Tour de France: Healy wins hilly
6th stage, Van der Poel takes yellow jersey from Pogačar
[July 11, 2025]
VIRE NORMANDIE, France (AP) — Irish rider Ben Healy won a hilly
sixth stage of the Tour de France after a long solo breakaway on
Thursday and Mathieu van der Poel took back the yellow jersey from
defending champion Tadej Pogačar by one second.
The 24-year-old Healy had won a stage on the Giro d'Italia before,
but this was his first victory at cycling's showcase race.
“A stage win in the Tour is just unbelievable, it's what I've worked
for,” he said. “I grew up watching the Tour and wishing one day I
could just be there. Participating in the Tour is already an
achievement and to win a stage is just so so amazing.”
American rider Quinn Simmons finished 2 minutes, 44 seconds behind
Healy in second place and Australian Michael Storer was 2:51 back in
third spot.
Van der Poel finished eighth, and Pogačar was a little further back
in ninth.
Stage 6 took riders over 201.5 kilometers (125 miles) from Bayeux to
Vire Normandie, featuring six minor climbs before a sharp uphill
finish with a 10% gradient.
The Slovenian star accelerated at the end of the stage but could not
quite do enough to stop the yellow jersey going to the 30-year-old
Dutchman Van der Poel, who is not considered a race contender.
“I would have loved to have a bit more than one second but I’m happy
to have it again,” said Van der Poel, who struggled with the heat.
"I'll try my best to recover as good as possible and then we'll see
tomorrow, but first I'm going to enjoy the yellow jersey. I will
probably only have it for one day.”
Two-time Tour winner Jonas Vingegaard finished 10th, just behind
Pogačar, and is fifth overall.
The route favored allrounders and an experienced-looking eight-rider
breakaway, including Stage 2 winner Van der Poel and Giro d'Italia
champion Simon Yates, pulled away from the yellow jersey group
around three-time Tour winner Pogačar.
[to top of second column] |
Slovenia's Tadej Pogacar wearing the overall leader's yellow jersey
crosses the finish line during the sixth stage of the Tour de France
cycling race over 201.5 kilometers (125.2 miles) with start in
Bayeux and finish in Vire Normandy, France, Thursday, July 10, 2025.
(AP Photo/Mosa'ab Elshamy)
Riding through rolling countryside they opened up a
four-minute lead with 40 kilometers to go, which is when Healy
decided to go for the stage win and pulled away from his rivals, who
could not follow.
“Today's stage really suited me, I had circled this day from the
start,” Healy said. “I knew I needed to get away from the group, I
think I timed it well and I caught them by surprise a little bit.
Then I knew what I had to do: just put my head down.”
Friday's stage is also hilly
Stage 7 is 197 kilometers long, starting from the port city of
Saint-Malo and finishing with a climb up Mûr-de-Bretagne in
Britanny's picturesque Côtes-d’Armor department.
“When you see how Tadej is riding," Van der Poel said, “if he
attacks tomorrow, or Jonas as well, it will be very difficult not
only for me but for the whole bunch to follow on this climb.”
All contents © copyright 2025 Associated Press. All rights reserved
 |
