A chaotic opening stage came down to the expected sprint, but from a much-reduced bunch than thought. The Alpecin-Deceuninck train came through things ok, though, with Mathieu van der Poel delivering his teammate Philipsen to the win and the first yellow jersey of the 2025 Tour de France. Biniam Grmay was 2nd ahead of Søren Wærenskjold in 3rd. It’s the 10th stage win in the Tour de France for Jasper Philipsen, but the first yellow jersey of his career.
Ben O’Connor was caught up in a crash inside the final 5 kilometres. The Aussie will assess any damage but won’t have lost any time to GC rivals. Filippo Ganna and Stefan Bissegger were earlier DNFs after a crash.
2025 Tour de France Stage 1
The opening stage of the 2025 Tour de France might have looked straightforward on paper, but the flat 184.9km route around Lille turned into a wind-blown, nervy, crash-filled afternoon that left GC contenders scrambling and Jasper Philipsen pulling on yellow for the first time in his career.
The race set off in calm conditions, with an early five-man break of Jonas Rutsch, Mathis Le Berre, Bruno Armirail, Benjamin Thomas and Mattéo Vercher going clear without much resistance. The sprinters’ teams, particularly Alpecin-Deceuninck and Lidl-Trek, controlled the gap, never letting it grow beyond three minutes. The early tempo was manageable, but the atmosphere was tense – the potential for crosswinds had been flagged, and the riders were on edge.
The first crash of the day involved Filippo Ganna and Sean Flynn. Ganna remounted but was clearly in discomfort, and would later become the first abandon of the Tour. Thibau Nys and Stefan Bissegger also hit the deck in a separate incident, as the peloton bunched up approaching the crosswind sections near Béthune.
As expected, the wind played a role but didn’t immediately shatter the race. Florian Lipowitz lost ground after a mechanical, falling back into a chase group with Nys and Lenny Martinez, but the main group was still largely intact as the intermediate sprint approached. That went to Jonathan Milan, ahead of Bryan Coquard and Biniam Girmay.
Just after that sprint, Vercher and Thomas launched another move, this time targeting the mountain points on the Kasselberg. Thomas outsprinted his companion but crashed just over the line, taking Vercher with him. Both got going again, but not before gifting the polka-dot jersey to the Cofidis rider. Behind them, the peloton split again over the climb, with Simon Yates among those distanced. He managed to battle back through the convoy, rejoining the bunch ahead of the finale.
Ganna, who had continued to suffer following his earlier crash, climbed into the Ineos car shortly after the Kasselberg, officially the first rider out of the race.
Photo Credit: Reuters/Sarah MeyssonnierLate echelons split the race wide open
Just when it looked like the peloton had calmed down and a sprint finish was all but guaranteed, the wind changed direction with 18km to go. Visma – Lease a Bike pounced immediately, with Jonas Vingegaard drilling it on the front. The attack split the peloton into three distinct groups. Alpecin-Deceuninck and UAE Team Emirates-XRG had all their key riders in the front group, including Philipsen, Mathieu van der Poel, Kaden Groves, Tadej Pogačar, Tim Wellens, and Biniam Girmay.
The damage behind was significant. Caught out were Remco Evenepoel, Primož Roglič, Wout van Aert, Tim Merlier, and Milan, among others. Evenepoel, notably, was seen struggling near the grass verge trying to avoid a crash. That second group quickly lost 20 seconds, and by 10km to go, the gap had ballooned to over 30.
Up front, Alpecin-Deceuninck had the numerical advantage and total control. Jonas Rickaert, Van der Poel, and Groves formed the perfect lead-out for Philipsen. There was a brief scare when Marijn van den Berg and Ben O’Connor crashed behind, but the 5km rule saved their GC time. An Israel-Premier Tech rider tried a late flyer but was quickly shut down.
The final kilometre was textbook. Philipsen opened up with power and timing, surging clear to take the win ahead of Girmay and Søren Wærenskjold. The stage also handed Philipsen the first yellow jersey of his career, along with green, while Thomas leads the KOM and Girmay takes white. The big losers of the day were Evenepoel and Roglič, who both lost 39 seconds on a day that many assumed would be routine. The Tour’s opening salvos rarely follow the script, and this one was blown wide open long before Lille’s final straight.
2025 Tour de France Stage 1 result
Results powered by FirstCycling.com
Main photo credit: Cor Vos
