The 2026 Tour de France continues to stir controversy as Jonas Vingegaard and Tadej Pogacar faced late-night doping tests on Sunday, occurring at 2am and 5am respectively. Following these tests, Vingegaard crashed out in the next stage, while Pogacar criticized the timing of the tests as “inhuman.” On Monday’s rest day, all remaining riders underwent anti-doping blood tests conducted within the standard 6am-11pm window, as confirmed by the International Testing Agency (ITA).

Current Leaders in the Jersey Battles

• Points Classification:

  1. Mads Pedersen 🇩🇰 Lidl-Trek - 417pts
  2. Jasper Philipsen 🇧🇪 Alpecin-Premier - 386pts
  3. Biniam Girmay 🇪🇷 NSN Cycling - 361pts

• King of the Mountains:

  1. Tadej Pogacar 🇸🇮 UAE Team Emirates - 70pts
  2. V. Paret Peintre 🇫🇷 Soudal Quick-Step - 45pts
  3. Richard Carapaz 🇪🇨 EF Education-Easypost - 39pts

• Youth Classification:

  1. Isaac del Toro 🇲🇽 UAE Team Emirates - 56h 21m 9s
  2. Paul Seixas 🇫🇷 Decathlon CMA CGM - +20s
  3. Juan Ayuso 🇪🇸 Lidl-Trek - +2m 31s

General Classification

1. Tadej Pogacar 🇸🇮 UAE Team Emirates - 56h 14m 18s
2. Remco Evenepoel 🇧🇪 Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe - +4m 32s
3. Isaac del Toro 🇲🇽 UAE Team Emirates - +6m 51s
4. Paul Seixas 🇫🇷 Decathlon CMA CGM - +7m 11s
5. Juan Ayuso 🇪🇸 Lidl-Trek - +9m 22s

Stage 17 Overview

Stage 17, starting in Chambéry, presents a unique opportunity for breakaway specialists, despite being nominally a sprinters’ stage. The first 50km features significant uphill terrain through the Chartreuse, posing a challenge for sprinters. A critical point awaits with a 2.6km climb at 4% gradient just 5km from the finish, making it a potential stage for riders like Biniam Girmay or Michael Matthews to shine.

As the Tour transitions to the final Alpine climbs, this stage serves as a crucial juncture for riders aiming to make their mark.