1 : THE RAINBOW ALPE
Winner at Alpe d’Huez this Friday by climbing the 13.8-kilometre ascent at an average speed of 23.4 km/h, Tadej Pogacar became the first reigning world champion to triumph at the Isère ski resort in the thirty-two times the race has finished there. Earlier in this year's edition, he had already become the first wearer of the rainbow jersey to crossed first the Col du Tourmalet. The Slovenian, who also claimed his 26th career Tour de France stage victory, is only the second Yellow Jersey wearer to raise his arms in triumph at the summit of this legendary climb, following eight years later the British Geraint Thomas.
12 : MASTER OF THE SUMMITS
By adding his name to the prestigious list of winners at Alpe d’Huez, Tadej Pogacar has secured a twelfth Tour summit victory for his record. In doing so, the two-time world champion raised his arms in triumph for the sixteenth time in his career at the top of a major Grande Boucle climb. After opening his account at the Col du Grand Colombier in 2020, the Slovenian then conquered the slopes of La Planche des Belles Filles (2020 and 2022), Col du Portet and Luz-Ardiden in 2021, Peyragudes (2022 and 2025), Cauterets-Cambasque (2023), Pla d’Adet, Plateau de Beille, Isola 2000 and Col de la Couillole in 2024, and finally Les Angles and Gavarnie-Gèdre this year. These successes represent an all-time record in this elite category of climbers. His closest rival is the Belgian Lucien Van Impe, who holds eight victories on the slopes of Les Ménuires, Orcières-Merlette, Puy-de-Dôme and Pyrénées 2000, as well as two wins each at Avoriaz and Pla d’Adet.
2 : POGACAR COPIES FAUSTO
Tadej Pogacar joins the "Campionissimo". By winning at Alpe d’Huez, the Slovenian became the second rider to crossed the Col du Tourmalet and the climb of the 21 bends in first position during the same edition of the race. Before him, only Fausto Coppi, two-time Tour winner (1949 and 1952), had managed to achieve such a feat in the year of his second victory.
4 : VICTORIES GALORE
Dominant in the mountains since the start of this Tour de France, Tadej Pogacar has won a stage for the fifth time this year. While he has not yet matched his 2024 record (six wins), the Slovenian has become the fourth rider in the last fifty years to claim at least five stage victories in two separate editions of the Grande Boucle. Pogacar thus joins Belgian Freddy Maertens (8 wins in 1976 and 5 in 1981), French Bernard Hinault (7 wins in 1979 and 5 in 1981) and British Mark Cavendish, who achieved the feat in three consecutive Tours (6 wins in 2009, and 5 in both 2010 and 2011).
80 : SLOVENIA CELEBRATES ITS OAK WEDDING WITH YELLOW
By consolidating his overall lead on the slopes of Alpe d’Huez, Tadej Pogacar has secured Slovenia’s 80th Yellow Jersey. The two-time world champion has claimed sixty-nine of them himself since 2020, with the other eleven worn that same year by Primoz Roglic, who finished second overall.
19 : THE HAIRPINS FEEL YOUNG AGAIN
At 19 years and 10 months old, Paul Seixas became the first rider under the age of 20 to climb Alpe d’Huez in the history of the Tour de France, breaking the record for youngest rider to do so previously held by Jean Le Guilly. Le Guilly had tackled the 21 hairpins (finishing 17th) when they were first introduced to the Tour in 1952, at the age of 20 years, 5 months and 17 days. Thanks to his performance on the day (9th place), Seixas logically became the youngest rider to break into the top 10 of a stage finishing at the Isère ski resort. In doing so, he displaced Jan Nolten, who finished 8th in 1952 at the age of 22 years, 5 months and 14 days.
3 : FRANCE STILL WITHOUT A WIN
Part of the day’s breakaway, Lenny Martinez finished second at the summit of Alpe d’Huez this Friday, securing not only his first Tour podium but also the best result for France in this year’s race. The climber thus outperformed Paul Seixas, who finished third at Le Lioran and Le Markstein. Notably, this marks only the third time in history that the host nation has remained winless by the end of stage 19. Furthermore, the statistics do not favor a potential French victory before the race reaches Paris, as the country has never claimed its first stage win on either stage 20 or stage 21. To date, only two editions of the Tour, in 1926 and 1999, have concluded without a French victory.
4 : CARAPAZ DOES IT AGAIN
Just as the day before, Richard Carapaz spent 124 kilometres in the breakaway on the stage to L’Alpe d’Huez, covering the distance at an average speed of 38.8 km/h. A key figure in the battle for the polka-dot jersey — which he now wears — as well as the fight for the stage win (finishing 3rd), the Ecuadorian claimed the combativity award for the fourth time this year. This achievement sees the climber equal the record held since 1979 by Giovanni Battaglin for the most combativity awards won in a single edition over the last half-century. Carapaz now holds a three-award lead over his teammate Ben Healy, his closest rival among this year's competitors.
