Tadej Pogačar wins 2026 Tour de France, his fifth title

Tadej Pogačar of Slovenia won the 2026 Tour de France on Sunday, July 26, crossing the finish line on the Champs-Élysées at just before 8 p.m. local time, according to NPR. His fifth Tour de France victory ties him with Jacques Anquetil, Eddy Merckx, Bernard Hinault, and Miguel Induráin as the joint most successful competitor ever in the event.

Pogačar completed the race in 73 hours 56 minutes and 26 seconds, nearly six and a half minutes faster than his nearest competitor, Belgium's Remco Evenepoel, per NPR. The final stage itself was won by Dutch rider Mathieu van der Poel in a time of 1 hour, 58 minutes and 49 seconds.

The final stage began around 5:50 p.m. local time on the Champs-Élysées with a slight delay, and the route was shortened from its original course beginning in Thoiry, about 56 kilometers west of Paris. The changes came because security and police assigned to the race were reassigned to assist with wildfires in southwest France, according to NPR.

Pogačar's five wins place him among cycling's all-time greats, though his record remains below Lance Armstrong's seven titles. Armstrong was stripped of all his Tour de France titles in 2012 after it was revealed he had used performance-enhancing drugs throughout his career.