Tour de France 2025 Stage 14 recap - Thymen Arensman wins in Superbagneres ahead of Tadej Pogacar as Remco Evenepoel abandons

World champion Tadej Pogacar (UAE Team Emirates) showed his charitable side on Saturday after foregoing a chance to complete a hat-trick of successive wins in the Pyrenees on a sodden, cold and gloomy day on the Tour de France.

The main beneficiary of the yellow jersey’s largesse was the Dutchman Thymen Arensman (Ineos Grenadiers), who held on for a maiden Tour stage win from the day’s breakaway as Pogacar willingly settled for second place ahead of Jonas Vingegaard (Visma-Lease a Bike) at Superbagneres.

On a day that Belgium’s Remco Evenepoel (Soudal Quick-Step) abandoned on the Col du Tourmalet, the breakaway finally went the distance despite late attacks from Austria’s Felix Gall (Decathon AG2R La Mondiale) and the two-time champion Vingegaard on the final climb.

Pogacar did not let his benevolence stretch to his big rival, however, the 26-year-old powering clear from Vingegaard’s back wheel on the home straight to cross the line a handful of seconds clear of the Dane and extend his lead at the top of the standings to 4’13" after one of the toughest stages of the race so far.

Remco Evenepoel’s withdrawal means Lipowitz rises onto the podium and takes the white jersey, while Ben Healy also re-enters the top 10. Matteo Jorgenson’s implosion also means Carlos Rodriguez, who finished the stage in 11th place, enters the fray.

1 Tadej Pogacar (UAE Team Emirates-XRG)
2. Jonas Vingegaard (Visma-Lease a Bike) +4:13
3. Florian Lipowitz (Red Bull-Bora Hansgrohe) +7:53
4. Oscar Onley (Team Picnic PostNL) +9:18
5. Kevin Vauquelin (Arkea-B&B Hotels) +10:21
6. Primoz Roglic (Red Bull-Bora Hansgrohe) +10:34
7. Felix Gall (Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale) +12:00
8. Tobias Johannessen (Uno-X Mobility) +12:33
9. Ben Healy (EF Education-EasyPost) +18:41
10. Carlos Rodriguez (Ineos Grenadiers) +22:57

"I can’t really believe it. I got sick after the Giro, but still I had good preparation. Going to my first Tour, I wanted to experience everything, and I had to be pretty patient in the first week because it was pretty punchy and I had to wait until the mountains.

"Then I was second place at the first opportunity on the Mont-Dore stage, so that was already pretty amazing. But this is unbelievable now.

"The way I did it today, but also Carlos in that group, he was also super strong and he did a really good job for me. I think I just had really amazing legs and I’m in the shape of my life. I heard the gaps with the GC group and I thought it probably wouldn’t be enough with Tadej and Jonas behind. I wasn’t sure it was suicide or not.

"I can’t believe I held them off. I was really fading on the last climb, the second half of the climb. I think all the spectators gave me some extra watts and I was able to hold them off.

"I’ve done a lot of Giros and Vueltas – and I’ve already won a stage on the Vuelta – but I wanted to experience the biggest race in the world. So, to win a stage in my first Tour in this way is unbelievable, crazy."

"A bit like yesterday, I can be really happy about how my legs were feeling today. In general, today was probably one of the hardest mountain stages I have ever done. So to do that performance at the end of such a day is obviously nice. We wanted to go try to win the stage with one of (Kuss and Yates) but they couldn’t follow Thymen Arensman on the final climb. He did a good job and deserved the victory. I thought (Pogacar) would try on the final climb but when I saw that he wasn’t going to try, I decided to attack myself."

1. Thymen Arensman (Ineos Grenadiers)
2. Tadej Pogacar (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) +1:08
3. Jonas Vingegaard (Visma-Lease a Bike) +1:12
4. Felix Gall (Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale) +1:19
5. Florian Lipowitz (Red Bull-Bora Hansgrohe) +1:25
6. Oscar Onley (Picnic PostNL) +2:09
7. Ben Healy (EF Education-EasyPost) +2:46
8. Primoz Roglic (Red Bull-Bora Hansgrohe) "
9. Tobias Johannessen (Uno-X Mobility) +2:59
10. Kevin Vauquelin (Arkea-B&B Hotels) +3:08

Here's how Arensman rode to victory in Superbagneres...

The yellow jersey outkicks his big rival to cross the line a minute or so down on Arensman but four seconds clear of Vingegaard. Throw in bonus seconds and that’s an eight-second swing. That’s perhaps by the Dane shakes his head after once again losing out even when performing well.

The Dutchman is able to sit up and celebrate a maiden Tour stage win after winning from the breakaway in Superbagneres. The 25-year-old pulled off a textbook ride today and can be hugely proud of himself. That goes with his Vuelta stage win from 2022 - just the Giro to go now, Thymen...

Thymen Arensman is in a world of pain but he will end Ineos Grenadier’s two-year wait for a Tour stage win. He’s back up in the cloud but he still has over a minute on his pursuers – the two best bike riders in the world.

It looks like the Slovenian will gift Arensman the win today. He won’t come through and help Vingegaard in the chase, so the Dutchman will take the stage while the Big Two battle for bonus seconds behind.

This time Gall has no answer as Vingegaard rides clear with Pogacar in his wheel. Onley, meanwhile, is closing in on Lipowitz and Gall. Arensman still has 1’35" and it looks like he will win – unless Pogacar puts in a meaningful attack.

But Oscar Onley is further back after suffering some kind of mechanical issue. The trio catch Gall, and then the yellow jersey takes it up. Arensman’s lead is down to 1’40".

The Dane makes the first move and his acceleration is followed by Pogacar and Lipowitz, with Onley a bit further back. That won’t help Arensman’s case – but let’s see if Vingegaard pushes on.

"This man is suffering but he’s defending well." So says Sean Kelly as Thymen Arensmen continues his pursuit of a maiden Tour stage win. He has 1’45" on Gall and 2’12" on the yellow jersey group, on the back of which Ben Healy is clinging on for dear life as he defends his virtual place in the top 10.

The Dutchman is onto the steep part of the climb where the gradient hits double figures. He still has 2’05" over Felix Gall, but he’s starting to show signs of fatigue. He’s up and out of the saddle, struggling to find his rhythm.

Kevin Vauquelin, meanwhile, starts to go backwards from the GC group, while Ben Healy grapples to stay on. Oscar Onley is still there, ditto Johannessen, after he was caught from the break. The gap is 2’20" as Yates continues pacing Pogacar. One attack from the yellow jersey could change it all.

The first man in the GC group to make a move is Felix Gall, who was lurking with one of his Decathlon team-mates for a while. Up the road he goes – and he’s bridged over to the remnants of the chase group and rides alongside Johannessen after both Rodriguez and Rubio hit the wall.

As a response, Adam Yates ups the tempo behind for Pogacar, who has Vingegaard and then the Red Bull duo of Lipowitz and Roglic in his wheel.

We should add that Ben Healy is still in this GC group, which is really impressive given he was in the breakaway earlier and then dropped back. Perhaps Evenepoel's withdrawal - and dreams of a top 10 - have given him a second wind.

They placed both Simon Yates and Sepp Kuss in the break, but both riders have been caught and, indeed, one of them is already off the back. So, with Jorgenson already distanced, Vingegaard only has one rider with him in the main GC group – but that rider (I think it’s Kuss) is well back. Pogacar, meanwhile, still has Narvaez and Adam Yates with him.

But the gaps have stabilised. Arensman has 2’35" on the four chasers and 2’48" on the yellow jersey group.

With the yellow jersey group closing in, Tobias Johannessen ups the tempo and goes clear with Rodriguez, Paret-Peintre and Rubio. But the other escapees have been caught. The gap is 2’30" and 2’50" for Arensman, who faces the toughest half-hour of his life.

The rangy Dutch climber has 2’30" on the chase group of seven riders: Kuss, Paret-Peintre, Rodriguez, Rubio, O’Connor, Johannessen and Martinez.

It’s been going uphill for a while but it’s only now that the classified part of the Cat.HC ascent to Superbagneres begins. It’s 12.4km at an average gradient of 7.3%. Arensman, our lone leader, has 2’15" on the chasers and 3’10" on the yellow jersey group.

Pavel Sivakov peels off and hands the reins over to Marc Soler, who takes up the tempo for Pogacar on the front. The increase in pace spells the end of Matteo Jorgenson, who is quickly dropped – and we haven’t even hit the official start of the climb yet. The gap is down to 3’15".