Stage 8

The road

At the start

The Tour reaches the mountains

Yesterday's escape rearranged everything: Van der Poel leads Asgreen by 1:49 and Pogačar is fifth at 3:43, five minutes lost to a breakaway along with every other favourite. It is unlikely to matter for long. Today crosses into Haute-Savoie and stacks three first-category climbs into the finale — Mont-Saxonnex, the Col de Romme, the Colombière — then drops to Le Grand-Bornand.

How it was won

1. 147 km to go

   The break fragments

   On the first real mountain of the 2021 Tour the escape comes apart. Woods attacks out of the wreckage, bridges to Andersen and instantly leaves him behind.

2. 233 km to go

   Pogačar rides away from the Tour

   Four kilometres from the summit of the Col de Romme the yellow jersey race ends. Pogačar attacks and only Carapaz can go with him; three kilometres from the top he asks the Ecuadorian to work, gets nothing, and simply kicks again. Carapaz is gone. From here the 22-year-old rides alone through the debris of the breakaway, and by the finish he will have put more than three minutes into every rival he has.

3. 329 km to go

   Over the Romme

   Woods crests 1:10 clear of the chase, but the number that matters is behind: Pogačar is already 1:10 up on Carapaz and a further minute up on everything left of the GC group.

4. 415 km to go

   Past them all in the big ring

   On the upper slopes of the Colombière, Pogačar sweeps by Dan Martin and Poels as though they are standing still, then Yates. Two kilometres from the top he is fifty seconds off the stage win; Carapaz is 2:40 back and cracking.

5. 5At the line

   Teuns takes the stage, Pogačar takes the Tour

   Dylan Teuns descends cleanly to win in Le Grand-Bornand. Behind him Pogačar pulls on yellow with a lead that will never seriously be threatened again.

The result