Evenepoel secures stage win as Tour de France doping test debate continues

By Michael Carter — 21 July 2026 — 3 min read

Evenepoel’s Stage Victory and Teammate’s Withdrawal

Remco Evenepoel achieved consecutive stage victories in the Tour de France, narrowing the overall lead held by Tadej Pogacar. Evenepoel, who is the Olympic road and time trial champion, secured a win in the stage 16 time trial from Evian to Thonon-les-Bains. This victory, celebrated on the Belgian national day, saw him finish 28 seconds ahead of Pogacar, reducing the Slovenian’s advantage to just over four and a half minutes.

This marks Evenepoel’s third career time trial win in the Tour. He expressed satisfaction with his current form, stating it had been a while since he performed at this level. Despite his success, Evenepoel acknowledged that the race is not yet over, with challenging stages still to come.

The success for Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe was overshadowed by the withdrawal of Evenepoel’s teammate, Florian Lipowitz. Lipowitz, who finished third in the Tour last year, crashed during the stage. He fell on a tight right-hand bend after a downhill section and was subsequently carried away on a stretcher.

It was later confirmed that Lipowitz sustained a broken collarbone. This incident marks the second time a 2025 podium finisher has left the race within 72 hours, following Jonas Vingegaard’s departure on Sunday. Lipowitz was reportedly nearing the finish and was the second-fastest at the third time check when his crash occurred. Evenepoel expressed his regret over his teammate’s crash, describing his victory as a “bittersweet pill” and stating he would miss Lipowitz in the final week.

Doping Test Controversy Persists

Amidst the ongoing race, a debate continues regarding the nocturnal activities of the ITA drug testing agency. The agency conducted visits to Jonas Vingegaard at 2 am and Tadej Pogacar at 5 am last Sunday. These tests, performed outside the usual 6 am to 11 pm window, have drawn considerable criticism, despite being authorized by the Paris prosecutor’s office.

Jonathan Vaughters, manager of the EF Education EasyPost team, commented on the situation, suggesting that obtaining a warrant from a French judge might not be difficult given the sport’s history. He noted that a French judge, not being a sports scientist or haematologist, could be convinced without much difficulty. Vaughters, while supportive of the ITA’s efforts in combating doping, indicated that the bar for obtaining such warrants might not be particularly high.

Pascal Chanteur, vice-president of the CPA, the professional riders association, also questioned the Paris prosecutor’s involvement, stating that the judge had limited knowledge of cycling. The CPA supports night-time testing if sufficient evidence exists, according to Chanteur. He also suggested that the differing times for Vingegaard and Pogacar’s tests were due to the ITA’s limited resources, rather than any specific significance.

The French sports code mandates that testing procedures must ensure proportionality between infringing an athlete’s rights and the objectives of anti-doping efforts. Olivier Banuls, the ITA’s director of testing, previously stated in May that the agency focuses on targeted testing rather than mass testing, which he described as inefficient. The results of the tests conducted on both riders remain undisclosed, leaving a cloud of suspicion over Pogacar as he approaches what could be a record-equalling fifth Tour win.

Source: theguardian.com