Lidl-Trek satisfied with missing Tour de France podium thanks to Pedersen's green jersey: 'Outstanding again, unbelievable'

Lidl-Trek came to compete for podium spots, but the German team realized during the final week that it was no longer within reach. Mattias Skjelmose finished fifth in the Tour de France, and Juan Ayuso finished seventh. Despite that, team director Steven de Jongh is satisfied, especially with the prize the team did manage to secure: Mads Pedersen’s green jersey.

On Stage 19, the balance of power within the Lidl-Trek team became clear. Mattias Skjelmose finished eighth on Alpe d'Huez, while Juan Ayuso lost a lot of time and finished 17th. But the Spaniard, who started the Tour as team leader, showed his fighting spirit in the queen stage of Stage 20. With a second finish on Alpe d'Huez, he hoped to break into the top five.

For a long time, things looked good, but on the final climb—the Col de Sarenne—he ran out of steam. He had to drop back from the leaders and was eventually caught by the favorites. He rode to the finish alongside Skjelmose and Paul Seixas, who had also been dropped: the Lidl-Trek teammates finished eighth and ninth, and remained sixth and seventh in the general classification.

Team Director De Jongh looked back on the stage and the Tour de France in an interview with NOS . “I’m very satisfied. We tried to go for fifth place, but unfortunately, we didn’t succeed. Juan didn’t have the legs, but we’d already seen that over the last few days. Still, I respect him for giving it his all. Skjelly couldn’t keep up, so that was a shame. They’ll stay where they are.”

Ayuso came into the Tour de France with high hopes after his excellent performance in the Tour Auvergne–Rhône-Alpes, but he couldn’t keep up with the top riders. Still, there’s no sign of dissatisfaction at Lidl-Trek, thanks mainly to Pedersen. The Dane won the fourth stage and defended his green jersey tooth and nail. He did the same in the Alps. In the queen stage, he was back in contention and picked up crucial points.

With the 25 points in the intermediate sprint, he secured the jersey. “Mads was outstanding again—unbelievable,” De Jongh laughs. “I have deep respect for him; he wasn’t with the lead group on the Croix de Fer when those guys broke away. But he still managed to catch up to that first group, and that meant the green jersey was in the bag, at least. He had said he’d take the points on the Croix de Fer, and he kept his word.”