Decathlon CMA CGM holds the key to race excitement on day 2 at Alpe d'Huez: 'No major problems'
CyclingSaturday, 25 July 2026 at 09:06
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Follow us on GoogleThe first stage of the Tour de France, finishing at Alpe d'Huez, is over. As expected, Tadej Pogacar took the win, which means the battle for the overall title now seems to be truly decided. Remco Evenepoel (Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe) also has a firm grip on second place, but the race for third place could still get very interesting.
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That’s how things stand right now, with only stages 20 and 21 remaining. Isaac del Toro holds third place, 9.42 minutes behind his UAE Emirates-XRG teammate Tadej Pogacar. Trailing Del Toro by 24 seconds is French hopeful Paul Seixas of Decathlon CMA CGM, who still has a chance on Saturday to make a run for the overall podium and the white jersey.
At the top of Alpe d'Huez, Tiesj Benoot gave an update on behalf of the French team. “Things are going really well. I think he’s still fourth in the general classification. He’s not losing any time, and that’s good. We’ll see on Saturday whether a podium finish is realistic. In any case, we’re going to give it our all.”
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Read more below the photo!
Tiesj Benoot had another strong race.
Benoot: 'We had a good plan'
"I think we had a good plan. Two of us were in the lead group. The plan was that after the first two or three kilometers up Alpe d’Huez, I’d make the move to join the leaders if possible. We tried that. I thought I was riding at my own pace, but it turned out to be just a little too fast.”
"On the Glandon, the main goal was to try to drop the other riders. We didn't quite succeed, but we have no regrets," said Benoot, who was also in awe of the view on Alpe d'Huez. “We knew it wouldn’t be easy. But Del Toro was just really strong today. You can’t help but respect that. Still, we showed some good things.”
Finally: How did Benoot feel about the huge crowds of fans at Alpe d'Huez? “Yeah, it was crazy, that’s for sure. Fortunately, I didn’t have any problems myself when I was pushing through... …no major problems, really. But it was incredibly crowded; they really should put up more barriers there.”
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Tom van der Salm (27) comes from the charming town of Zeilberg (Deurne) in the Netherlands and has been working as editor-in-chief & journalist at IDL Pro Cycling's parent site, In de Leiderstrui, since 2019. He travels with the peloton from the Tour de France to the AlUla Tour and from the World Championships in Rwanda or Canada to the Zilvermeercross in Mol. In his spare time he enjoys playing football, mountain biking, running, walking with his Labrador/Stabyhoun, investing, holidays, (specialty) beers, reading, cooking and watching sports & documentaries!
Contact: [email protected]
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Latest Comments
- - Qué tragedia. Muito respeito para a família. The investigator’s timeline helps, but still feels like a systemic safety failure on open-road races during descents.jeremya16-08-2026
- - Can someone explain what the broom wagon actually signifies? If it hadn’t passed, why was a civilian car allowed on course at all? I’m confused how those protocols work when riders are scattered.tourdeforce916-08-2026
- - Sorry, but this reads a bit like passing the buck. If signage was the only control at that junction, that’s not enough. A single marshal could have prevented this. Operational plan might’ve been followed, but was it adequate?gearguru3316-08-2026
- - If the GNR says it’s “humanly impossible” to cover every access point, shouldn’t organisers rethink neutral service positioning or add mobile motos for gaps on fast descents? This was a secondary access, but speed on that downhill made it primary in practice.jennifer1916-08-2026
- - Heartbreaking. The detail about the broom wagon not yet passing is crucial—explains why Finlay thought the road was still sealed. Condolences to his family and team. RIP Fin.robert6516-08-2026
- - Tears on the front row for NSN… goosebumps. Chapeau to the bunch for letting them lead the pace. Esto es el verdadero espíritu del ciclismo.julien15-08-2026
- - Not sure about the “put it in perspective” line referencing other deaths. I get what he meant, but it lands a little cold in this context. The sport must own its safety issues.jeremya15-08-2026
- - Sorry, bit confused—how was Tarling racing Portugal but commemorated in Norway? Are there multiple races at the same time and teams pay tribute across events?robert6515-08-2026
- - Poels speaks from a place of pain, you can feel it. Losing Gino still casts a shadow. His point about rising frequency of tragedies is worrying—UCI needs to accelerate road safety reforms, motos, convoy management, and race routing.sprocketspiny15-08-2026
- - Heartbreaking. RIP Finlay. The neutralised start and minute’s silence in Norway were handled with real class by the peloton.patriciaw15-08-2026
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