Jonas Vingegaard waits for Tadej Pogacar after crash in 'incredible' sporting moment at Tour de France
:focal(136x152:138x150)/origin-imgresizer.eurosport.com/2015/11/13/1731704-36632322-310-310.png)
Updated 21/07/2022 at 16:30 GMT
One of the most memorable chapters in Tour de France history was written on Thursday when Jonas Vingegaard, moments after almost crashing, sat up to wait for Tadej Pogacar, who had crashed. The yellow jersey contestants have lit up this year’s race with a string of remarkable attacks in the mountains, with Vingegaard in pole position to win his first Grand Tour in Paris on Sunday.
‘Wow’ – Vingegaard allows Pogacar to catch up after crash in ‘incredible’ gesture
An incredible act of sportsmanship saw Tour de France leader Jonas Vingegaard (Jumbo-Visma) slow down to allow Tadej Pogacar (UAE Team Emirates) to catch up after the two-time champion crashed on a fast and furious descent.
An astonishing passage on Stage 18 saw Pogacar go for broke on the final descent in the knowledge he had to overturn a 2’18” deficit on the final day in the Pyrenees.
The Slovenian quickly forced a mistake from his rival as Vingegaard swerved wildly out of a corner – only avoiding a nasty crash by unclipping his left shoe and veering dangerously across the road.
“There is a gap, the pedal is out. Pogacar accelerates. This could be one of the moments,” cried Rob Hatch on Eurosport commentary.
“That’s the pressure we talked about.”
But the drama was far from over. The Dane shrugged off the wobble to quickly latch back onto Pogacar, who then overcooked a corner and slid out on the gravel on the outside of the road.
“And now it’s Pogacar who makes the mistake!” continued Hatch.
“Vingegaard is ahead, Pogacar down. It’s him pushing it on too hard who loses control. Pogacar trying to push the envelope, it’s been ripped up though in front of him.”
As Pogacar clambered out of a shallow ditch, Vingegaard disappeared down the road. The Tour appeared a done deal.
But in a remarkable twist, Vingegaard decided to coast down the mountain and wait for the man whose aggressive riding had almost unseated him just moments earlier.
An iconic moment in Tour de France history was rounded off with the pair reuniting and shaking hands.
“Wow, what a moment. That is incredible," said Hatch.
"The race leader, being challenged by the man who’s trying to push it, waits and allows Pogacar back and then shakes his hand."
Robbie McEwen added: “Brilliant sporting move from Vingegaard.
“A great sporting gesture that has not gone unnoticed by Tadej Pogacar. The yellow jersey under attack on a downhill, but when the man making the attacks makes a mistake, the jersey waits for him.”
A thrilling episode concluded with Pogacar summoning his team car and having an animated discussion with those inside, with McEwen suggesting they might have been telling him to attack.
- - -
Stream the Tour de France live and on-demand on discovery+. You can also watch all the action live on eurosport.co.uk.
Scan me
Related Topics
Share this article
Advertisement
Advertisement