Tour de France 2024 S14: Pogacar Dominates at Col du Solauron with UAE Team Emirates’ Support

At around 11 PM Beijing time on July 13, the Tour de France 2024 Stage 14 (Pau to Col du Solauron) concluded. Initially, 20 riders attempted breakaways to compete for climbing and sprint points. After the peloton exerted itself in the second half of the race to reel them back in, the General Classification contenders began a new round of competition. UAE Team Emirates unleashed their power on the Col du Solauron, assisting Pogacar in clearing obstacles. Pogacar launched a decisive attack, not only winning the stage but also increasing his time gap over his rivals. Let’s review this race.

Pre-race Trivia

Boulevard Bonaparte. In Pau, on Boulevard Bonaparte, each stage winner is recorded by the local government. Starting from the 1979 champion, Kelderman, the names of 15 Pau stage winners, including Van Aert, are inscribed on the pavement, inviting interested cycling enthusiasts to visit.

Official Appeal. The race organizers have officially issued a statement urging spectators along the route not to obstruct the riders during the event, including actions such as spraying smoke, slapping riders, or running onto the course (Note: This is a European tradition, coupled with the weak security capabilities of the organizing committee, making the practical significance somewhat limited).

Withdrawal Information

Pidcock (INEOS Grenadiers), COVID-19; Bevin (Israel Start-Up Nation), illness.

Race Route

This stage covered 151.9 kilometers, starting in the southwest of France, Agen, heading southeast towards the Pyrenees. There were three categorized climbs and one intermediate sprint, crossing the Col du Tourmalet, Cote d’Astazan, and Col du Tourmalet again. For the GC contenders, this was the first ‘back-to-back’ test in the second phase of the race, where the first rider to summit would take a significant step closer to the overall lead.

In the cheers of the Pau residents, the race began. Soon after the start, Carpano (Arkéa-Samsic) withdrew due to injury. However, this did not affect the fight for the intermediate sprint and the Col du Tourmalet (19 km long, average gradient 7.4%) climb points. Dozens of riders took turns attacking, while the GC contenders mostly stayed in the peloton, conserving energy for the final showdown.

As Kocher (Cofidis) and Deli (Lotto Soudal) claimed the top two spots at the intermediate sprint, they were about to face the challenge of the Col du Tourmalet, marking the end of the sprinters’ show. Soon, the peloton accelerated under the lead of various teams’ climbers to catch up with them.

The audience eagerly awaited, not only because it was the hometown of the current President Macron, but also because this was a classic stage of the Tour de France. Spectators arriving early could wait by the roadside, while those arriving later had to drive further to find vacant spots. Of course, there were those who climbed the mountain away from the track to enjoy an exclusive view from a distance, becoming part of the official photographers’ records.

▲Col du Tourmalet

As the breakaway riders entered the Col du Tourmalet, the first to attack was Gaudu (Groupama-FDJ), but Landa (Movistar) was in better form, not only taking the first spot at the Col du Tourmalet but also working hard to extend his lead.

In the peloton, under the lead of Politt from UAE Team Emirates, they not only easily shed most of the weaker climbers and domestiques but also smoothly passed the Col du Tourmalet, reducing the time gap between the peloton and the leading group from originally over 3 minutes to less than 3 minutes. At this point, they still had Yates, Almeida, Wellens, Soler, and Sivakov, all in strong form.

As the breakaway riders entered the Cote d’Astazan, the tension was not as intense as before on the Col du Tourmalet. Gaudu passed the summit first in a ‘friendly atmosphere,’ followed closely by the peloton, which accelerated under the lead of UAE Team Emirates.

▲Cote d’Astazan

As the peloton entered the Col du Solauron (10.6 km long, average gradient 7.9%), the real difficulty lay in the first 7 kilometers, with an average gradient above 8%.

At this point, under the lead of UAE Team Emirates, the peloton not only caught up with most of the breakaway riders but also left Higuita (EF Education-EasyPost) in a state of panic, who quickly surrendered under Yates’ powerful solo attack. This forced Jumbo-Visma to react, sending their last domestique, Jorgensen, to try to stick with Yates but without success. Meanwhile, the team leader, Vingegaard, had to maintain balance against Pogacar and couldn’t make any rash moves. The other team leaders were similarly in a passive position, and letting Yates go seemed like a relatively minor loss, but clearly, this wasn’t UAE Team Emirates’ trump card.

▲Col du Solauron

As Pogacar approached the steepest section of the Col du Solauron, he launched his attack about 4.6 km from the finish line. Vingegaard and Evenepoel struggled to follow, but unfortunately, the final stretch became less steep, negating their advantage in climbing steep slopes. Without any basis for cooperation, they could only watch helplessly as Pogacar pulled away. Post-race, Vingegaard explained, “When it comes to climbing gentle slopes, I’m no match for Pogacar. I accept my defeat gracefully.”

With Pogacar becoming increasingly dominant, he ultimately won the stage with a 39-second lead, extending his overall lead to 1 minute and 56 seconds. This was a considerable advantage for the upcoming third phase of the race.

Post-race, Pogacar said in an interview, “Today, to guard against a counterattack from our old rival Jumbo-Visma, we planned a meticulous strategy. Apart from our teammates maintaining a steady pace to suppress the possibility of attacks from opponents, we sent Yates to launch an attack to force our opponents to accelerate and expend energy. It proved to be an effective move. Our performance was perfect.”

Post-race, Pogacar won the Yellow Jersey, Gilbert won the Green Jersey, Pogacar won the Polka Dot Jersey, and Evenepoel won the White Jersey. On July 14, the Tour de France will hold Stage 15 (Loudenvielle to Hautacam), stay tuned.