“Not only hypocritical but politically motivated”: Lance Armstrong’s old boss accuses UCI of being “comfortable honouring authoritarian regimes with well-documented human rights abuses”; No Tour-Vuelta double for Tadej Pogačar + more on the live blog

The fallout from yesterday’s late crash in Angers is starting to become clearer, and it’s not good news for the 2023 Tour champion. FDJ-Suez confirmed on Monday night that Demi Vollering sustained multiple contusions in the high-speed pile-up with 3.7km to go on stage 3, and will undergo a second concussion protocol this morning to determine whether she can continue in the Tour de France Femmes.

Vollering, who finished 143rd after being helped to the line by her teammates, was visibly shaken at the finish, limping across with a torn kit and clear signs of pain.

“She has pain in her knee, pain in her glutes, and pain in her back,” team manager Stephen Delcourt said, summing up the damage. Medical staff also conducted an initial concussion assessment, and although no hospital visit was deemed necessary last night, further tests are now underway to rule anything out.

Delcourt added: “She’s really positive and wants to continue, but we just need time.”

The crash, which occurred as the peloton surged through a narrowing bend on the approach to a sprint finish, also brought down Chloe Dygert, Puck Pieterse and Elisa Balsamo — though Vollering appeared to come off worst, and was one of the last riders to get back on her bike.

FDJ-Suez’s statement last night confirmed that today’s reassessment will be crucial: “These results will enable Demi and the team to confirm whether or not she will be at the start line tomorrow.”

Oscar Onley finished fourth overall at the 2025 Tour de France, and while he might not be shouting about it, plenty of others are — the 22-year-old from Kelso just delivered one of the standout performances in a Tour by a Scottish rider in years.

“We never really had the plan to go for GC in the beginning,” he told ITV. “It was more just see how it goes. To be honest, I’ve never even thought about a top five in the Tour before, so to get it in my first try in GC is quite incredible, and I’m excited for the future.”

Onley added: “It gives me a lot of confidence for the upcoming races as well as these are the top guys and in top shape in the biggest race. So if I can do it here then why not in other races?”

He was quick to praise the way Team Picnic-Post NL managed the pressure: “There was no pressure from the team. They’ve handled that really well because I think as soon as you say you are going for GC, there’s a lot more attention on you. I’ve just taken every day as it’s come really and not made any extra stress as the Tour is already stressful enough, just to ride and compete.”

And in true low-key Onley fashion, he admitted the scale of the achievement hasn’t quite sunk in yet: “I guess this is a really big moment in my career. I don’t really realise it yet, but I think just with talking to other riders, going forward now we have something to build on and an exciting project for the future, and it sparks a bit of a dream I guess.”

Next up? He’s expected to ride the Clásica San Sebastián this weekend. The Vuelta remains a possibility, though it’s still unconfirmed. But wherever he goes next, people will be watching.

Demi Vollering has been cleared to continue the Tour de France Femmes after passing concussion checks this morning, FDJ-Suez have confirmed, but the team says it will continue to monitor her closely during today’s stage.

“With the support of FDJ-Suez team, Demi Vollering is determined to take part in today’s stage,” the team wrote. “The team remains vigilant and will further follow her situation during the efforts warming up and in the race.”

 

 

 

 

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Whether she can get through today’s sprint stage into Poitiers, and how much damage the crash has done to her GC campaign, remains to be seen.

Finnish president Alexander Stubb has been spotted riding a custom-painted, Finnish-flag-themed aero bike — and the cycling internet has absolutely no idea what it is.

The photo, which surfaced on Reddit under the post title ‘Help me identify what bike is The President of Finland using?’ shows the 56-year-old in full tri-suit, aero helmet and deep-section wheels, tucked low over a white-and-blue frame that’s either a rebadged super-bike or a patriotic one-off. Either way, the angles are confusing people.

Help me identify what bike is The President of Finland using?
by u/saharaseppo in bicycling

Stubb’s appearance at a triathlon in Joroinen earlier this month, racing under the pseudonym “A.S.” and finishing second, is just the latest chapter in the president’s history as a serious amateur athlete.

He ran a 3:08 marathon in Frankfurt in 2015, finished the Kalmar Ironman in 9:55:47 back in 2013, and competed in Frankfurt in 2012 as part of the “Iron Birds Finland” team raising money for leukemia research. Golf, ice hockey, endurance sports… the man has range.

Alexander Stubb running Ironman in Frankfurt am Main (credit: Heptagon – Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0)

But back to the bike… Some commenters reckon it’s a Van Rysel RCR-R, while others are calling Canyon Aeroad. One wrote: “It’s close, but the seat post to top tube has no rubber piece, and the head tube looks quite different.”

Another shot down the Aeroad guess: “The silhouette of a Canyon Aeroad is so distinct, I don’t see how people can mistake this for one. The space between the seat tube and the rear wheel under the seat stays is so different on this bike, it’s 100 per cent definitely not an Aeroad.”

Others floated the Ridley Noah Fast, a Factor Ostro VAM, or — controversially — a Bianchi Oltre, drawing swift rebuke: “Dunno why anyone would buy a Bianchi and paint it that.”

To which I say: impeachable. If the president of Finland really did paint over the Celeste with white and navy? Jail. Straight to jail. You don’t take one of the most elegant frame finishes in all of cycling and commit that kind of sacrilege. Not even with diplomatic immunity.

> Security fears as Swedish PM’s home address leaked by bodyguards sharing cycling and running routes on Strava

So what is it? Honestly, I’m leaning toward the 2025 Ridley Noah Fast. The deep downtube, the seat tube cutout, and the overall silhouette just feel right, even if the paint job and angle throw you off at first glance. But until we get confirmation… the mystery lives on.

If you’ve got a better guess (or strong feelings about whether repainting a Bianchi should be a criminal offence), feel free to leave them down in the comments!

After the first three stages, the Tour de France Femmes heads into its flattest, fastest day so far, a 128km route from Saumur to Poitiers that’s been circled from the start by every sprint team in the race.

The profile is as straightforward as it gets: a mostly flat run through the rolling countryside of western France, with just enough undulation to keep the peloton going. A short rise of around 600 metres at 4per cent inside the final 3km could give punchier riders something to play with — but in all likelihood, this one ends in a drag race to the line.

Lorena Wiebes comes into the stage as the obvious favourite after her commanding sprint victory in Angers yesterday, where she held off Marianne Vos and took her fourth career stage win at the Tour. Vos, meanwhile, now leads the GC, but it’ll be interesting to see whether she contests today’s finish or plays it safe in yellow.

It’s the last chance for the sprinters before the climbing begins in earnest. For riders like Wiebes and Elisa Balsamo, this is where they’ll want to make it count.

> Cop who borrowed passing cyclist’s bike to catch thief wins Police Officer of the Year award

> The real prize? Tadej Pogačar took 362 Strava KOMs during the Tour de France

Victor Campenaerts has signed off from the Tour de France in spectacularly chaotic fashion, posting the final episode of his vlog series featuring a heavily intoxicated Matteo Jorgenson trying (and mostly failing) to share facts.

The segment opens with Campenaerts standing next to a completely awkward-looking Richard Plugge, Visma-Lease a Bike’s CEO, who seems entirely unsure what to do with himself. Fortunately, Matteo Jorgenson enters the frame to help out — though not exactly in peak condition.

Asked to contribute a fact, the visibly drunk American declares, “I am eight beers deep.” With Jorgenson temporarily out of service, Campenaerts steps in: “Wout van Aert is the first rider in two years’ time that can drop Pogačar out of the wheel” — a reference to Van Aert’s stunning Champs-Élysées win on the final (erm, #21) stage that had the Visma staff cheering wildly in the background.

 

 

 

 

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A post shared by Victor Campenaerts (@campenaertsvictor)

“Almost ready to fly back to the United States of America?” Campenaerts later asks him. “Greatest country on earth,” Jorgenson slurs, prompting an immediate, worldwide hmmmmm.

The fun continues as the swaying and glassy-eyed Jorgenson insists: “Stage 22 is starting right now. We’re in the neutral zone right now. At midnight it starts,” before revisiting a conversation about Campenaerts meeting his parents. “You lingered a bit too long,” Jorgenson tells him, eyes half-closed.

Campenaerts plays along, prompting one final “fact” from his guest. “Stage 22,” Jorgenson says, nodding solemnly. “My fact is it will be the hardest stage in this Tour.”

Campenaerts promises: “This will be the best vlog of the Tour de France.”

And with that — a stage that doesn’t exist, a guest who’s eight beers deep, and a conversation about overstaying your welcome with someone’s parents — the beloved vlog series comes to an end.

Fans have already been filling the comments with tributes: “Going to miss these,” one wrote. “Best part of the Tour,” said another.

 

 

 

 

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It’s official: there’ll be no Tour-Vuelta double for Tadej Pogačar this year. UAE Team Emirates-XRG have confirmed that the four-time Tour de France winner won’t line up in Turin next month, citing both physical and mental fatigue after a brutal three weeks in France.

The team revealed that the Vuelta had been in his race programme since December, aiming for a return to the race he last rode in 2019 and a chance to pull off a second Grand Tour double in the same season. Just a year after becoming the first rider since Marco Pantani in 1998 to win the Giro and the Tour in the same year, the obvious next move would’ve been to go all-in for more history.

Most riders in his shape — maybe any rider, ever — would be tempted. But even Pogačar, in arguably the best condition and form cycling has ever seen, has chosen to say no.

> “I don’t see myself going on for much longer”: Tired Tour winner Tadej Pogačar hints at possible retirement after 2028 Olympics and admits “if I burn out now, I’m happy with that I’ve achieved”

“After such a demanding Tour, we decided it was best to take a break,” he said. “The Vuelta is of course a race I would dearly love to return to. I have fantastic memories there from 2019, but now the body is telling me to rest.”

After sealing his fourth Tour title on Sunday, Pogačar spoke about the emotional toll of the calendar he’s been racing — even hinting at possible retirement after the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.

“I’m excited to go back to Canada; the races are tough but beautiful, and they fit my style well,” he said. “I’ll be aiming to be back racing well again for that part of the season and for the World Championships, especially.”

But don’t be fooled because Pogačar is already thinking ahead to the next big goal. Speaking to L’Équipe yesterday, he said: “I’m going to take a break, enjoy the rest period, and think about preparing for the next one. Paris-Roubaix in particular, which I want to win. This year, for my first participation, I found this race crazy; my second place was already incredible. I want to come back.”

Winning Roubaix would give him four Monuments — adding to his wins at Il Lombardia, Liège–Bastogne–Liège, and the Tour of Flanders — and put him one step away from the full set, with Milan-Sanremo the other missing piece.

So no Pogačar at the Vuelta, but don’t mistake that for weakness. UAE aren’t turning up light.

João Almeida and Juan Ayuso will co-lead the team in Spain, backed by what might be the strongest all-round squad of the Grand Tour season. Jay Vine, Marc Soler, Felix Großschartner, Domen Novak, Mikkel Bjerg and Ivo Oliveira complete the line-up.

 

 

 

 

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A post shared by UAE Team Emirates🇦🇪 (@uae_team_emirates)

“The idea this year was for Tadej to return to the Vuelta, but the season has been a long one for him,” said team boss Matxin Fernández. “We spoke and agreed that the best thing for him now is to take a good rest and build up to his final season goals.”

Both Almeida and Ayuso abandoned earlier Grand Tours this year — Almeida after a crash at the Tour, Ayuso after a knee injury worsened by the gravel stage at the Giro — but both say they’re feeling ready.

“It’s a special feeling to start the Vuelta as team leader, especially with the form I’ve shown this season,” Almeida said. “The recovery from the Tour crash has been smooth and my sensations in training have been good. I believe we can fight for something big.”

For Ayuso, it’s a chance to go for glory on home soil. “It’s always an honour to race on home roads, and I’ll give everything to make it count, whether it’s helping the team or going for a result myself. Spain always brings out something extra in me.”

Into the final 15km and the two-rider break — Koch and Magalhães — are still dangling just under a minute ahead of the peloton, but with only two riders out there, it’s hard to imagine they’ll hold off the sprinters for long.

Demi Vollering is still tucked safely in the bunch for now, but this could be one of the toughest days mentally and physically. After yesterday’s crash, today and tomorrow are likely to be the most painful as the adrenaline wears off and the bruises start doing their thing.

16KM to go and the gap to the break has only just got below the 1 minute mark. The sprinters teams are starting to work to bring the duo back.

Il reste 16 km à parcourir et l’écart avec l’échappée vient tout juste de passer sous la barre des 1 minute. Les équipes de sprinteurs… pic.twitter.com/gyHvmWo6cm

— Le Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift (@LeTourFemmes) July 29, 2025

It’s also a little refreshing to have a real GC battle in a Tour again. After Pogačar essentially turned the men’s race into a three-week procession, the women’s Tour is still wide open, with Vos in yellow and plenty of teams still in with a shot.

With the break reeled in just after the 4km mark, the finale into Poitiers turned into a full-blown tactical drag race — and once again, Lorena Wiebes came out on top.

The SD Worx-Protime squad delivered a clinical lead-out, with Anna van der Breggen putting in a long turn before Lotte Kopecky took over, guiding Wiebes into prime position.

WIEBES AGAIN 🔥

Lorena Wiebes takes her second stage win in a row at the Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift, holding off a charging Marianne Vos! 👏 pic.twitter.com/v7vEYG10VC

— Cycling on TNT Sports (@cyclingontnt) July 29, 2025

A late surge from Chloe Dygert forced Wiebes to dig deep, using the American’s wheel to slingshot past and claim her second win in as many days. Marianne Vos chased her all the way to the line and settled for second, while UAE Team ADQ’s Lara Gillespie powered through for third — her first podium of the Tour.

Juliette Labous suffered a mechanical inside the final 5km but stayed safe under the time-neutral zone. Just before that, Kimberley Le Court briefly tried to break clear on the uphill drag, but the move was quickly neutralised.

 

 

 

 

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Vos, meanwhile, did enough to retain yellow, but the time bonuses reshuffle the GC slightly: Wiebes now sits second overall, just 12 seconds behind. Kopecky’s work on the front helped consolidate the team’s hold on the race, while Demi Vollering remains sixth — a solid position given the pain she’s carrying from yesterday’s crash.

The race now moves into crucial terrain, with Vollering needing to get through these next two days intact if she’s to mount a GC challenge. And while today was all about speed, the bigger story might be the tension building at the top… this is shaping up to be a genuine battle for yellow, with gaps tight and no guaranteed outcome.

> Artists turn Tour de France penises into Le Tour Femmes plugs

Johan Bruyneel isn’t done yet. The former US Postal boss — banned for life for his role in arguably the most notorious doping operations in sporting history — has followed up last week’s feud with UCI president David Lappartient by escalating it further. And this time, he’s decided to drag geopolitics into the mix.

In a statement posted on Tuesday afternoon, Lance Armstrong’s former boss claimed that his presence at the Tour, “solely in a media capacity,” was treated with disproportionate outrage compared to the UCI’s own political relationships, accusing cycling’s governing body of “maintaining close ties with political leaders (dictators) whose records on human rights are deeply troubling.”

> “This is yet another personal attack”: Johan Bruyneel escalates feud with David Lappartient, as controversial Belgian threatens legal action against UCI president over Tour de France dispute

“Mr Lappartient has appeared publicly alongside President Paul Kagame of Rwanda and former President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedow of Turkmenistan, two heads of state widely criticised by international human rights organisations for systemic violations of fundamental freedoms,” he said.

“Despite this, both have been welcomed by the UCI, decorated with awards, and actively involved in high-profile partnerships within the cycling world.

“This inconsistency raises serious questions about the standards the UCI and Lappartient applies — and to whom. If the UCI leadership is comfortable honouring authoritarian regimes with well-documented human rights abuses, then singling out my presence at a sporting event as unacceptable seems not only hypocritical but politically motivated.

He concluded: “Cycling deserves leadership that applies its values consistently, without double standards or selective outrage.

Bruyneel’s appearance in the Village Départ at stage 12 of the Tour, as a guest of Belgian broadcaster VRT1, led to a strongly worded UCI statement last week reminding everyone that he’s banned for life and not allowed anywhere near any zone that requires accreditation.

He responded almost immediately — accusing Lappartient of launching a “personal attack,” threatening legal action, and reviving his go-to insult: “David the Selfie King.”

This isn’t a new grudge. Bruyneel has been taking swipes at Lappartient for over a year — accusing him of using the UCI presidency as a stepping stone to the IOC and posting rants about his vanity and self-promotion.

> Lance Armstrong’s old boss launches scathing attack on “selfie king” David Lappartient, as UCI president also criticised for using phone while cycling for Pogačar clip

​So now we’ve got one banned ex-DS yelling about authoritarian regimes, accusing the president of the UCI of hypocrisy over his political photo ops. Just another completely normal day in the world of pro cycling.