Tour de France Stage 4: Hot and Hilly
The Tour de France’s big story for Stage 4 was the heat. It was between 95 and 110 degrees Fahrenheit on the course. There was a lot made about the health and recovery of the riders, and the great lengths to which they go to stay hydrated. Team Visma has insulated water bottles that the riders just throw to the side of the road after they are finished with them.
Yesterday, Tadej pogochar and Jonas Vindegaard finished in a tie. Pojochar took the Yellow Jersey because he won the stage, the third tie breaker. This stage 4 was all in France, the first such stage in the 2026 Tour. Do you think it will cool down by the end of the race by July 26?
Tour de France Stage 4 July 7
Stage 4 of the Tour de France was unique in that it was one stage where the breakaway could stay away. At one point, there were 34 riders in the breakaway, and they were far enough ahead that riders in the break had the virtual lead of the race. There was some speculation that the Peleton would try to reel them back somewhat to keep the overall lead for Pogochar. It is an open question whether the team UAE Emirates was going to push the race, like yesterday.
The other gigantic story on this stage of the tour was the heat. Some teams were going to run out of water bottles. Cristain Vandevelde, a former American Cyclist, was trailing the tour on a motorbike for the television broadcast. He measured the heat, at one point, at 107 Fahrenheit.
With about 25 miles to go in this hot stage, Steve Quinn, an American from the EF Education team, was in the breakaway. He had the virtual lead in the race and looked to become the first American, officially, at least to wear the yellow jersey. That would be a huge result.
Mads Pederson won the stage with a furious last-second sprint. American Quin Simmons was second on the stage and did a lot of work. The rest of the riders in the stage top 5 were Raul Garcia, Marco Frigo, and Ramses Debruyne. There was a significant change in the overall lead. Torstein Træen took the yellow jersey. American Sean Quinn was second, 28 seconds behind. Mathias Vacek was in third, 3:50 behind. Pojochar and Vindegaard finished together, well back, 10:39 seconds behind.
Defending the Yellow Jersey
UAE Emirates may have made a mistake yesterday, out of their exuberance to win the stage and take the yellow jersey. Tadaj Pogochar won the stage yesterday and took the yellow jersey. He did so because his team set a furious pace at the head of the Peloton, chasing down the breakaway. The question, however, as Pogochar took the yellow jersey on stage 3, is how long he and the team want to defend the yellow Jersey?
The Inevitable Tadaj Pogochar
Whether he keeps the yellow jersey or gives it up, there is no question that Tadej Pogačar is the best bicycle racer in the world. He demonstrated that as he pulled away at the end of yesterday’s stage. It makes it a little boring to watch the tour when you know who is going to win. It is highly questionable whether Vindegaard has enough in the tank to challenge him.
Pojochar is so dominant in this tour that it is a fair question to ask whether he is doping. Cycling has had a problem with that in the past. The last truly dominant rider was Lance Armstrong. The American, famously, denied doping when he was caught red-handed. He then admitted it and said everyone in the tour was doing it. So, one would reasonably think Pogochar is doing it too. Nevertheless, it looked like the Norwegian Torstein Træen was going to take the yellow jersey.
Conclusion
Stage 4 of the Tour de France was exceptionally hot. That was one big story of this stage. The other big story is that the breakaway stayed away today, and some of the riders in it had the virtual lead for the yellow jersey as the race unfolded. Tomorrow is stage 5. It is relatively flat and will be a stage for the sprinters from Lannemezan to Pau. It is 158 kilometers.
