In a dramatic turn of events at the Tour de France, Belgian Remco Evenepoel triumphed in stage 15, overtaking Tadej Pogacar, the race leader, to secure the finish line victory on Sunday. This stage was marred by the unfortunate abandonment of Jonas Vingegaard, who was ranked second overall, following a crash that left him injured.

Vingegaard, a two-time champion, crashed alongside three other riders at a tight corner after clipping a curb approximately 20km from the finish. The incident resulted in a significant injury, with Vingegaard's right arm placed in a sling as he was taken into an ambulance.

The crash also involved Sepp Kuss, Vingegaard's teammate from Visma-Lease a Bike, and Isaac del Toro and Brandon McNulty, teammates of Pogacar from UAE Team Emirates-XRG. While the other three riders continued, Del Toro struggled to keep pace with Pogacar and Evenepoel in the closing kilometers.

Reflecting on Vingegaard's departure, Pogacar expressed his sadness, stating, "It’s really sad to see that Jonas is out... since 2021, we were always battling out for the Tour. We became good rivals, respected rivals. The Tour won't be the same without him."

Pogacar also mentioned a possible connection between Vingegaard's crash and the late-night discussions regarding doping controls, saying, "I don’t blame that, but it could be connected."

Evenepoel's victory marked his first stage win of this year’s Tour, pushing him up to second place in the overall standings, now five minutes behind Pogacar, who finished third in the stage.