A thrilling opening stage of the Tour de France 2025 saw Jasper Philipsen sprint to glory in Lille. The race exploded through the wind but Alpecin-Deceuninck managed to take control in the finale with Mathieu Van der Poel and Kaden Groves to lead the Belgian star to a tenth stage win in the Tour. This one is very special as Philipsen also takes the Maillot Jaune for the first time in his career, ahead of Biniam Girmay (Intermarché-Wanty), his main rival from last year’s edition. Jonas Vingegaard’s Visma-Lease a Bike initiated the echelons and Tadej Pogacar (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) was also up there but the likes of Remco Evenepoel (Soudal Quick-Step), Primoz Roglic, Florian Lipowitz (Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe) and Carlos Rodriguez (Ineos Grenadiers) lost 39 seconds.
The wait is over, the riders are ready for the first pedal strokes of the 112th edition of the Tour de France! This year’s Grand Départ sees them get the race going with a 184.9-km loop around Lille Métropole, with a start and a finish set next to Vauban’s Citadel. The mostly flat course (3 categorised climbs, 1,150m of elevation) inspires sprinters, setting their eyes on the Maillot Jaune. But the magic of the Tour means everyone can dream of glory! The start neutral is set at 13:10 and the start proper at 13:40 after an 11-km parade.
First break
Mattéo Vercher (Total Energies) is the first attacker of the Tour 2025, as soon as the flag drops. He’s joined at the front by Jonas Rutsch (Intermarché-Wanty), Matis Le Berre (Arkéa-B&B Hotels), Bruno Armirail (Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale) and Benjamin Thomas (Cofidis).
The five leaders rapidly push their lead to 2 minutes to the bunch, led by Quinn Simmons (Lidl-Trek) and Silvan Dillier (Alpecin-Deceuninck). After a fierce battle dominated by Benjamin Thomas for the first KOM point of the race (at Côte de Notre-Dame-de-Lorette, summitted at km 41.2), the gap reaches its maximum for the day: 2’25’’.
First sprint
The peloton are wary of the wind and the tricky terrain. As the pace increases, the gap rapidly drops and riders like Filippo Ganna (Ineos Grenadiers), Stefan Bissegger (Decathlon AG2R La Modiale) and Thibau Nys (Lidl-Trek) after a bit more than 50 kilometres of racing. The early attackers are caught before the first intermediate sprint (km 87.5), won by Jonathan Milan (Lidl-Trek) ahead of Bryan Coquard (Cofidis), Biniam Girmay (Intermarché-Wanty) and Jasper Philipsen (Alpecin-Deceuninck).
After the sprint, Vercher attacks again. He’s followed by Thomas and the duo open a gap of 1 minute en route to the second categorised ascent of the day, Mont Cassel (km 139.7). At the top, Thomas narrowly edges Vercher… And the two men hit the deck. They’re caught by the bunch.
First echelons
Soudal Quick-Step put the hammer down with 77 kilometres and the peloton explodes. Riders such as Adam and Simon Yates are dropped while Lenny Martinez has a very bad day. The British twins get back to the bunch, the French man hangs on but it’s too much for Bissegger and Ganna, who are forced to abandon after crashing earlier in the race.
The situation settles again… Until Visma-Lease a Bike accelerate again into the last 20 kilometres. The peloton explodes - Remco Evenepoel (Soudal Quick-Step) is off the back, with Primoz Roglic and Florian Lipowitz (Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe), as well as Tim Merlier (Soudal Quick-Step), Jonathan Milan (Lidl-Trek) and Wout van Aert (Visma-Lease a Bike).
First Maillot Jaune
Alpecin-Deceuninck take control in this fast and furious run-in to the first Maillot Jaune. Mathieu Van der Poel launches Kaden Groves, who launches Philipsen. Nobody can come close to the Belgian sprinter, who takes victory with a significant margin on Biniam Girmay (Intermarché-Wanty) and Soren Waerenskjold.
Philipsen's tenth victory in the Tour de France comes with his first Maillot Jaune! On the line, the likes of Evenepoel and Roglic finish with a gap of 39 seconds.
