Jonas Vingegaard explains why he kept 'long pants' in Paris-Nice Stage 4 win - 'Call me a trend-setter'
Published 11/03/2026 at 17:39 GMT
Jonas Vingegaard won Stage 4 of Paris-Nice on Wednesday but completed the race wearing 'long pants,' not the typical shorts. He explained afterwards that the fast nature of the race meant he had no time to change clothes, adding that he might have coped better with the wet and windy weather conditions with his longer trousers. With his victory, Vingegaard took the yellow jersey off Juan Ayuso.
'Call me a trend-setter' - Vingegaard explains why he kept 'long pants' in Stage 4 win
Video credit: TNT Sports
Jonas Vingegaard is known for his speed on the bike. But sometimes, the Dane is riding so quickly, things fall by the wayside.
Vingegaard was the winner of Wednesday’s chaotic Stage 4 of Paris-Nice, producing a late burst to take first place and the yellow jersey for the overall leader.
But apart from his brilliant performance, one thing stood out about Vingegaard as he rode through the French countryside.
The 29-year-old completed the whole race in long tights, unusual attire for cyclists who typically prefer to wear shorts.
Afterwards, Vingegaard explained that the nature of Wednesday’s race meant he had no opportunity to change his clothing on what he called "such a crazy day."
The Dane said: "We did expect a crazy day but definitely not like it ended up. We also had a plan. We wanted to go on the second last climb but everything from the start was full gas racing and all the day was full gas racing," he said.
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Vingegaard overcomes torrential conditions to win Stage 4, take yellow jersey
Video credit: TNT Sports
"There was not even time to take clothes off so maybe you can call me a trend setter with the long pants. But there was just no time to take it off."
Stage 4 took place in wet and rainy conditions, with the weather providing a stiff challenge for competitors.
"[The weather] had a big influence obviously. First of all, there was the crosswinds in the start, straight from the gun," Vingegaard said. "Already there, a few guys were caught behind.
"Then later on, I think a lot of guys were freezing. I personally didn’t freeze because I had a lot of clothes on. That maybe was a reason why I couldn’t take [his long pants] off. Also with the rain, it obviously affects the race."
The overall leader before Stage 4, Juan Ayuso, was a victim of the conditions, falling in a crash and having to abandon the race.
Ayuso was one of a number of cyclists involved in crashes on Wednesday in tricky circumstances.
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Crash forces Ayuso to abandon after leading Stage 4 - 'He's not looking good'
Video credit: TNT Sports
For Vingegaard, it was a particularly meaningful victory as it was his first stage win in Paris-Nice outside of the team time trials.
And it added extra importance for Vingegaard because at last year’s Paris-Nice he was forced to abandon the race due to his own crash.
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"I’ve been feeling good. But all day was just extremely hard," he said. "I mean, [Team Visma | Lease a Bike team-mate] Edoardo [Affini] was there with me most of the day and he did a super good job today. At the start, it was just so hectic. I’m just happy that I’m here and I won the stage. It’s incredible.
"Last year I had to abandon the race. Then I had the leaders jersey and I crashed and afterwards, I had to abandon the race. But coming back and winning a stage … it’s really nice to start the season this way."
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