Jasper Philipsen had to drop out of the Tour. © ANSA / CHRISTOPHE PETIT TESSON

Shock at the Tour: The sprint king has to give up

Sprint king Jasper Philipsen crashed heavily at 61 km/h in the Tour de France and had to abandon the race.

July 07, 2025

From: dpa

The Belgian, who had won the opening stage on Saturday and worn the yellow jersey for a day, crashed shortly before the intermediate sprint, about 59 kilometers from the finish in Dunkirk. Philipsen fell on his right shoulder, and his entire jersey was torn.

Philipsen was subsequently treated by the Tour doctor for several minutes on the side of the road. However, the ten-time Tour stage winner was unable to continue. The crash was caused by Belgian Laurenz Rex, who knocked Cofidis rider Bryan Coquard off balance. The Frenchman eventually collided with Philipsen, who was unable to avoid the crash.

Philipsen was taken directly to the hospital. Philip Roodhooft, team principal of the Alpecin racing team, was visibly upset. "Of course, this is causing emotions. Today's result is irrelevant," he said, unable to provide details on the extent of the injuries. "Jasper is down," he said in English. Roodhooft, however, refused to assign blame: "At this point, it's not really relevant to analyze it. Everyone has seen the images," he added.

This means the Tour de France loses its best sprinter of recent years. Last year, the 27-year-old won three stages and the green jersey in 2023, and even four. This year, the Belgian once again seemed to be in a class of his own after a less successful spring season. He had a dominant win in Lille, and a day later, his teammate Mathieu van der Poel took the yellow jersey with victory in Boulogne-sur-Mer.