Tour de France Tour de France 2025 Stage 19: Albertville-La Plagne (93.1k) ‚Historic day, magnificent racing‘ ~ Rob Hatch, probably

[ChewbaccaDefense]

I think they were both stupid, and playing stupid games, and their individual stupidities cancelled each other out, which was stupid. Just a terrible stage to watch, but tip of the hat to Arnesmen for taking advantage of two stupid people. Thanks to Pog and Jonas for taking a stage that had the potential to be entertaining, and turning it into this energy:

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5hfYJsQAhl0

 

[pmcg76]

So you get to mention a needle but pmcg can't mention crack? Double standards I say!
Edit: lol, it doesn't get autocensored this time? 😄

Actually, I did not use the word crack which I should have. I used a word that can also be used as a racial slur, even though it is used in that phrase frequently, but I guess autocorrect plays it safe.

 

[kingjr]

You could be right.. In my eyes ,you are going uphill in the rain in the biggest bike race in the world, you have a 200 heart rate, suddenly find yourself in the company of the 2_greatest bike racers in the world, one of them is also world champion and defending Tour champion, don't see a young guy asking for instructions, even multiple times as a liability.. Smart racing!!
Think if Del Toro and UAE had a Giro do over, all would agree that double and triple checking radio relayed instructions is not a bad thing!!! Lol!!!
When in doubt ask the boss!!

Asking for instructions with a 200 heart rate?

 

[proffate]

Vingo is a phenomenal GT racer. I think the complaint is that he didn't push Pog at all today, after claiming yesterday that "the Tour isn't over."

I think he said that before they shortened the stage

 

[Dekker_Tifosi]

Michael Boogerd La Plagne stage win was etched in my memory forever.

But holy *** Arensman actually outdid him. Yes Pogi/Vinge kinda ruined it for themselves but fact remains Arensman beat every other GC contender from the GC group without an early break. Super *** impressive

 

[CyclistAbi]

Congratulations to Thymen Arensman for winning the stage.

Really enjoyed this stage, Rogla being the main protagonist. Fearless attack from the get go and some serious descending skills on display. Unfortunately not rewarded for it, mostly due to UAE hogging the race with rather childish desire for stage wins. In the end Lipo dragging both so called aliens to the finish line and aliens after sprinting for whoever finishing second, good job.

 

[Unchained]

Asking for instructions with a 200 heart rate?

Maybe 3 or 400 when you are racing uphill against Pogacar, he is in yellow, he has done 2 very hard pulses that eliminated almost every other rider and you look back to see Onley falling apart a bit..likely pretty excited!!!!!
200 number is an obvious meant as a joke, Lipowitz took a very long , fast pull that both Pogacar and Vingegaard took advantage of.. But the only people who were really racing were the top 3 for the stage.. Too many riders and teams adopting a defensive posture acting like there are official participation awards for finishing instead of racing to win!! It makes the winning by Thymen Arensman that much more special, and how he did it..attacking the best and racing bold!!

 

[dazaau]

After finishing the full replay I am left just offended by this stage and how it was raced.

Thank goodness for Onley and Lipo and 3rd

 

[iBanesto]

Sir Wiggo disappointed in Vingegaard.

"He could have stopped with 5 km to go and had a coffee, and would not have lost a podium place".

 

[iBanesto]

 

[Rackham]

The whole race is like AI slop and modern Hollywood combined into one package that perfectly encapsulates the epoch, so it fits the era we're in. Overpowered uncharismatic leads who do and say the most boring and forgettable things without an ounce of what made former champions so memorable. This Tour has zero spark, passion or intensity. It's corporate slop, designed by committee with "heroes" who look miserable on the road.

As a spectator, I'm gone, I'm dead.

 

[Krzysztof_O]

All in all this stage proved there is a new FTP king: Arensman! Teddy couldnt close the gap while Vingo just sticked to his wheel until 3 meters to go. This is end of the two mutants era, lasting 6 years. We know who is the Tour 2026 favourite, just a bit of work on consistency is needed.

 

[tigabara]

We just really like to complain. Tadej is dominant, we complain. Tadej looks human, we complain. Different champions on different stages, we forget about them because we're busy complaining...


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[Red Rick]

Michael Boogerd La Plagne stage win was etched in my memory forever.

But holy *** Arensman actually outdid him. Yes Pogi/Vinge kinda ruined it for themselves but fact remains Arensman beat every other GC contender from the GC group without an early break. Super *** impressive

Tbh I was chuckling early in the broadcast when they unironically said "only the greats win on La Plagne" because of Michael frigging Boogerd.

 

[assisting]

But the only people who were really racing were the top 3 for the stage.

Lipowitz wasn't racing? I don't get it. He's in for white jersey and podium which I would both deem very valuable for a 23 year old, first time Tour de France participant and he did what he had to do to secure these achievements by pulling and putting time into his direct opponent. Would he stand a chance in a sprint against the two aliens otherwise? I think he did the right thing. After having attacked the day before and loosing time because of it.

The Pogačar vs. Vingegaard duel was feeling especially dull yesterday, but I guess that is what you get after nearly 3 weeks of hard racing with two now closely matched opponents who don't want to risk going for the win when it means they could loose to each other. Arensman took his chances and got the win. Nicely done!

 

[dr.eve]

Tbh I was chuckling early in the broadcast when they unironically said "only the greats win on La Plagne" because of Michael frigging Boogerd.

Yeah, I'm Dutch and I am quite a bit annoyed by how Boogerd is praised so much, while we all know it is tainted. Arensman doesn't need that.

At some point they even made up a story on the broadcast saying: "Arensman probably had a Boogerd poster in his room". Not realising Arensman is of a generation that actually didn't actively live that era, he was 3 when Boogerd won there.

 

[D. Pecher]

Some people here are complaining way too much. They either don't understand cycling or they think the riders are modern day gladiators and we as spectators have a god-given right to be entertained.

The third week of this tour has been brutal. Just remember how insanely fast the first three hours of the Ventoux stage were. They averaged over 50kph for three hours. The current 1-hour record is 56 kph.

The helpers of Pogacar and Vingegaard are dead on their feet. Soler, van Aerts, Politt - they all dropped off way before they usually do. Under these conditions it was never going to be a pectacle after such a long tour. And don't underestimate the impact of the rain. If you are already exhausted, riding in miserable weather was the last the riders needed.

I think some should just adjust their expectations. After a long, hard tour with the yellow jersey all but secure already, you cannot expect fireworks. The clinic section would blow up if the riders would still ride in the third week as if it was the first.

 

[Red Rick]

Yeah, I'm Dutch and I am quite a bit annoyed by how Boogerd is praised so much, while we all know it is tainted. Arensman doesn't need that.

At some point they even made up a story on the broadcast saying: "Arensman probably had a Boogerd poster in his room". Not realising Arensman is of a generation that actually didn't actively live that era, he was 3 when Boogerd won there.

It's not even about Boogerd's Clinic issue, it's about him not being that great in the first place.

 

[Rackham]

Boogerd got high praise because Armstrong attacked on la Plagne in that 2002 stage and didn't supersonically levitate enough to catch Boogerd.

Javier Otxoa (RIP) was also praised for similar reasons. Those were the days when breakaway winners got extra cool points for resisting the onslaught of the Postal rocket.

 

[Red Rick]

Boogerd got high praise because Armstrong attacked on la Plagne in that 2002 stage and didn't supersonically levitate enough to catch Boogerd.

Javier Otxoa (RIP) was also praised for similar reasons. Those were the days when breakaway winners got extra cool points for resisting the onslaught of the Postal rocket.

He was simply the best Dutch rider in a period a huge number of people are super nostalgic for, which is understandable. The era after him being void of any Dutch stage winners only added to his legend.

 

[kingjr]

The whole race is like AI slop and modern Hollywood combined into one package that perfectly encapsulates the epoch, so it fits the era we're in. Overpowered uncharismatic leads who do and say the most boring and forgettable things without an ounce of what made former champions so memorable. This Tour has zero spark, passion or intensity. It's corporate slop, designed by committee with "heroes" who look miserable on the road.

As a spectator, I'm gone, I'm dead.

You obviously weren't around during the Indurain era. That man turned "answering questions by rephrasing their content" into an art form.

 

[Gobbo]

Sir Wiggo disappointed in Vingegaard.

"He could have stopped with 5 km to go and had a coffee, and would not have lost a podium place".

Vingegaard yesterday was one of the most stupid things I have ever seen in cycling.

He started his attack when Arensman had already won and when he was unreachable, just because he was afraid of losing to Pogi if he started ten-fiften seconds earlier. That is so *** dammed stupid that I don´t have words for it.

But I don´t know if it was Vingegaards decision or if it was an order from his sports director. If it was the last things, the sports director should be fired...

 

[Dekker_Tifosi]

He was simply the best Dutch rider in a period a huge number of people are super nostalgic for, which is understandable. The era after him being void of any Dutch stage winners only added to his legend.

we are positively super spoiled now. Since Boogerd retired Dutch riders finally managed to win LBL, Lombardia, RVV, Roubaix and MSR + stages in all GC's + A Grand Tour + in general a lot more gc classifications as well.

Boogerd's era was comparitively pathetic from the dutch side.

 

[Red Rick]

we are positively super spoiled now. Since Boogerd retired Dutch riders finally managed to win LBL, Lombardia, RVV, Roubaix and MSR + stages in all GC's + A Grand Tour + in general a lot more gc classifications as well.

Boogerd's era was comparitively pathetic from the dutch side.

We're spoiled, and a lot of people are complaining anyway how aside from Van der Poel we're ***.

Complaining even more than me somehow.

 

[Dekker_Tifosi]

vdp is a once in a lifetime talent. But they do not need to despair, there's still plenty of dutch talent after VDP. But getting 2/3 monuments every year is not gonna happen lol