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Saturday, May 2, 2026
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Bill & Carol McGann's book The Story of the Tour de France, Vol 1: 1903 - 1975 is available in print, Kindle eBook & audiobook versions. To get your copy, just click on the Amazon link on the right.
Current racing:
- April 26 - May 3: Tour of Turkey
- April 28 - May 3: Tour de Romandie
Upcoming racing:
- May 8 - 31: Giro d'Italia
Latest completed racing:
- May 1: Eschborn-Frankfurt
- April 26: Giro dell'Appennino
- April 23 - 26: Vuelta Asturias
- April 26: Liège-Bastogne-Liège
- April 20 - 24: Tour of the Alps
- April 22: La Flèche Wallonne
- April 19: Amstel Gold Race
- April 15 - 19: Tour of Hainan
- April 14 - 18: O Gran Camiño
- April 17: De Brabantse Pijl
- April 19:
Tour du Doubsrace cancelled - April 12: Paris-Roubaix
- April 6 - 11: Itzulia Basque Country (Tour of the Basque Country)
- April 7 - 10: Région Pays de la Loire Tour
We posted the report from stage winner Dorian Godon's Team INEOS Grenadiers with the results.
Here's the Tour de Romandie stage three report from GC leader Tadej Pogacar's UAE Team Emirates-XRG:
After winning two stages on the bounce at the Tour de Romandie, Tadej Pogačar was forced to settle for fourth place on stage 3. Raced to and from Orbe in Switzerland, the fourth day of racing saw the honours contested in a 34-man reduced bunch sprint, won by Dorian Godon of Ineos Grenadiers.
Finishing strongly, Pogačar powered his way to fourth place at the finish, retaining his race lead of 17 seconds over Florian Lipowitz of Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe. In third place overall lies Lenny Martinez (Bahrain Victorious), who sits 26 seconds back on Pogačar with two days of racing to go.
Tadej Pogacar will start stage four in yellow. Sirotti photo
On stage 3, UAE Team Emirates-XRG kept a controlled pace in the peloton through the fine work of Vegard Stake Laengen and Ivo Oliveira, before Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe decided to keep the breakaway on a tight leash over the final climb. Their ambition was to sprint for the stage victory through Finn Fisher-Black, who ultimately came across the line in second.
With Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe, Lidl-Trek and Ineos Grenadiers all determined to squash the break’s aspirations, the race came together inside the final 10km. As Felix Grossschartner guided Pogačar into position, it was Godon who timed his sprint best to take the win.
With fourth place across the line, Pogačar handily retained his race lead and can now look forward to the weekend, where he will hope to win his first Tour de Romandie on debut.
Pogačar: “We kept it under control until the climb, we wanted to pace ourselves over the climb, but one team had other ideas, which is good for us as well, to go all out on the climb. Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe pushed really good on the climb, and the small group stayed, with them catching the breakaway. In the end, Lidl-Trek and Ineos gave a really good chase and it was also a strong breakaway, but a good day for us.
“We have two hard stages coming up, so we were saving the legs a little for tomorrow and the day after. In the sprint, when Godon kicks with the heavy gear, he is long gone. It was not like yesterday, he waited for the final and it was not a great speed, so he could make a big difference compared to me. I still did a pretty solid sprint, and a nice finish.”
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Here's the Tour de Romandie report from Clément Berthet's Team Groupama-FDJ United:
After three days of racing on Swiss roads, Clément Berthet remains in contention for a good overall result at the Tour de Romandie. Notably present in the main group of favorites during Wednesday’s first decisive stage, the Frenchman sits in eleventh place ahead of a very demanding weekend.
Groupama-FDJ United rider David Gaudu gets his bike before the start of stage three. Sirotti phjoto
As is traditionally the case at the Tour de Romandie, the week began with a prologue on Tuesday, in the streets of Villars-sur-Glâne. Just 3,200 meters had to be covered to kick things off, and Dorian Godon took the win with a time of 3:35. “The course was quite straightforward,” explained Maxime Latourte. “There were two technical corners, a flat start, a slight downhill, and then a short climb to finish. It suited a punchy sprinter’s effort.
"We didn’t have the best cards to fight for the win in this kind of prologue, but we were fairly confident we’d have good depth and be able to put some riders towards the front.” That proved true, as Maxime Decomble (13th), Lorenzo Germani (16th), and Rémi Cavagna (17th) all finished in the top 20, about 12–15 seconds behind the winner. David Gaudu, meanwhile, was unable to fully express himself due to a puncture and a bike change in the early part of the course.
Entering the first road stage, the overall standings were, of course, still very tight, but a first real selection was set to take place around Martigny on Wednesday.
After three laps including the climb of La Rasse (2.5 km at 8.5%), the peloton headed toward the ascent of Ovronnaz (9 km at 10%) with about forty kilometers remaining. After that came a long descent followed by twenty-two kilometres on flat roads. As expected, Tadej Pogačar launched an attack on the main climb but was joined by three riders all the way to the finish. Behind them, a chasing group of around fifteen riders formed, and Clément Berthet bridged across to it after a strong descent.
\“It was a real hard climb, and we got a first indication of everyone’s condition,” said Thierry Bricaud. “It set the tone for what’s to come, and it was encouraging.” The French climber finished in twelfth place, 21 seconds behind the leading quartet, while Maxime Decomble crossed the line in 18th place at 1:51. Josh Kench (29th) could also have finished with the young rider from Provence if not for a missed corner on the final descent.
On Thursday, the second stage was raced at a demanding pace on a rolling profile, behind a strong breakaway controlled by Ineos Grenadiers and UAE Team Emirates. The selection was therefore made from the back, including on the final climb of Vuillens (3 km at 5.5%), where thirty-two riders got away before reaching the finish two kilometers later. Tadej Pogačar won a reduced bunch sprint in a group that included Clément Berthet (13th), Rémy Rochas (14th), and Josh Kench (27th). “We’re in the mix, with a solid Clément who’s starting his season well,” commented Thierry. “A big weekend lies ahead. We need to keep targeting the top 10, and that will allow Clément to move forward with confidence. There will likely also be a stage to go for on Friday or Saturday, and we’ll need to be opportunistic.” Ahead of the final three stages, Clément Berthet sits in eleventh place overall, 57 seconds behind the leader, but just sixteen seconds off fifth place.
And here's the Tour de Romandie stage three report from Team Visma | Lease a Bike:
Jørgen Nordhagen had no issues in the third stage of the Tour de Romandie. The 21-year-old Norwegian stayed with the group of favourites on the Col du Mollendruz, thereby retaining his fourth place in the general classification.
The peloton set off from the start and finish town of Orbe for a 176-kilometre ride over undulating roads. Seven riders formed the breakaway and built up a maximum two-minute lead. The riders from Team Visma | Lease a Bike stayed close to Nordhagen throughout and ensured that the youngster started the final and most difficult climb of the day, the Col du Mollendruz, in a good position.
Nordhagen held his own on this nine-kilometre climb and reached the summit with a select group. On the descent, the last remaining breakaway riders were reeled in, after which a sprint from a small peloton would decide who would take the victory. Dorian Godon proved to be the fastest, with Nordhagen crossing the finish line in the same time.
Joden Nordhagen in an undated photo
"We’re pleased with how the day went. The main objective was not to lose any time in the general classification, and we managed that", sports director Gaëtan Pons said. "We’d also liked to have had someone in the breakaway today, as we thought they’d make it to the finish. The lads certainly gave it a go, but unfortunately it wasn’t to be. After that, all focus was on Jørgen. They did an excellent job of that."
With two stages to go, Nordhagen is still in a strong position. The youngster occupies fourth place in the general classification. "So far, things are going exactly as we want. The original goal was to finish in the top five of the general classification, and after four days that is still a realistic prospect. There are two tough stages to come, so we will have to do our very best to see this through to a successful conclusion."
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Here's the team's announcement:
Team Jayco AlUla will be at start of the 2026 Giro d’Italia with a complete and highly competitive team, with general classification ambitions led by Australian climber Ben O’Connor.
O’Connor returns to Italian roads to try to improve on the result achieved on his last Giro appearance two years ago, where he finished fourth overall. The 30-year-old is also a past stage winner at the race and has his eyes already on some of its most challenging of the stages.
Ben O'Connor heads to the start of 2025 Vuela a España stage two. Sirotti photo
The 2026 Giro d’Italia will start on 8th May with three stages in Bulgaria, mixing sprint and hilly days, before taking on an early rest day as the race transfers to Italy for stage four. An early trip to Blockhaus on stage seven will be the first major test for the general classification riders, followed by a time trial in week two, but the biggest challenges await the riders in the final week of action.
Team Jayco Alula for 2026 Giro d’Italia:
Pascal Ackermann (GER)
Koen Bouwman (NED)
Bob Donaldson (GBR)
Felix Engelhardt (GER)
Alan Hatherly (RSA)
Chris Juul Jensen (DEN)
Ben O’Connor (AUS)
Andrea Vendrame (ITA)
Youth and experience:
O’Connor will be surrounded by a team that combines youth and experience. Dane, Chris Juul Jensen will be the squad’s road captain, while sprinter Pascal Ackermann will be looking for stage success. The German has already won three stages of the Giro d’Italia during his long career.
The Team Jayco AlUla roster also includes Italian all-rounder Andrea Vendrame, who has two Giro stage victories under his belt plus an impressive sixth place finish at this year’s Milan-Sanremo in March, and will line-up alongside German finisseur Felix Engelhardt, and Dutch climber Koen Bouwman.
Making their Grand Tour debuts will be two-time cross-country mountain bike world champion Alan Hatherly, a protagonist this season with a solid performance at Tirreno-Adriatico, plus young British talent Bob Donaldson. The 24-year-old impressed in the spring classics with a well-fought out fifth place at the gruelling In Flanders Fields and will be looking to test himself for the first time over three weeks.
Ben O’Connor:
“This year will be my fifth Giro d’Italia, and I must say I always return with great pleasure. The Giro is a race I’m very fond of, also because it was the first Grand Tour of my career and where I won my first Grand Tour stage in 2020. I also really like Italy; it’s a colourful place with plenty to see along the road from south to north. This year’s route is very balanced, with some key stages in the Alps and the one at the Blockhaus that are very important to focus on, and several tricky stages, such as those in the Marche and Liguria.”
Steve Cummings – Sport Director:
“I’m very satisfied with the team we’ll have at the Giro d’Italia because it’s complete and capable of having a chance at winning every stage. Ben will be our man for the GC, and all his preparation has been geared towards the three weeks of racing that await us. Along with him, riders like Andrea, Felix, Alan, and Koen are really good on punchy terrain. Pascal will be in charge of sprinting, supported in this by Bob’s lead out and positioning, while Chris will be our director in the race. The 2026 route suits very well a balanced team like ours and I imagine a relatively tight GC until the third week, when the Alps will decide who will be the final winner.”
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Here’s the team’s news:
Team Picnic PostNL are thrilled to announce that long-standing team member, culture carrier and legend of the sport – John Degenkolb – has extended his contract for the 2027 season.
Degenkolb has spent an incredible 16 years as a professional cyclist so far, of which ten of those have been with Team Picnic PostNL. From the early years and successes with ten stage wins at the Vuelta a España, to a victory at the Giro d’Italia, to the memorable Milano-Sanremo and Paris-Roubaix double in 2015, to returning to the squad at the start of 2022; it truly has been a journey together for Degenkolb and the team. Now with a focus on a role as road captain, Degenkolb will continue to share his wealth of experience and knowledge with the next generation of talents that are coming through at Team Picnic PostNL.
John Degenkolb checking the 2025 Tour of Flanders race course. Sirotti photo
Degenkolb reflected: “Even to this day, it’s still a big dream for me to be a professional cyclist. If you consider that I started cycling as a hobby as a kid and my passion for it grew from there. Now, I’m already into my 16th year as a pro which for me is like living my childhood dream. Extending that for another season into 2027 is something that brings me great personal joy; being able to continue that dream for a bit longer. Within the team, I’m really happy with my role as a road captain. Earlier in my career, when I was in a different role chasing those wins in the biggest races, I always relied on great road captains. That showed me how important it is for when you are young and ambitious to have experienced riders and people around you. I want to be able to play that part and role for our young, talented and ambitious riders in the team, and it makes me really happy to have that opportunity to do that for another season.”