4 h. ago Mathieu van der Poel emerges victorious ahead of Tadej Pogacar in Tour de France stage 2

Van der Poel pipped the three-time Tour champion in a sprint finish

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4 h. ago Tour de France stage 3 preview: Crosswinds may jeopardise sprinters’ hopes

The possibility of echelons forming on the exposed coastal roads will only add to the drama

Politics

5 h. ago Tour de France 2025: Van der Poel wins stage two and takes yellow jersey – as it happened

Mathieu van der Poel won a dramatic sprint finish to claim the yellow jersey after a rain-hit ride to BoulogneI should point out that we have a bumper afternoon of sport on Big Website today. Rob Smyth has over-by-over coverage of the fifth day of the second Test between England and India:If tennis is more your thing, Daniel Harris is across everything at Wimbledon. Follow that here: Continue reading...

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5 h. ago Tour de France 2025 live: Stage 2 result as Mathieu van der Poel pips Tadej Pogacar to victory

Van der Poel times his burst to the line perfectly to edge out Pogacar and Jonas Vingegaard on the road to Boulogne-sur-Mer

Society

5 h. ago Tour de France 2025: Van der Poel sprints to stage two victory and into yellow jersey

Dutchman holds off Pogacar in sprint finishStage into Boulogne delayed by weatherMathieu van der Poel won stage two of the 2025 Tour de France into Boulogne-sur-Mer for Alpecin-Deceuninck, claiming the race lead from his teammate Jasper Philipsen after a quick succession of short climbs inside the final kilometres exploded the peloton on the approach to the Channel port. The Dutchman thwarted Tadej Pogacar’s attempt to take the 100th win of his career, outsprinting the defending Tour champion on the steady final climb of the Boulevard Auguste Mariette.“The final was actually harder than I thought,” said Van der Poel. “I was really motivated. It’s four years since I won my first stage on the Tour, so it was about time I won a second one.” Continue reading...

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9 h. ago Tour de France 2025 live: Stage 2 updates as classics specialists eye Jasper Philipsen’s yellow jersey

After a fast and furious opening day at the Tour de France, more twists and turns could well be in store on the road to Boulogne-sur-Mer

Society

11 h. ago Tour de France 2025 live: Stage 2 start time and route as classics specialists eye Jasper Philipsen’s yellow jersey

After a fast and furious opening day at the Tour de France, more twists and turns could well be in store on the road to Boulogne-sur-Mer

Society

25 h. ago Tour de France stage 2 preview: Map and profile of 209km route as Jasper Philipsen fights to keep yellow jersey

The yellow jersey is likely to change hands after just one day’s action thanks to some punchy late climbs

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25 h. ago Black Sabbath farewell concert live: Ozzy Osbourne takes to the stage on a black winged throne

All-day event has seen a number of metal acts, including Metallica, Guns N Roses, Alice in Chains and Tom Morello, take part in the Birmingham show at Villa Park

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29 h. ago Tour de France 2025: Philipsen wins chaotic first stage as Evenepoel and Roglic suffer

Girmay second, Pogacar and Vingegaard in front groupGanna withdraws; Simon Yates and Alaphilippe struggleCrashes, infighting and relentless stress characterised a frantic opening stage of the 2025 Tour de France, which was won by Jasper Philipsen, of Alpecin-Deceuninck, in Lille Metropole.Winner of three stages in 2024, the Belgian sprinter was too quick for the Eritrean Biniam Girmay, of Intermarché Wanty, and Norway’s Søren Wærenskjold, of Uno-X Mobility, and claimed his first yellow jersey. Continue reading...

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29 h. ago Tour de France 2025 live: Stage 1 result as Jasper Philipsen sprints to victory as Evenepoel loses time in crosswinds

The Belgian took the first yellow jersey of the race on a chaotic day in Lille

Society

29 h. ago Tour de France 2025 live: Grand Depart updates and stage 1 route as Evenepoel loses time in crosswinds

Who will take the first yellow jersey of the Tour as three weeks of racing kick off in France?

Society

29 h. ago Tour de France 2025: stage one heads for finish and battle for yellow jersey – live

Le Grand Départ, starting and ending at Lille MétropoleAny comments or thoughts? Feel free to email AmyAccording to the Tour’s live coverage, the peloton has stopped at Porte de Paris, one of Lille’s city gates, where an orchestra is playing the Marseillaise, the French national anthem.And the Tour de France 2025 is off! Well, the controlled, 11km slow rollout before the official race starts is on. There are 184 riders taking part and the TV coverage is showing quite a few smiling faces as they parade around during the neutralised start in Lille. Continue reading...

Society

30 h. ago Tour de France 2025: stage one sets battle for yellow jersey but Ganna out – live

Le Grand Départ, starting and ending at Lille MétropoleAny comments or thoughts? Feel free to email AmyAccording to the Tour’s live coverage, the peloton has stopped at Porte de Paris, one of Lille’s city gates, where an orchestra is playing the Marseillaise, the French national anthem.And the Tour de France 2025 is off! Well, the controlled, 11km slow rollout before the official race starts is on. There are 184 riders taking part and the TV coverage is showing quite a few smiling faces as they parade around during the neutralised start in Lille. Continue reading...

Society

31 h. ago Tour de France 2025 live: Grand Depart updates and stage 1 route as Filippo Ganna abandons after crash

Who will take the first yellow jersey of the Tour as three weeks of racing kick off in France?

Events

31 h. ago Tour de France 2025 live: Grand Depart updates and stage 1 route as Ineos hit by crash in the peloton

Who will take the first yellow jersey of the Tour as three weeks of racing kick off in France?

Events

32 h. ago Tour de France 2025 live: Grand Depart updates and stage 1 route as sprinters set for battle on streets of Lille

Who will take the first yellow jersey of the Tour as three weeks of racing kick off in France?

Society

33 h. ago Ned Boulting interview: ‘ITV’s last Tour de France will be a moment of great sadness’

Four decades of free-to-air Tour de France coverage is coming to an end in the UK and Boulting, the voice of ITV’s long-running broadcasts, believes it is a symptom of the decline of road racing in Britain, writes Lawrence Ostlere

Politics

34 h. ago Tour de France 2025 live: Grand Depart start time and stage 1 route as sprinters set for battle on streets of Lille

Who will take the first yellow jersey of the Tour as three weeks of racing kick off in France?

Society

34 h. ago Tour de France 2025: stage one sets battle for yellow jersey around Lille – live

Le Grand Départ, starting and ending at Lille MétropoleAny comments or thoughts? Feel free to email AmyMy colleague Jeremy Whittle has written about Tadej Pogačar and Jonas Vingegaard’s rivalry – sure to be a key theme again at this year’s TdF:The pair, whose rivalry is becoming one of the Tour’s most longstanding, will be locked in battle again this month with Pogačar widely expected to hammer home the supremacy of the past 18 months with another win.A lot can happen in such a long race, but I’m looking forward to racing against Jonas again. He’s in great shape. It will be a great month for people in front of the TV and beside the road.The climbs of Mont Cassel and Le Mont Noir won’t be enough to split the peloton, so this is almost guaranteed to be a bunch sprint, unless it gets windy. A strong westerly would make this a nightmare with more than 140km of crosswinds, but if it stays calm it’s a first big test for Jasper Philipsen, Tim Merlier and the other fast men. For the favouri...

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