometers long. In its first third, there is a climb that is 900 meters long at 10%. There was no recovery from the climb, instead a plateau section leading to the race's intermediate point. A small climb will follow, whilst the final 3 kilometers will be fully downhill all the way to the finish line.
UAE Team Emirates - XRG rider Julius Johansen set the early benchmark as expected. The Danish time trial specialist - one of the few at the race - took the hot seat early as he set a time of 27:08 - ahead of Emiel Verstrynge and Miguel Heidemann.
However, as riders closer in the general classification came later in the day, Leo Hayter was the first to threaten his lead as well as Dylan van Baarle, with both setting times faster than him at the intermediate checkpoint. Andrea Raccagni soon followed as second faster than Hayter as it became clear Johansen's time may be beaten.
Mathieu van der Poel
All eyes on Mathieu van der Poel as he kicks off time trial
All eyes were on Mathieu van der Poel as the Dutchman started his time trial soon after, but any speculation as to whether he would target a stage win seemed shut down quickly at the intermediate checkpoint as he posted a 14th fastest provisional time, already 46 seconds down on the front of affairs. He ultimately came in 61st and 2:44 off the winning pace.
Hayter would in fact dethrone Johansen in the meantime - besting him by as little as 0.27 seconds as van Baarle missed out on the lead. But Raccagni soon arrived, overshadowing Hayter's time as he put 16 seconds into the British rider.
With The general classification top ten all on the road in the final 30 minutes, Raccagni's time was no GC threat. Another noteworthy finisher was Soren kragh Andersen, who impressed with a time close to Johansen and 16 seconds down on Raccagni provisionally.
GC riders do battle in race against the clock
Aurelien Paret-Peintre was the first of the final riders to threaten Raccagni's lead, posting a time just 0.6 seconds faster at the intermediate. The Decathlon rider faded slightly in the flatter finale, drifting to finish 6th on the stage.
Of the final four, Igor Arrieta struggled to keep the pace, finishing 16th on the stage. Total Energies dueo Matteo Vercher and Thomas Gachignard came into the day third and second respectively while Davide Piganzoli was out last in the leader's jersey by just a few seconds.
Vercher, bested Arrieta to finish 11th on the stage, while Gachignard faired not much better as he set a respectable time to finish 12th on the stage. Meanwhile, concluding the day, Piganzoli was setting the course ablaze - eclipsing Paret-Peintre's provisional best time and seemingly on his way to victory and control of GC with over 14 seconds of a lead at the intermediate point.
In the battle for the stage win, Piganzoli was clearly the best until last as he beat but held on by the samllest of margins as he had 0.02 seconds to spare on Raccagni in second place. Meanwhile, Hayter's earlier time was good enough for third place on the day.
The general classification picture is now clear going into the final day. Davide Piganzoli has a comfortable grip on the lead of the race, boasting a gap of 47 and 49 seconds on Vercher and Gachignard respectively. Paret-Peintre's strong time trial puts him in fourth place at 54 seconds off the lead.
Results Tour de Luxembourg 2026 Stage 4
Gavin QuinnCycling Journalist
Gavin Quinn is a cycling journalist and ultra-distance cyclist with a BA in Journalism from Dublin City University. Formerly the Press & Communications Officer for Cycling Ireland, Gavin has worked inside the national team at the World Championships and has reported for the Irish Mirror, Mirror UK, and The42.
His expertise is backed by elite-level access, having interviewed stars like Sam Bennett and Ben Healy, as well as immense personal endurance. In 2025, he completed a 12,000km solo cycle from Ireland to Vietnam, following a 4,600km tour across Europe. From the cobbles of Paris-Roubaix to the gradients of the Tourmalet, Gavin’s writing focuses on the "romance and brutality" of the sport. Having visited 50+ countries, he brings a global, cultural perspective to his coverage of the pro peloton for CyclingUpToDate.
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