The 2024 Tour de France’s second stage delivered one of the most memorable acts of sportsmanship in recent cycling memory on Sunday, as defending champion Tadej Pogacar handed a surprise maiden stage victory to his 22-year-old UAE Emirates-XRG teammate Isaac Del Toro on a hilly route through Catalonia, while overall race leader Jonas Vingegaard clung to his slim early advantage.
The 168.5-kilometer stage began in the coastal Catalonian city of Tarragona, winding through rolling terrain to Barcelona, where riders climbed three times to the iconic 17th-century Montjuïc castle before the 700-meter uphill sprint to the finish line. Early breakaway attempts from Dutch rider Alex Molenaar and German competitor Felix Engelhardt were reeled in by the main peloton with roughly 30 kilometers remaining, setting the stage for a tense showdown between the race’s top general classification contenders.
As the pace of the peloton climbed in the final kilometers, Vingegaard and Pogacar — the two pre-race favorites for the overall title — positioned themselves near the front of the pack to avoid the high risk of late crashes that have derailed many Tour campaigns. Vingegaard, closely marking the three-time Tour winner, stayed on Pogacar’s wheel through the final climbs to counter any of the Slovenian’s signature sudden attacks. The intense speed ultimately proved too much for one-day classics star Mathieu van der Poel, who was dropped from the leading group before the finish.
When Del Toro launched a late attack up the final climb to the line, the young Mexican rider put Pogacar in prime position to contest the sprint for a stage win. In an unexpected show of team generosity, however, Pogacar slowed in the final meters, resting a hand on Del Toro’s shoulder to encourage the 22-year-old across the finish line first. A shocked Del Toro, who had never before claimed a Tour de France stage win, stared open-mouthed in disbelief at the gesture from his team leader, who is currently chasing a historic fifth overall Tour title and third consecutive victory. After crossing the line, an exhausted Del Toro collapsed on the ground to catch his breath in the summer heat; moments later, Pogacar approached to share a warm, tight hug with his emotional young teammate.
Belgium’s Remco Evenepoel crossed the line in third place, just one spot ahead of Vingegaard in fourth. All four riders finished with the identical official time of 3 hours, 40 minutes and 1 second, but time bonuses for the top three finishers cut Vingegaard’s overall lead over Pogacar from 12 seconds after the opening stage to just six seconds heading into the third stage.
Vingegaard, the 2022 and 2023 Tour champion, claimed the race’s coveted yellow jersey on Saturday after leading his Visma-Lease a Bike team to victory in the opening-day team time trial around Barcelona. The Danish rider is now chasing his third consecutive overall Tour de France title, locked in a tight early battle with Pogacar for the 2024 crown.