Bicycle Racing News and Opinion,
Thursday, March 12, 2026

Back to news and opinion index page for links to archived stories | Commentary | Our YouTube page
2025 Tour de France | 2025 Giro d'Italia

I am fond of pigs. Dogs look up to us. Cats look down on us. Pigs treat us as equals. - Winston Churchill

---

James Witherell's book Bicycle History: A Chronological History of People, Races and Technology is available in both print and Kindle eBook formats. To get your copy just click on the Amazon link on the right.

Current racing:

• March 8 - March 15: Paris-Nice
• March 9 - 15: Tirreno-Adriatico

Upcoming racing:

• March 18: Danilith Nokere Koerse
• March 18: Milano-Torino
• March 19: GP de Denain
• March 20: Bredene Koksijde Classic
• March 21: Milano-Sanremo

Latest completed racing:

• March 7: Strade Bianche
• March 4: Trofeo Laigueglia
• March 3: Le Samyn Classic
• February 25 - March 1: Giro di Sardegna
• March 1: Faun Drome Classic
• March 1: Kuurne-Brussel-Kuurne
• February 28: Omloop Het Nieuwsblad
• February 28: Faun Ardèche Classic
• February 22: Tour des Alpes Maritimes

---

Paris-Nice stage four reports

We posted the race organizer's report with the results.

Here's the report from stage winner and new GC leader Jonas Vingegaard's Team Visma | Lease a Bike:

Jonas Vingegaard has won the fourth stage of Paris-Nice. The 29-year-old Dane reached the finish line in Uchon solo after an extremely difficult stage. Thanks to this victory, Vingegaard will wear the yellow leaders jersey tomorrow.

The start of the fourth stage had barely been given when the race exploded. The crosswinds were used to create echelons and splits in the peloton. Vingegaard and Edoardo Affini were alert and part of a large leading group. The pace remained high throughout, preventing any groups coming back.

With 40 kilometres to go, the 40 leaders were shaken up by a crash involving, among others, general classification leader Juan Ayuso. As a result of the crash, the group broke in two and Vingegaard was left alone at the front on behalf of Team Visma | Lease a Bike. He took on four riders from Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe and managed to beat them all on the final climb.

Vingegaard, dressed in an unusual fit, reached the finish line solo and gained more than forty seconds on the runner-up, Daniel Felipe Martinez. His victory also makes Vingegaard the new leader in the general classification. "I am incredibly happy and proud to have won a stage like this. This was probably one of the hardest-fought victories of my career", he said.

Jonas Vingegaard wins the stage with lots of clothes on.

"It was full gas right from the start. The conditions didn't help. I think a lot of people were very cold, but luckily that didn't bother me. I had chosen to wear a lot of clothes and that was a good decision. Maybe I'm now a trendsetter by wearing my bibs over my jersey, but I just didn't have time to take any clothes off along the way."

Here's the Paris-Nice report from Casper Pedersen's Team Soudal Quick-Step:

It was a crazy day in France, one of the most eventful in the recent history of the event. “The Race to the Sun” turned into a race of attrition, due to the lashing rain, strong winds and low temperatures which shattered the peloton in the opening hour and completely altered the expected dynamic of the stage, transforming the general classification.

The horrible conditions quickly splintered the peloton, leaving only 40 riders in the peloton, including Pascal Eenkhoorn. The Dutchman managed to stay there until the final 60 kilometers, when attacks reduced the group to just a dozen riders. From there, Jonas Vingegaard (Visma-Lease a Bike) took the victory on the uphill finish in Uchon, moving into the overall lead.

The peloton in echelons in the windy, wet weather. ASO photo

Casper Pedersen took to the podium for the fourth consecutive day, to receive another KOM jersey. The 29-year-old Dane, who sits at the top of this classification since Sunday, became the first Soudal Quick-Step rider to amass four best climber’s jersey at a single edition of Paris-Nice.

Here's the report from Kevin Vauquelin's Team INEOS Grenadiers:

Kévin Vauquelin fought to stay in GC contention after a rain-swept stage four of Paris-Nice which was won by Jonas Vingegaard (Visma-Lease-a-bike).

Vauquelin was caught behind a split in the peloton in early crosswinds and battled in the chase groups to stay in touch for the majority of the stage before accelerating on the final climb to finish sixth, dropping to fourth overall.

On the start line in the rain..

Oscar Onley bounced back from a crash and an ill-timed biek issue which saw him need to swap bikes in the final 50 kilometres as the pace increased in the lead group.

He finished in the top 20, but dropped from GC contention to 14th overall, 8:37 behind race leader Vingegaard.

Tirreno-Adriatico stage three reports

We posted the race organizer's report with the results.

Here's the Tirreno-Adriatico stage three report from second-place Arnaud De Lie's Team Lotto-Intermarché:

Arnaud De Lie secured a solid second place in the third stage of Tirreno-Adriatico. In the sprint finish, he had to concede to Tobias Lund Andresen. “I just missed that little bit of energy, but this is good for the confidence,” he said.
Lotto–Intermarché saw a particularly long day– the riders had to cover no less than 221 kilometres between Cortona and Magliano de’ Marsi– rewarded with a fine second place for Arnaud De Lie. The result came after excellent positioning work from Huub Artz in a hectic sprint. “We expected the sprint to unfold like that,” De Lie explained. “Nothing really happened during the race. It was quite straightforward– eat, drink and save as much energy as possible– until the final 20 kilometres. In other words: everyone was still fresh.”

Tobias Andresen wins Tirreno-Adriatico stage three. Sirotti photo

In the end, De Lie had to acknowledge Andresen (Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale) as the stronger rider, but he finished ahead of Jasper Philipsen (Alpecin-Deceuninck). “Of course it’s a pity. With 600 metres to go I just missed that little bit of energy needed to win. Sometimes you win, sometimes you learn. Today I learned that the strongest rider won. And that can always be someone else. Of course I came here to win, but this is Tirreno-Adriatico, not a small race. So I can be happy with this second place. It’s good for me, for the team and for the confidence.”

Back to news and opinion index page for links to archived stories | Commentary