Sepp Kuss's terrible fall. © Screenshot

The Tour de France narrowly avoids disaster

The queen stage of the Tour de France took place on Saturday. A cycling star narrowly escaped disaster.

July 25, 2026

From: det/dpa

For a long time on Saturday, Sepp Kuss was on the verge of winning the queen stage of the Tour de France in Alpe d'Huez. The American was leading the penultimate stage of the French tour until six kilometers from the finish. But then a scene unfolded that made every cycling fan's heart sink.

During a steep descent, Kuss was thrown too wide in a right-hand bend. The 31-year-old lost his balance and crashed along the roughly 80-centimeter-high concrete barrier. Kuss was incredibly lucky that this exact spot was secured with a safety net – because beyond it, the drop was precipitous. Whether the cycling star would have survived such a fall is far from certain.

After this shocking moment, Kuss had to let his rival Richard Carapaz pass him. The Ecuadorian ultimately won the queen stage, ahead of Remco Evenepoel, who overtook Kuss in the final meters.

Richard Carapaz won the queen stage. © ANSA / GUILLAUME HORCAJUELO

When Kuss sees the images of the near-catastrophe, the missed stage win probably doesn't matter to him. "Sepp was our man for today, and that worked out very well. After the crash, though, he first had to recover. Then it was difficult to get back on track. It was good that the safety net was there," said Kuss's sports director Marc Reef of Visma-Lease a bike.

Pogacar is on the verge of Tour victory

Tadej Pogacar, meanwhile, is on the verge of his fifth Tour de France victory. The Slovenian cycling star finished fourth on the queen stage in Alpe d'Huez. On the penultimate stage of the Tour, Pogacar put himself at the service of his teammate Isaac del Toro, who finished fifth that day, to secure his third place overall.

Tadej Pogacar (left) crossed the finish line with his teammate Isaac del Toro. © ANSA / GUILLAUME HORCAJUELO

With a gap of 6:26 minutes to Evenepoel and 9:42 minutes to del Toro, Pogacar will start the final stage in Paris. The 113th Tour de France will conclude in the French capital on Sunday. However, it will be different than originally planned: due to the severe forest fires in the southwest of the country and the resulting need for emergency services, the final stage will be significantly shortened and moved entirely to Paris. Instead of 133 kilometers, only 89 kilometers will now be covered.