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Caleb Ewan lunges to second stage win at this year's Tour de France ahead of Sam Bennett as Peter Sagan is relegated

john macleary
·23 min read
Caleb Ewan — Caleb Ewan lunges to second stage win at 2020 Tour de France ahead of Peter Sagan and Sam Bennett - REUTERS
Caleb Ewan — Caleb Ewan lunges to second stage win at 2020 Tour de France ahead of Peter Sagan and Sam Bennett - REUTERS

Caleb Ewan snatched his second stage victory of this year's Tour de France as a penalty for Peter Sagan saw Sam Bennett extend his advantage in the points leader's green jersey at the end of stage 11.

Bennett could not repeat what was his first career Tour stage win 24 hours earlier in Ile de Re as he swapped places on the podium with Ewan, his third place on the road being upgraded to second after Sagan was punished for a shove on Jumbo-Visma's Wout van Aert, who was promoted to third.

The 167.5km stage from Chatelaillon-Plage ended in a somewhat messy sprint, with Van Aert lighting it up early before he was shoved out of the way by the hard-charging Sagan, while Ewan had the speed to round Bennett before the line.

The photo finish for second between Sagan and Bennett became irrelevant once commissaires had studied the footage again, relegating Sagan to 85th on the day.

Deceuninck-QuickStep's Bennett was hoping to repeat the victory of fellow Irishman Sean Kelly the last time a Tour stage finished in Poitiers but had to settle for strengthening his grip on green.

If Sagan's second place had stood his lead would have been down to 15 points, but with the penalty applied it grew to 68.

There was no change at the top of the general classification, with Slovenian Primoz Roglic of Jumbo-Visma continuing to lead by 21 seconds from defending champion Egan Bernal of the Ineos Grenadiers.

Victory for the Lotto-Soudal's Ewan followed his success on stage three to Sisteron.

"It was very, very hectic," Ewan said. "I knew from the first stage that I won just to stay calm and wait for the right gap to open. I just had a real desire to win today after yesterday and I'm happy to repay my team-mates with the win."
PA

05:41 PM

Sagan relegated to 85th

Race commissaires relegate Peter Sagan to 85th place — the final position in the group he was in — after he was adjudged to have barged into Wout van Aert in the sprint. When you view the incident from this aerial angle is it difficult to defend the seven-time winner of the green jersey.

However, viewed from another angle you could possibly see why Sagan made that change of direction — not only is there a spectator holding out a selfie stick, but that upright barrier does not look too welcoming. Either way, sure this story will be discussed in Tom Cary's verdict that you will be able to read here on Telegraph Sport shortly. 

sagan vs WVA

In a team statement, Sagan later said he was disappointed, but would not give up in his pursuit of an eighth green jersey at the Tour de France: "Today, I had the speed and, in the sprint, I tried to go on the right side. I passed one rider easily, but then it got really narrow. I had to move to avoid the barriers and as a result, I got relegated. This cost me a lot of points but I still have not abandoned the fight for the green jersey."

03:45 PM

Caleb Ewan wins stage 11 at the Tour de France!

And the tiny Australian takes the stage, his second at this year's Tour de France. The Lotto-Soudal sprinter lunges at the last to dip beneath Sam Bennett (Deceuninck-Quick Step) and take the stage. 

Peter Sagan (Bora-Hansgrohe) was second, finishing millimetres ahead of Bennett who was third. Wout van Aert (Jumbo-Visma), by the way, was fourth and is seen being spoken to by Sagan after their was a brief coming together between the pair.

Primoz Roglic (Jumbo-Visma) finishes safely to keep hold of his leader's yellow jersey and will take a 21sec lead over defending champion Egan Bernal (Ineos Grenadiers) into Thursday's stage, with Guillaume Martin (Cofidis) sitting third a further 7sec down on general classification.

There were no changes in the other classifications — points, mountains and youth — with Bennett, Benoît Cosnefroy (Ag2r-La Mondiale) and Bernal keeping hold of their green, polka dot and white garments. 

Movistar keep hold of their coveted No 1 spot in the team competition, while Matthieu Ladagnous (Groupama-FDJ earns himself €2,000 in prize money as he is awarded the combativity award for the day.

03:43 PM

500 metres to go

Wout van Aert is coming up the right-hand side of the road, the Belgian eking out some space between the bunch and the barriers.

03:43 PM

1km to go

Into the final straight  . . .

03:43 PM

1.5km to go

Lotto-Soudal and CCC lead the way. 

03:42 PM

2km to go

All as one in the bunch. NTT and Lotto-Soudal on the front.

03:41 PM

3km to go

Cofidis and Lotto-Soudal lead the chase as they hit the small climb (below) in the run-in to the final kilometre or so.

final kms

03:40 PM

3.5km to go

Bob Jungels, Kasper Asgreen and Lukas Pöstlberger lead by 7sec.

03:40 PM

4.5km to go

Deceuninck-Quick Step team-mates Bob Jungels and Kasper Asgreen bridge over to Lukas Pöstlberger before radioing back to their team car for instructions. This was not part of the Deceuninck-Quick Step plan, but they wasted no time in chasing it down. They are all over Pöstlberger like an uncomfortable rash.

03:38 PM

6km to go — Pöstlberger attacks!

Kasper Asgreen chases down Bora-Hansgrohe rider Lukas Pöstlberger who has attacked, perhaps a plan from the Austrian to disrupt the Deceuninck-Quick Step train. Could this be a repeat of Pöstlberger's stage one victory at the 2017 Giro d'Italia, a win that made him an unlikely custodian of the maglia rosa?

03:36 PM

7km to go

CCC have a couple of riders up near the front, presumably working for their fastest man, the Italian Matteo Trentin.

03:35 PM

8km to go

A fierce pace is being set on the front, the peloton is getting strung out. The general classification squads will be releievd to know that the 3km rule will be invoked today, but they will need to hold the wheels of each other to stay safe.

03:34 PM

10km to go

Everybody makes it through the right-hand turn safely. Thomas De Gendt takes it over on the front for Lotto-Soudal. The road is very narrow and twisty.

03:32 PM

11km to go

Deceuninck-Quick Step take over as the dominat team here, can they take back-to-back stages through the Irishman Sam Bennett?

That right-hand turn which may cause a pinch-point is coming soon, in 1,000 metres to be precise.

03:31 PM

13km to go

Sunweb (riding for sprinter Cees Bol), Cofidis Solutions Crédits (Guillaume Martin / Christophe Laporte), Ag2r-La Mondiale (Romain Bardet), Deceuninck-Quick Step (Sam Bennett) and Jumbo-Visma (Wout van Aert / Primoz Roglic) are all on the front, Lotto-Soudal (Caleb Ewan) tucked in behind in the second row, as are Ineos Grenadiers (Egan Bernal).

03:28 PM

15km to go

The peloton flies along at a tidy pace: 55kmh. As Connor Swift mentioned ahead of this stage, there's a hard turn at the 10km to go mark where anybody hoping to contest the stage win here will not want to be caught out, equally the general classification squads will need to avoid being held up by any crashes here. Hence the huge battle for position near the front we are witnessing right now.

03:23 PM

20km to go

Sunweb shift towards the front, sharing the road. Is today the day that Cees Bol breaks his Tour de France duck? The German team is now riding alongside Ag2r-La Mondiale, Deceuninck-Quick Step, Total Direct Énergie and Jumbo-Visma. Each team here will have different ambitions, but have the common goal of keeping a high pace to deter any late attacks and ensure either their sprinter or general classification contender is as safe as he can be as the pace winds up. Very nervous times for the riders and their teams.

03:18 PM

Izagirre abandons

Ion Izagirre abandons the Tour de France, the mountain goat becoming the second rider today to pack after Gregor Mühlberger go in the Bora-Hansgrohe team car a short while ago. José Joaquín Rojas is back in the sadlle, but his shorts are in tatters and the Spaniard will be smarting from that spill.

03:13 PM

Izagirre crashes!

Ion Izagirre is sitting at the roadside following what looks like a nasty crash. The incident was not broadcast, but the aftermath does not look great. I'd be surprised if the Basque continues. José Joaquín Rojas (Movistar) also went down and he is holding his wrist.

03:11 PM

30km to go

Ag2r-La Mondiale, Deceuninck-Quick Step, Total Direct Énergie and Jumbo-Visma are all lined out, filling the width of the road as they wind up the pace. By the way, this is the profile of the run-in to the finish line, a slight rise that will suit some more than others. 

final kms

03:02 PM

Mühlberger abandons

Gregor Mühlberger has packed, the Austrian becoming the first Bora-Hansgrohe rider to abandon this year's race.

03:01 PM

38km to go

Jumbo-Visma are riding on the front, making sure they keep the maillot jaune of race leader Primoz Roglic safe and out of harm's way. From the reports I am hearing, there is a very real threat of crosswinds between here and the tricky sounding finale. Nobody can afford to lose a wheel at this point, especially those thinking about the stage win or those contesting the general classification. Interestingly, local team Total Direct Énergie are also at the head of the field.

02:55 PM

Game over for Ladagnous — 43km to go

Matthieu Ladagnous is caught by the bunch.

02:52 PM

Action stations — 45km to go

A number of teams shunt themselves towards the head of the bunch as it nears Matthieu Ladagnous. Ag2r-La Mondiale, Jumbo-Visma, Total Direct Énergie and Cofidis Solutions Crédits ​are all there, as are Deceuninck-Quick Step, obviously. The awakening of the bunch may have been stirred by some strong gusts of wind, nobody will want to get caught out by any splits.

02:44 PM

Intermediate sprint details in full . . .

Matthieu Ladagnous's lead drops like a stone. With 50km of the stage remaining the Frenchman has 20sec between himself and the pack.

02:35 PM

Bennett extends lead in points competition

Breakaway rider Matthieu Ladagnous took the maximum 20 points at the intermediate, but of much more importance in the battle for the green jersey Irish national champion Sam Bennett lead the peloton over the line to add a further 17 points to his tally, four more than Peter Sagan who was fourth. Full details to follow shortly. 

02:32 PM

Meanwhile, in Italy . . .

 . . . Michael Woods (EF Pro Cycling) has just won stage three at Tirreno-Adriatico ahead of Rafael Majka (Bora-Hansgrohe). That win propels the Canadian into the leader's jersey in what is a warm-up race for next month's Giro d'Italia. Geraint Thomas (Ineos Grenadiers) finished in 10th spot, 20sec off the pace.

02:25 PM

Mühlberger labouring

It's not looking great for Gregor Mühlberger who has fallen out of the back. The Bora-Hansgrohe is currently wearing what looks like a winter jersey, one designed to be worn in the teeming rain, not in these rather pleasant looking conditions. Not entirely sure what is up with the Austrian, but if I were a betting man I'd say he perhaps has some kind of lurgy. All very strange.

Gregor Mühlberger 

02:18 PM

67km to go

Deceuninck-Quick Step and Lotto-Soudal pull on the front, the Belgian teams working today for sprinters Sam Bennett and Caleb Ewan. Bennett, as you can see below, started today in green  and so is likely to go for some points at the intermediate sprint in 10km.

Caleb Ewan and Sam Bennett —  - GETTY IMAGES

02:05 PM

Ladagnous opens his KoM account

Matthieu Ladagnous takes the only point on offer in the mountains classification atop the Côte de Cherveux. That's his first point in that particular competition which, by my rudimentary calculations, will place him 37th overall. Don't think Ladagnous will be spending the €200 he just earned in prize money in any extravagant celebrations later this evening. He will most likely add a further €1,500 at the intermediate sprint and another €2,000 for winning the combativity award that he will surely be handed by the race jury.

02:00 PM

77km to go

Matthieu Ladagnous increases his advantage by around 15sec, though that is possibly down to the fact that back in the peloton the riders have been sticking their heads into their multi-coloured nosebags — i.e. having their lunch on the road.

Matthieu Ladagnous —  - GETTY IMAGES

01:50 PM

Swift: Maybe I need to learn a bit of Spanish

Tom Cary, my colleague out in France, managed to speak with young British rider Connor Swift earlier today ahead of the stage. The Arkéa-Samsic rider who is making his Tour de France debut this year is, as I'm sure you will know, is working as domestique for general classification rider Nairo Quintana.

"He's got good legs, we've got some hard mountain days coming — he's only 30-odd seconds behind — it's [the lead] not out of sight," Swift said.

However, neither the Yorkshireman or Colombian speak the same language, though Swift says they are, somehow, managing to communicate with one another. 

"I think maybe I need to learn a bit of Spanish," Swift said. "Yeah, we've got 'left, right, allez' and a bit of pointing, That's it really. Yeah, you just say say 'allez' on the radio or 'tranquil' or I'll look behind me and point in the direction.

"Team meetings are done in French or Spanish and then if he [Nairo] wants to communicate we have our DS [directeur sportif] who translates it into French [for me]. That's how it kind of goes, we can ask each other 'how's it going' or say 'good morning' or 'good night' or 'see you tomorrow', that sort of stuff. And the odd smile doesn't go amiss.

"It [a rapport] is growing, and he is learning more French. How's my French? Oh, it's okay — bike-related stuff is ok and I can have little conversations, so I can communicate with him in French a little bit."

And the goal for today? "There are some tight roads in the last 10km today, so it's basically calm for the majority of the stage and then make sure he's at the front before we take the tight left-hander. Hopefully we can get through the stage in one piece, safe and sound."

01:36 PM

95km to go

Matthieu Ladagnous, who is in the 11th Tour de France breakaway of his career, loses around 30sec on the peloton as he continues riding into what is now a headwind. Jumbo-Visma are as you would expect tucked in just behind Deceuninck-Quick Step on the front.

Peloton — Tour de France 2020, stage 11 — live updates - GETTY IMAGES

01:26 PM

100km to go

And on he goes, Matthieu Ladagnous has been on his lonsome since the flag was dropped almost 70km back. The Groupama-FDJ rider leads by 3min 15esc, enjoying his day in the sunshine. And what a lovely day — clear blue sky and around 29°C with bit of a head-crosswind.

01:11 PM

110km to go

Matthieu Ladagnous's advantage drops to below three minutes; Tim Declercq and Thomas De Gendt — two absolute engines of the peloton — are chatting on the front, looking relaxed and happy with how the day is playing out. For them, everything is going to plan. Rémi Cavagna (Deceuninck-Quick Step), Declercq's right-hand man, who was recently crowned French national time trial champion, is sat behind the two masters watching and learning on his Tour debut.

Tim Declercq and Thomas De Gendt — - GETTY IMAGES

12:58 PM

120km to go

Deceuninck-Quick Step are allowing Thomas De Gendt to do a turn on the front of the peloton, sharing the workload with the Lotto-Soudal diesel. Anybody considering making a move off the front will have been given food for thought after Deceuninck-Quick Step extinguished that earlier counter-attack within the blink of an eye.

12:46 PM

125km to go

All quiet out on the road. Benoît Cosnefroy and Richie Porte (Trek-Segafredo) are spotted bouncing off the back of the bunch, while French television producers opt to focus on Romain Bardet, hopefully they don't know something that I don't and it's just a case of patriotism rather than him suffering more than I had thought.

Matthieu Ladagnous's lead grows out to 3min 10sec.

12:30 PM

135km to go

Deceuninck-Quick Step wasted little time in closing down that counter-attacking group. Matthieu Ladagnous remains the lone leader, but his advantage has been slashed to 1min 22sec following that injection of pace that instigated by that short-lived attack.

Deceuninck-Quick Step — Tour de France 2020, stage 11 — live updates - REUTERS

12:25 PM

138km to go

That strong-looking group that has countered off the front of the peloton comprises Michael Gogl (NTT), Stefan Küng (Groupama-FDJ), Oliver Naesen (Ag2r-La Mondiale), Lukas Pöstlberger (Bora-Hansgrohe), Jasper Stuyven (Trek-Segafredo) and Tom Van Asbroeck (Israel Start-up Nation). They trail Matthieu Ladagnous by 1min 41sec, while back in the bunch Deceuninck-Quick Step are hammering it on the front, Thomas De Gendt is tucked in at third or fourth wheel. Deceuninck-Quick Step and Lotto-Soudal who are hoping to set up their sprinters today, will not want a group with the likes of some of those in a big breakaway.  

12:17 PM

145km to go

Matthieu Ladagnous's advantage increases to around five minutes, while back in the peloton that man Tim Declercq (Deceuninck-Quick Step) took over on the front looking as if the big Belgian was readying himself and his team-mates to start pulling. And then — bam! — a six-man group  clip off in a counter-attack.

12:14 PM

Bardet receives attention

Romain Bardet (Ag2r-La Mondiale) pulls up aside the medical car to get a cut or a bruise attended to. I'm assuming the Frenchman started today's stage with those injuries as I've not seen any further crashes after Ilnur Zakarin and Alexey Lutsenko hit the deck earlier during the neutralised section. Bardet has been having a great Tour thus far, I was really impressed by his performances in the Pyrenees over the weekend. I'd go as far as saying he may be back to his best, but there's an awful long way to go yet in this race so hopefully his compatriots are not getting too excited just yet.

12:06 PM

150km to go

The peloton is getting its day off to a gentle start, a number of riders have already take roadside 'comfort breaks' while lone leader Matthieu Ladagnous (Groupama-FDJ) taps away at what looks like a very gentle pace, but he has already gained 4min 30sec on the pack. I was half-expecting the man from Pau to sit up ahead of a regrouping, but I was very very wrong about that.

11:55 AM

Languorous Ladagnous — 160km to go

The Groupama-FDJ rider has increaesed his lead over the peloton to 1min 10sec, but in truth he is not working too hard. Unfortunately for him, the peloton is taking it even easier and so he is being left out the front to dry, unless anybody fancies bridging over?

11:49 AM

Ladagnous going solo

And that lone rider out in front in Matthieu Ladagnous (Groupama-FDJ). Nobody appears keen on bridging over to the 35-year-old, and I'm guessing the Frenchman is already regretting this move. 

11:45 AM

And we're off!

And a single Groupama-FDJ rider clips off the front, while Alexey Lutsenko continues to work his way to the back of the bunch.

11:43 AM

Early crash . . .

Today's stage has not even started and there's been a couple of crashes. Ilnur Zakarin (CCC) and Alexey Lutsenko (Astana) collided with one another while attempting to navigate their way around a roundabout en route to KM0 before colliding with a roadsign. Ouch!

Ilnur Zakarin and Alexey Lutsenko assess the damage - GETTY IMAGES

After taking a few moments to regain his composure, Lutsenko who won stage six from a breakaway last week, remounted and tapped his way through the cars and back towards the rear of the peloton.

11:35 AM

And who does today's course suit?

The usual suspects. I'm afraid this is the part where you are unlikely to learn anything you did not already know. Caleb Ewan (Lotto-Soudal) and Sam Bennett would have to be my favourites to win today, but the slightly uphill finish may also favour the likes of Peter Sagan (Bora-Hansgrohe), Matteo Trentin (CCC) or if he is given the green light then from his Jumbo-Visma team who are protecting the maillot jaune of Primoz Roglic, then Wout van Aert may add a third win at this year's Tour to his rapidly expanding palmarès. I imagine a breakaway will clip off fairly early. If that's the case then Deceuninck-Quick Step would probably find themselves doing the most of the heavy lifting on the front, along with Jumbo-Visma and the occasional cameo appearance from Thomas De Gendt (Lotto-Soudal). Racing is due to get under way in five minutes.

11:22 AM

So, what's on the menu today?

Er, not a lot really. There's just one categorised climb, the pimple that is Côte de Cherveux. It's barely worth mentioning, but imagine that boy Benoît Cosnefroy (Ag2r-La Mondiale) will be keen to take the only point on offer today in the mountains classification to extend his lead. Of far more interest will be the intermediate sprint in Les Grands Ajoncs which is positioned 59.5km from the finish.

Tour de France 2020, stage 11 race profile — Tour de France 2020 route: How to watch live TV coverage and follow the race stages

One would imagine that those hoping to win this year's green jersey will be hoping to add to their respective tallies here, or perhaps just keen not to lose any further ground to their rivals. With today's stage expected to end in a bunch sprint, there are 50 points on offer to the winner in Poitiers and so it may be a case of measuring the efforts in Les Grands Ajoncs ahead of the final gallop for glory.

10:55 AM

As it stands . . .

Those familiar with the race, or stage racing in general, will realise that there are a number of jerseys on offer at the race, here's a very quick explainer for anybody that is new to the sport . . .

And here are the current leaders in the respective competitions . . . 

But if you want to take a closer look at the details, here you go  . . .

  • Latest results and standings in full 

10:45 AM

Morning

And welcome to our live rolling blog from stage 11 at the 107th edition of the Tour de France, the 167-kilometre run from Châtelaillon-Plage to Poitiers, the second stage in a row that is expected to conclude in a bunch sprint finish. It was in Poitiers where Sean Kelly won the first of his five Tour stages back in 1978 and of course on Monday it was another Irishman, Sam Bennett (Deceuninck-Quick Step), who took the honours. Before we have a look at today's stage, let's have a recap of what happened yesterday.

First up, here's our correspondent Tom Cary's race-day verdict . . .

An exhausted, mentally frazzled, wind-buffeted peloton finally crossed the bridge to Ile-de-Ré, leading to the expected bunch sprint, which was won by Bennett from Caleb Ewan (Lotto-Soudal) and Peter Sagan (Bora-Hansgrohe), who once again surrenders the green jersey. 

Bennett's first Tour stage win ensured he became the second Irish rider to win a stage in all three grand tours after Seamus Elliott. He promptly broke down in tears.

“I'm just in shock,” the 29 year-old said. “Sorry for crying. I don’t mean to be a cry baby. You dream of it, and you never think it will happen. I just want to thank everyone involved in this, the whole team and Patrick [Lefevere, team manager] for giving me this opportunity and everyone it took to get to here. Obviously my wife too and everyone around me.” He had nothing for which to apologise. It was a welcome end to a chaotic day. 

Tom Cary's verdict in full

Meanwhile, our colleagues at The Cycling Podcast published their latest episode on Monday night. While we are waiting for today's stage to get under way, why don't you give it a listen?

Everyone on the Tour de France woke up nervous after the rest day, and not just because the racing was due to resume. The results of the Covid-19 tests could have altered the race but, although there were four positives among team staff all the riders were negative and no teams have had to leave the race. The Tour director Christian Prudhomme did test positive however.

Join Richard Moore, Lionel Birnie and François Thomazeau in La Rochelle after a sprint finish in Îl de Ré that saw Irish champion Sam Bennett win his first Tour de France stage and become the first man from his country since Shay Elliott in the 1960s to win stages in all three grand tours.

We discuss a tense stage that, thankfully, never descended into chaos, although there were inevitably crashes along the way.