The final stage in the Tour followed tradition. The first part was a sluggish procession and an ideal opportunity to take a few photos, especially with winner Pogacar as the central figure. Initially a bit uncomfortable in his completely yellow outfit, he posed with his team and his four compatriots in this Slovenian Tour.
It went at a snail’s pace from Mantes-la-Jolie to Paris, where Keukeleire already gave it a rag on the first cobblestones of the Champs Elysées. A group of eight men, including Kwiatkowski, Kragh Andersen and Van Asbroeck, was not given room to maneuver. A quartet with Van Avermaet, Schachmann, Périchon and Swift was allowed to drive away for 20 seconds.
They took the most points away from the intermediate sprint, so Bennett was mathematically sure of his green jersey. Van Avermaet and co sang it out until the last round. The sprinter teams used the entire width of the boulevard to set up trains and drop off fast men.
Jumbo-Visma delivered Van Aert too early, so he did not play a role in the sprint. A tired Ewan was also not involved. At Quick-Step, the unsurpassed Mørkøv rolled out the red carpet for Bennett. The Irishman gave his green jersey extra shine with a mighty victory. World champion Pedersen finished second on a bike length, Sagan ended in third place.
