Evenepoel wins time trial for back-to-back Tour de France stage victories, Pogacar still leads
Remco Evenepoel won the 16th stage of the Tour de France, a time trial that allowed him to close the gap on overall leader Tadej Pogacar. The victory was marred by the withdrawal of Evenepoel's teammate Florian Lipowitz due to a crash.
Why it matters
The Tour de France is the premier event in professional cycling, and this stage significantly impacted the competitive standings between the top contenders.
Time trial world champion Remco Evenepoel was fastest on Tuesday (July 21, 2026) as he won the 16th stage of the Tour de France to shave 28 seconds off Tadej Pogacar's commanding lead.
Evenepoel completed the 26.1-kilometer individual time trial in 32 minutes, 19 seconds, more than a minute faster than Mattias Skjelmose, the previous quickest, before the Belgian rider waited to see Pogacar cross the line with the second-best effort of the day.
It ensured back-to-back stage victories for Evenepoel after winning the 15th stage on Sunday. Monday was a rest day.
His teammate Florian Lipowitz crashed out, however. The German rider slipped going around a sharp bend near the finish and slid across the road into the sidewalk kerb. He was unable to continue with what looked like a shoulder injury.
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