The Tour de France is unfolding in the first week according to Tadej’s wishes and the plans of his UAE Team Emirates XRG team. After celebrating an exceptional 100th career victory in the 4th stage in Rouen, he also performed excellently in the time trial in the 5th stage. In Caen, Remco Evenepoel (Soudal Quick Step) was the fastest, but Tadej was only 16 seconds behind in the 33-kilometer test and took 2nd place.
This was enough for him to wear the Yellow Jersey for the 41st time in his career. Last year he also finished the Tour in yellow. »I’am super happy with how I rode today. To be 16 seconds behind the world champion, the Olympic champion, the best time trialist in the world right now, I am super super happy. To gain time on the GC and only lose a little bit to Remco, I am super happy. It’s a very good day and I am happy, but I am just happy that this day is over and we can focus now on the next days and keep this ball rolling in the Tour de France,« said Tadej.
He started the stage in 2nd place in the overall standings, with the same time as the leader Mathieu van der Poel (Alpecin Deceuninck), who this time took 18th place, 1:44 behind the winner. Primož Roglič (Red Bull Bora Hansgrohe) was slightly faster, finishing 12th, 1:19 behind, and Jonas Vingegaard (Visma Lease a Bike) was 13th, 1:21 behind.
Tadej thus took the Yellow Jersey with a 42-second lead over Evenepoel, and the exceptionally fast Frenchman Kevin Vauquelin (Arke B&B Hotels) moved up to 3rd place today, 59 seconds behind. Vingegaard is now in 4th place, 1:13 behind, and Roglič is in 8th place, 2:30 behind.
In addition to the Yellow Jersey, Tadej also wore the green and polka dot jerseys at the finish today, as he currently leads in both the points and mountains classifications. »The most important is Yellow, but the most important is to have it on the Champs-Élysées on the finish line. Now, it feels good, but the important thing is to have it in Paris,« added Tadej.
He faces a very challenging 6th stage tomorrow. In the 201.5-kilometer test through Normandy, the peloton will have to overcome 3,550 meters of elevation. »This year the parcours is designed really hectic so we have to be careful in every stage. So far, it has been really nervous and super hard, so I think tomorrow and the next days will be the same. We need to keep control, we keep calm, and we believe in ourselves. In the team, we have super strong riders and we believe in one goal. We will keep riding just as we did up to this point,« Tadej added.