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Saturday, June 28, 2025
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2024 Tour de France | 2024 Giro d'Italia
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Current racing:
- June 21 - 29: Most national road championships
Upcoming racing:
- July 5 - 27: Tour de France
- July 9 - 13: Tour of Austria
Latest completed racing:
- June 24: Giro dell'Appennino
- June 15 - 22: Tour de Suisse
- June 18 - 22: Baloise Belgium Tour
- June 8 - 15: Critérium du Dauphiné
- June 13: GP Kanton Aargau
- June 8: Brussels Cycling Classic
- May 9 - June 1: Giro d'Italia
- May 29 - June 1: Tour of Norway
- May 14 - 18: 4 Jours de Dunkerque
- May 18: Rund um Köln
Here's the report from Evenepoel's Team Soudal Quick-Step:
Remco Evenepoel powered to victory at the ITT National Championships, held in Brasschaat over a 40.5km flat course suited to the specialists of the discipline. The last starter Friday afternoon, Evenepoel gave absolutely no chance to the other riders, putting more than a minute into runner-up Florian Vermeersch (UAE Team Emirates) on the way to his 57th success in the Soudal Quick-Step jersey.
The World Champion, winner of this race back in 2022 and medalist on two more occasions, had a storming start and posted a sensational time of 10:26 at the first checkpoint to move to the top of the leaderboard. As the kilometers ticked down, Evenepoel continued to keep the speed and increase his lead over the others, setting a blistering time at the next splits before clocking a winning time of 44:43.
For Remco, this was the 20th victory of his career in a time trial – out of 44 starts – and the third of the year, after the ones he took at the Tour de Romandie and Critérium du Dauphiné.
Remco Evenepoel on his way to winning the time trial at this year's Critérium du Dauphiné. Sirotti photo
“I’m happy with this win – my first since completing the altitude training camp – especially as it came on a hard course where you couldn’t really recover, only a bit on the technical sectors. I tried to keep a steady pace, and as I had a good feeling from the beginning, I gave my best. I am delighted with the outcome, with getting the jersey again and with winning the final ITT test before the Tour de France.”
“It’s a result that gives us even more confidence for Sunday. It will be a different parcours, with many strong riders at the start, but we go with a solid team to the road race, we have more cards to play there and we are motivated to get the most out of it”, Remco said after his victory.
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Here’s the team’s news:
Primož Roglič headlines our roster for the the Tour de France 2025. A four-time Vuelta winner and Giro d’Italia champion, Roglič is one of the most successful Grand Tour riders of his generation.
And Primož Roglič has a clear goal: securing his ninth Grand Tour podium. Joining the Slovenian Grand Tour star are Jordi Meeus, Gianni Moscon, Danny van Poppel, and Aleksandr Vlasov – four riders with a wealth of Grand Tour experience, bringing a combined 14 Tour de France starts. As at the Giro d’Italia, Gianni Moscon will again take on the role of road captain. Vlasov’s season has been carefully built to peak in the second half of the Tour. Meeus and van Poppel, known for their physical presence and Classics pedigree, are expected to play a key role early on – and as a well-drilled duo, they could be crucial in delivering early results for the team.
Primoz Roglic on the podium of the 2025 Giro in pink after stage seven and before he crashed out of the race. Sirotti photo
For the first time in eight years, the team is fielding three Tour de France debutants – a strong signal toward the next generation. Laurence Pithie, Florian Lipowitz, and Mick van Dijke will all make their first appearance on cycling’s biggest stage in Lille.
The young New Zealander Pithie, who turns 23 on Stage 12, is expected to shine on the Classics-style terrain of the opening week. Lipowitz will use his Tour debut to gain valuable Grand Tour experience alongside Primož Roglič. For van Dijke, the Grand Départ will feel almost like a home race – with Lille just 150 kilometers from his hometown, he’s looking forward to strong fan support right from the start.
Rolf Aldag, Chief of Sports at Red Bull – BORA – hansgrohe: “We’re heading into this Tour extremely well prepared. Every stage has been reconned, analyzed, and simulated. Our team strength will be especially critical in the first half of the race – five riders are dedicated to guiding our three climbers safely toward the Pyrenees. In the high mountains, individual class will make the difference. That’s our race plan – and our guiding principle for the next three weeks.”
“With Primož, we have the luxury of having one of the most successful Grand Tour riders in our team. He’s focused, motivated, and in top form. When Primož Roglič lines up for a Grand Tour, the podium is always the goal. To get there, we’ve taken a very individualized approach to preparing all eight riders – whether through altitude training, race intensity, or deliberate recovery time with their families. Everyone is arriving in the best possible shape.”
Red Bull – BORA – hansgrohe x Tour de France 2025:
Primož Roglič, Florian Lipowitz, Jordi Meeus, Gianni Moscon, Laurence Pithie, Mick van Dijke, Danny van Poppel, Aleksandr Vlasov
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Here’s the team’s Tour de France news:
UAE Team Emirates-XRG are ready for the Tour
Heading to the Tour de France in search of a fourth title in six years, UAE Team Emirates-XRG can confirm the squad that will support Tadej Pogačar in July.
With a lineup that is strongly packed with both rouleurs and climbers, the eight-man Emirati squad will head into the Tour full of confidence after their recent Critérium du Dauphiné victory.
Tadej Pogacar after winning the 2025 Critérium du Dauphiné. Sirotti photo
Five riders who supported Pogačar’s victory earlier this month will be alongside the Slovenian once again, with Marc Soler and Nils Politt two of the most experienced riders within the squad.
Elsewhere, Tim Wellens and Jhonatan Narváez will hope to replicate the impact they had on Pogačar’s stage 6 victory in the Dauphiné, with Pavel Sivakov more than earning his place with an instrumental role in the world champion’s victory on the following stage. Joining the Dauphiné winners at the start of the Tour de France will be two climbers who finished fourth and sixth at last year’s Tour, respectively.
João Almeida will be raring to go as one of the most in-form riders of the year, having become the first man since Bradley Wiggins (2012) to win three of cycling’s ‘big seven’ stage races in the same season. Coming off the back of victories in Itzulia Basque Country, the Tour de Romandie and the Tour de Suisse, the Portuguese rider takes career-best form into July, where he will look to support a Pogačar title push for the second year in succession.
Meanwhile, Adam Yates will return to the race in which he claimed a podium finish in 2023. The British climber memorably won the opening stage and claimed the race’s first yellow jersey that year, before going on to help Pogačar to a third title last summer.
On the hunt for a fourth Tour de France success this time around, Pogačar will be hoping to add to his 17 stage victories to date, having enjoyed an exceptional season that has thus far included victories at the Dauphiné, the Tour of Flanders and Strade Bianche.
With a strong team at his side, the Slovenian is looking forward to what will be his sixth successive Tour de France.
Pogačar: “I’m excited for the Tour to start. I’m lucky to have had close to the perfect preparation this year — everything has gone really smoothly, especially coming off a great altitude camp with my teammates. The vibes in the team are amazing right now, and that gives me a lot of confidence.
“Of course, you can never be fully prepared for something like the Tour de France — it’s unpredictable, and that’s part of what makes it so special.
“I’m expecting a very high level from all the other top riders. The first few days should be really exciting for the fans with some open, aggressive stages, and the last week is very climbing-heavy with some iconic stages. It’s going to be a big fight all the way to Paris, but I’m ready to give everything.
“It’s hard to believe it’s already my sixth Tour de France, time flies.”
Led by Sports Manager Joxean Matxin Fernández and Sports Directors Andrej Hauptman (Slo), Marco Marcato (Ita), and Simone Pedrazzini (SUI), the UAE Team Emirates-XRG lineup is as follows:
– João Almeida (Por)
– Jhonatan Narváez (Ecu)
– Tadej Pogačar (Slo)
– Nils Politt (Ger)
– Pavel Sivakov (Fra)
– Marc Soler (Spa)
– Tim Wellens (Bel)
– Adam Yates (GBR)
Wearing the world champion’s bands and the Ecuadorian national champion’s jerseys, respectively, both Tadej Pogačar and Jhonatan Narváez will stand out from the pack in France, but so too will their UAE Team Emirates-XRG teammates. Supplied by historic Italian brand Pissei, the Emirati squad will wear a special-edition kit at this year’s Tour.
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Here’s the team’s update:
After targeting the GC at May’s Giro d’Italia, a strategy that saw Derek Gee record the team’s best result in the race, Israel – Premier Tech’s attentions will turn to stage victories at the Tour de France.
IPT’s team for its sixth participation in the world’s biggest race, which starts in the Northern city of Lille on Saturday July 5, features climber Mike Woods, sprinter Pascal Ackermann, and Critérium du Dauphiné stage winner Jake Stewart.
Pascal Ackermann winning the 2025 Classique Dunkerque. Photo: JL Burnod
“It’s simply said, yet difficult to achieve: we want to win a stage. We’ve assembled the best team from our current healthy roster with the aim of achieving this goal,” says Sporting Manager Steve Bauer. “It’s a common goal for every team, and that’s where the challenge lies at the highest level of our sport. We have to be sharp from day one and, in particular, through the first 10 days, we’ll analyze how we can have a shot at nearly every stage, because we can’t afford to let any opportunities go. We have the riders who can be in the mix to win. Our day-to-day tactics will be very important, along with how we manage the guys.”
Kazakh Alexey Lutsenko will make his first Tour de France start in IPT colors, having previously won a stage of the 2020 edition, one of his previous nine participations.
Guillaume Boivin and Krists Neilands will both compete in their fifth Tours, all of which have been with the team, and Matîs Louvel will become the first Frenchman to be selected for IPT in the race since 2020. Debutant Joe Blackmore completes the eight-man line-up, less than a year after winning the Tour de l’Avenir, historically considered the under-23 equivalent of the Tour.
Bauer adds: “We have several guys who will have opportunities in the first week. Stages one, two, and three will be intense. Certainly, Ackie and Jake will be key men, backed up by a solid support group. There could be a couple of potential breakaway stages before the first rest day, too, depending on how the peloton reacts and the race evolves. It will be important for our guys to be ready to go hunting for victories when these opportunities come.
“In the high mountains, Mike is our best climber, and he’s proven he can win Grand Tour stages. We’ll look to keep him out of trouble in the first few days, and then we’ll utilize his strengths as we go forward.”
Woods returns to the Tour two years on from a historic stage victory on Puy de Dôme. The Canadian also remains the last IPT rider to win a Grand Tour stage, having triumphed at Puerto de Ancares in the Vuelta a España last August. The 38-year-old showed promising form at this month’s Tour de Suisse before illness forced him out of the race.
He says: “I’m really excited about racing my fifth Tour. It’s a crazy race and it’s the last race on the calendar that I do that scares me – in a good way, but it’s such a challenging race. The level is so high. The risks are so big, but the rewards are so incredible.
“Winning a stage there in 2023 was the crowning achievement of my career. Given the level of excitement around that win and the support I’ve received since I achieved it, I can say it changed my life. For all of those reasons, I can say I’m looking forward to returning to the Tour.
“Everything from stage six onward I’m excited about. Don’t expect to see me at all during those opening stages – I want to try and stay safe. The only Tour I’ve won a stage in was the only one I didn’t crash in. If I can stay upright in the first week, then there are opportunities in the second and third weeks for stage wins.”
Ackermann is still hunting his Grand Tour hat-trick, having won three Giro and two Vuelta stages so far during his career. The German recorded three third-place finishes in last year’s race, but, having taken his first victory for IPT at the Classique Dunkerque in May, he enters the 2025 edition with greater desire than ever before.
“I am really excited to be at the start of the Tour, especially after the season so far – I’ve had a lot of bad luck this year, so now it’s time to get back to the sunny times and fight for a stage victory,” says the 31-year-old.
“There are many chances to get an opportunity for sprints this year. How great it would be to win a stage and get the yellow jersey!”
This year’s only Tour newcomer for IPT is Blackmore, whose remarkable career trajectory continues with his selection for the race. Two years ago, the British rider was a near-unknown in road cycling, having largely focused on cyclo-cross. However, the 22-year-old has been selected following a good start to his first full season with IPT’s ProTeam, which included top-15 finishes in both Amstel Gold Race and Flèche Wallonne.
“It’s an incredible opportunity,” says Blackmore. “It’s going to be special with the Grand Départ being so close to home – my parents, grandfather, girlfriend, and friends will be watching roadside for the first few days, which is really cool.
“There are a few stages in the first week with punchy uphill finishes that I think I can be competitive in. I hope to help Pascal in the sprint stages, and Mike in the second and third weeks, but I want to be around the guys as much as I can from the start of the race and see what I can do to help them and the team’s chances.”
Bauer adds: “Joe is in great shape – it’ll be an experience to see how he manages his first Grand Tour. This year we’ve raced him in the Classics and he’s coped with everything we’ve given him, so he’s shown us both the capability and capacity to be with the best.”
Israel – Premier Tech at the Tour de France (Saturday July 5 – Sunday July 27)
Riders: Pascal Ackermann (GER), Joe Blackmore (GBR), Guillaume Boivin (CAN), Matîs Louvel (FRA), Alexey Lutsenko (KAZ), Krists Neilands (LAT), Jake Stewart (GBR), Michael Woods (CAN)
Sports Directors: Steve Bauer (CAN), Dror Pekatch (ISR), Sam Bewley (NZL)
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