Belgium’s Jasper Philipsen sprinted to win stage 15 of the Tour de France as race leader Jonas Vingegaard survived a crash but lost two key team-mates.
Primoz Roglic abandoned through injury before the stage began, and another Jumbo-Visma rider Steven Kruijswijk crashed out with 65km to go.
Vingegaard came off his bike in a pile-up soon afterwards but continued despite landing heavily on his head.
The Dane maintained his lead over Tadej Pogacar with a week of the Tour to go.
The mostly flat 202.5km route from Rodez to Carcassonne was supposed to be a routine stage for the riders fighting for the yellow jersey but it turned into a day to forget for Vingegaard and his team.
Their collective strength has helped him build his advantage over Pogacar, so it was a blow to lose Roglic – their co-leader and one of the pre-race favourites – before the stage began when he decided to pull out with injuries he sustained in a crash on stage five.
Things got worse later in the day when Kruijswijk, renowned for his climbing strength, went down and suffered a suspected broken collarbone – it was immediately apparent his Tour was over and he was taken to hospital in an ambulance.
Vingegaard himself was involved in a crash only few minutes later when there was a touch of wheels in the bunch, and another Jumbo-Visma rider, Tiesj Benoot, was hurt at the same time.
Both of them were able to recover and ride on but it was a reminder of how unpredictable the Tour can be and a boost for Pogacar, who lost two team-mates – George Bennett and Vegard Stake Laengen – after they tested positive for Covid-19 earlier in the race.
For Philipsen, the sprint finish brought a long-awaited first triumph in the Tour, at the end of a gruelling day in extreme heat in the south of France.
The 24-year-old thought he had taken his maiden win on stage four of this year’s race, raising his arms after winning a bunch sprint to the line in Calais, but later discovered that Wout van Aert had already crossed the line after breaking clear.
This time, Philipsen was not to be denied, catching French rider Benjamin Thomas with 500 metres to go, then surging past Mads Pedersen in the final 100 metres and holding off Van Aert to win by the length of a wheel.
“I know what losing is like in the Tour – I have lost many, many times – but how it worked out today was incredible,” Philipsen said afterwards. “It’s been a massive search for this victory and we had to work very hard for it.”
Monday is a rest day before the race enters the Pyrenees on Tuesday, with a 178.5km route from Carcassonne to Foix. The Tour finishes in Paris next Sunday.
Stage 15 results
1. Jasper Philipsen (Bel/Alpecin-Deceuninck) 4hrs 27mins 27secs
2. Wout van Aert (Bel/Jumbo-Visma) Same time
3. Mads Pedersen (Den/Trek-Segafredo) Same time
4. Peter Sagan (Svk/TotalEnergies) Same time
5. Danny van Poppel (Ned/BORA-Hansgrohe) Same time
6. Dylan Groenewegen (Ned/Team BikeExchange-Jayco) Same time
7. Florian Senechal (Fra/Quick-Step-Alpha Vinyl) Same time
8. Luca Mozzato (Ita/B&B Hotels-KTM) Same time
9. Andrea Pasqualon (Ita/Intermarche-Wanty) Same time
10. Fred Wright (GB/Bahrain Victorious) Same time
General classification after stage 15
1. Jonas Vingegaard (Den/Jumbo-Visma) 60hrs 00mins 50secs
2. Tadej Pogacar (Slo/UAE Team Emirates) +2mins 22secs
3. Geraint Thomas (GB/Ineos Grenadiers) +2mins 43secs
4. Romain Bardet (Fra/Team DSM) +3mins 01secs
5. Adam Yates (GB/Ineos Grenadiers) +4mins 06secs
6. Nairo Quintana (Col/Arkea-Samsic) +4mins 15secs
7. Louis Meintjes (SA/Intermarche-Wanty) +4mins 24secs
8. David Gaudu (Fra/Groupama-FDJ) same time
9. Tom Pidcock (GB/Ineos Grenadiers) +8mins 49secs
10. Enric Mas (Spa/Movistar) +9mins 58secs