His victory had been expected, but the achievement is still extraordinary: Tadej Pogačar claimed his fifth Tour de France title in Paris on Sunday, winning the overall classification by 6 min 26 sec ahead of Belgian Remco Evenepoel.
His UAE Team Emirates XRG team-mate, 22-year-old Mexican Isaac del Toro, took third place in what was his very first Tour de France.
Dutchman Mathieu van der Poel won the final stage after a breathtaking last lap of the circuit on the Champs-Élysées. His team-mate, Belgian Jasper Philipsen, and the Dane Mads Pedersen completed the podium.
Pogačar joins legends Eddy Merckx, Miguel Indurain, Jacques Anquetil and Bernard Hinault as the only other five-time winners of the Tour de France.
The 26-year-old Slovenian crowns an outstanding season, marked in particular by his victories in the Tours of Switzerland and Romandie as well as several major one-day classics, confirming his status as the dominant force in the world peloton.
Paris, the beating heart of the Tour de France
The 2026 Tour de France will go down as being more than ever defined by the heatwave and wildfires, which forced organisers to change three stages, including Sunday’s final one in Paris.
Because of the fires in the southwest, the 21st stage was shortened to 89 kilometres, down from the 133 originally planned, in order to free up emergency services to be redeployed to the areas devastated by the flames.
Under the revised route for this 21st stage, the riders set off from the Champs-Élysées, tackled three ascents of the Butte Montmartre, then returned to the famous Parisian avenue for the final finish.
In a highly charged atmosphere, large crowds turned out to cheer on the riders, confirming the capital’s enduring attachment to hosting the Tour’s grand finale.