"Truly a dream come true" - Mauro Schmid overcomes difficult Tour start to take career-changing victory
CyclingFriday, 17 July 2026 at 19:41
Mauro Schmid is a rider who has had a tremendous spring this year, but hadn't been able to bring that form into his summer block. Today at the Tour de France, the Swiss rider returned to showing his best level, and has taken the biggest win of his career in Belfort after a tremendous collective performance.
“It was a terribly tough day. We have tried it often with the team over the past few days, but it never went as planned," Schmid admitted in a post-race interview. Initially Schmid was isolated in a group of around 40 riders that went up the road early in the day, but he was then joined by three teammates: Luke Plapp, Ben O'Connor and Michael Matthews.
"I felt good from the start of the stage, but it was really full throttle in the first part. I was lucky that some guys came from the front, so I could conserve my energy. That was perfect.”
Team Jayco AlUla with a perfect day
The number's game was crucial. Ben O'Connor paced up the Ballon d'Alsace and kept the pace under control, but not overly high so as to not burn the legs of the classics specialist and also Michael Matthews. The attacks of Maxim van Gils and Jordan Jegat would thin down the group, to a point where Schmid and Plapp were the two riders represented in front.
"I was ultimately the lucky one who could finish it off, but it really was a team effort. We worked very hard for this. So it’s not so much a victory for me, but for the whole team," Schmid was keen to point out.
The duo thrived on the final flat part of the race, timing their winning move to perfection. "Plapp, who was able to neutralize so many counter-attacks, played a big role. And then Michael Matthews and Ben O’Connor who set the pace on the climb…”
“It was good that it was more of a stop-and-go situation in the breakaway. That suits me better. I also knew that Bling (Michael Matthews, ed.) was still riding in the second group, that’s why in the first part of the descent I just had to try not to get dropped," he explains.
When he tried, "When the pace dropped a bit, I tried it once and then I stayed away… This is truly a dream come true. I have worked so hard for this. I think I’m going to need a few hours to realize what has happened.”
Mauro Schmid heading into the final sprint with Harold Tejada
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Schmid attacked together with Harold Tejada inside the final 20 kilometers of the stage and the duo managed to hold off the chasing group, led by the likes of Tom Pidcock and UAE duo Brandon McNulty and Tim Wellens. A final sprint would decide the stage, the very same scenario as in last year's stage 11 in Toulouse where Schmid was joined by Jonas Abrahamsen.
“I kept thinking about the sprint against Abrahamsen the whole time. About four kilometers from the finish, I got a cramp, which made me a bit worried about the sprint. Two kilometers from the line, I hoped Tejada would keep riding all the way to the finish, but at a certain point, he forced me to take over again".
But the final sprint favoured him, the Swiss rider took his fifth win of the year. "I think I started a bit late. For the first fifty meters of the sprint, I really thought for a moment that it would end just like last year. When I saw the finish line again, I found my legs again," he 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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Andrew17-07-2026 - What a fascinating moment of letting Pidcock, who has already been on a GT podium, back into the hunt for the podium. Will he make it through the coming mountains? Evidence suggests he will fall back down in the rankings. But who knows, maybe he and his team have different reasons to fight for the podium now. I guess I was surprised that the teams he leapfrogged didn't fight harder to protect their positions (that, or they really think he's going to drop back down quickly).RidesHills17-07-2026
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