Tour de France 2023 LIVE: Result and winner from stage 2 today
Victor Lafay won stage two of the Tour de France in San Sebastian to end a 15-year wait for the Cofidis team to enjoy victory in their home race as Adam Yates retained the yellow jersey.
Lafay timed a late attack to perfection as he broke clear of a peloton reduced to just 24 riders as they passed under the flamme rouge, then just hanging on to beat pre-stage favourite Wout Van Aert to the line.
Yates was in the lead group to keep yellow with team-mate Tadej Pogacar third on the stage to hoover up a few more bonus seconds, finishing just ahead of Pello Bilbao and Tom Pidcock.
Follow all the latest updates from stage two below:
Tour de France Stage Two
121km to go - More mountain points for Powless
127km to go - Powless claims first mountain points of stage two
165km to go - Boasson Hagen takes maximum sprint points
Adam Yates took yellow jersey after stage-one victory over twin brother, Simon
Stage two sees riders cycle 209km from Vitoria-Gasteiz to San Sebastian
VICTOR LAFAY WINS STAGE TWO!
16:25 , Ben Fleming
That is the first Tour stage win for team Cofidis since 2008 - 15 long years of wait ended in superb style by Lafay. He had a great day yesterday and has followed it up superbly today.
Wout van Aert slams his handlebars in frustration as he sprints through in second.
Pogacar claims third.
VICTOR LAFAY WINS STAGE TWO!
16:22 , Ben Fleming
Wow! What a move from Victor Lafay at the death. Jumbo-Visma swallowed the charges from Pidcock and Skjelmose but the Cofidis rider makes a burst a kilometre from the line and is able to create a gap.
Kelderman tries to bring Jumbo-Visma back into it but the Frenchman is able to hold on down the straight. What a performance!
2km to go - Pidcock in contention
16:17 , Ben Fleming
Wout van Aert is the favourite from this position with three Jumbo-Visma riders with him. Britain’s Tom Pidcock wants to try and take it out of his hands with a charge but he’s swiftly caught.
Skjelmose tries his luck but Van Aert catches him again.
4km to go - everything to play for
16:15 , Ben Fleming
Bilbao is caught and the leading pack are all together as we approach the final 4.
All to play for.
8km to go - Bilbao makes a charge
16:10 , Ben Fleming
Out of the newly reformed pack, it’s Pello Bilbao of Bahrain Victorious who makes the next move. Can the Spaniard hold on for a famous win in front of his home crowd?
11km to go - chasing pack catches up
16:08 , Ben Fleming
Vingegaard didn’t want to work with Pogacar towards the end and that allows the chasing back, with the likes of Yates, Wout van Aert and Tom Pidcock all joining up.
16km to go - Pogacar claims bonus seconds
16:05 , Ben Fleming
There are bonus seconds available at the top of Jaizkibel and it’s Simon Yates, in the green jersey, who makes the first move to try and claim the full eight.
He’s followed by who else but Pogacar and Vingegaard. The reigning champ goes past Yates but it’s Pogacar who sneaks in front at the end to claim the eight seconds.
It’s now the two favourites out on their own as they make the wet descent down into San Sebastian.
18km to go - Powless caught by peloton
15:59 , Ben Fleming
Rafal Maijka is leading a thunderous charge at the top of the peloton for UAE and several big names have been left behind by the pace set.
One of those is Neilson Powless who is finally swallowed up by the peloton. A gutsy ride by the American who just misses out on the mountain points on offer at the top of this climb. He’ll maintain the polka-dot jersey for tomorrow, though.
20km to go - Peloton closes in on Powless
15:52 , Ben Fleming
The lead to the top is around 30 seconds and Powless looks like he’ll be caught before the top of the climb. At the front of the peloton, Vingegaard and Pogacar are well placed as are brothers Simon and Adam Yates.
Mathieu van der Poel is one who has fallen off and he won’t be in contention in the closing stages.
25km to go - Jaizkibel climb upcoming
15:45 , Ben Fleming
Powless approaches the final climb of the day. And boy, is it a big climb at 8.1km and an average gradient of 5.3%.
It’s significantly longer than Cote de Pike climb that ended stage one yesterday. On top of that, there’s a 16.5km run-in today which is 5km more than yesterday.
Plenty of work for Powless to do and plenty of time for the peloton to catch him.
Back in the peloton, everyone is jostling for position before the climb. Jumbo-Visma and Ineos Grenadiers looking prominent. UAE Emirates haven’t got the same numbers as their rival teams up near the front having lead the peloton for much of the day.
33km to go - Neilson Powless pushes into solo lead
15:37 , Ben Fleming
Oh, that’s a nasty collision as they come around a roundabout. Lotto Dstny’s Maxim Van Gils is the most affected and looks a bit shaken up but he’s back up and appears okay.
Ben O’Connor appeared to be involved and there was a concern for Jonas Vingegaard as well as he slide back down the peloton with what appeared to be a mechanical issue. Both are fine, thankfully.
Up ahead and Powless has now surged ahead of Boasson-Hagen who he’s been riding with up front all day. The American collects another point in the King of Mountian race as he climbs the Cote de Gurutze but if he’s going to win this stage, it’s going to be on his now.
40km - Powless urged to push for win
15:24 , Ben Fleming
The call comes in from EF Education-EasyPost to their rider Powless in the breakaway group: “Now we’re all in. The cards are on the table. You two are going to have to go.” You would expect nothing else given how the American has ridden so far but his team are urging him to try and keep pushing for the stage win.
Back in the peloton, Jumbo-Visma are taking on a more prominent position at the front as they try to get Jonas Vingegaard in a position to make a late charge.
Cavagna, meanwhile, who was in the breakaway group earlier, has now fallen off the peloton altogether.
50km to go - Powless and Boasson Hagen still out in front
15:13 , Lawrence Ostlere
The leading duo have managed to maintain a steady pace together as they enter the final 50km, and the UAE-led peloton looks happy enough with the state of play. The stage win is very much up for grabs, as is the yellow jersey – Adam Yates would retain it as it stands.
There is a small category four climb coming up before the big one – the Jaizkibel (8.1km climb at 5.3%) – and then the descent towards the finish here in San Sebastian, whether thousands of fans are waiting for the race to arrive along the beachfront, across a bridge from the picturesque old town which I just had a little potter around in the rain.
60km to go - Neilson Powless secures polka dots
14:58 , Lawrence Ostlere
Neilson Powless has ensured he will keep the polka dot jersey for another day after going first over the top of the third of five climbs of the day, and he heads down the other side with Boasson Hagen on his wheel. Their advantage is now down to 1min 50sec and it feels unlikely they will get to the finish line without being caught.
The rain is coming down on the peloton – it’s going to be a potentially treacherous finish on the Jaizkibel.
70km to go - breakaway three become two
14:43 , Lawrence Ostlere
Neilson Powles and Edvald Boasson Hagen have dropped Remi Cavagna! The breakaway trio has become two, and their lead is diminishing. It is down to around two minutes now.
Back in the peloton there’s a small crash, but it was uphill at low speed, and it looks as if everyone involved is OK.
Tour de France 2023 stage-by-stage guide
14:34 , Lawrence Ostlere
Here’s a closer look at what’s coming through the rest of the Tour, with back-to-back flat days coming up for the sprinters as the peloton crosses the French border:
Stage-by-stage guide to the 2023 Tour de France route
80km to go - UAE up the pace to reel in breakaway
14:28 , Lawrence Ostlere
UAE Emirates continue to keep the gap to the front under careful control and Marc Soler puts in an effort on the latest climb to bring the breakaway’s advantage down to less than three minutes. They’ve had enough.
Such is the pace that Mark Cavendish is dropped on the climb – he’ll have several Astana helpers to get him through the rest of the day, but that’s earlier than might be expected. Tomorrow is Cavendish’s first potential chance at the historic 35th Tour stage win.
90km to go - UAE Emirates still leading the peloton
14:11 , Ben Fleming
The race just ticking over at the minute as the leaders maintain a lead of around three minutes and 30 seconds as they complete a rather sharp uncategorised climb.
Back in the peloton, it is still UAE Emirates doing most of the work at the front. They largely sat back yesterday - coming to the fore later on - but, with the yellow jersey from day one, perhaps they feel like they need to be in greater control when they decide to chase down the breakaway group later on.
104km to go - halfway stage
13:50 , Ben Fleming
The lead for the trio in front has crept up above four minutes again as we reach the halfway point of stage two. A reminder who is in that breakaway group - Neilson Powles (EF Education-EasyPost) alongside Edvald Boasson Hagen (TotalEnergies) and Remi Cavagna (Soudal-Quick Step).
121km to go - More mountain points for Powless
13:31 , Ben Fleming
After a short descent, the leaders have another climb shortly after. The Côte d’Aztiria is only a category four, so just the one point on offer, but Powless climbs through a busy section of road - lined with cheering fans on both sides - to snaffle it up.
Worth noting that those couple of climbs have brought down the gap between the leading trio and the peloton. It was up around five minutes at one stage but now sits at around three and a half minutes.
127km to go - Powless claims first mountain points of stage two
13:21 , Ben Fleming
The American already has the Polka Dot jersey from stage one and he extends his lead with another couple of points after the category three Col d’Udana climb.
Edvald Boasson Hagen and Remi Cavagna are alongside him in the leading trio but neither contest for the points and Powless lets out a small punch of the air as he reaches the top of the climb.
135km to go - gap grows to five minutes
13:09 , Ben Fleming
More rain in the air as the lead grows to five minutes for the trio up front who now approach the first categorised climb of the day.
Lawrence Ostlere reports from San Sebastián
12:54 , Ben Fleming
Before that climb, it’s the perfect time to check in with The Independent’s Lawrence Ostlere, who sends in this report from the end point of today’s stage:
I have just arrived in a very wet San Sebastián, where a heavy downpour has just soaked the finish of this stage two.
It looks nice and sunny where the riders are right now, making their way across the Basque Country, but after another 100km they will face the testing finale of this day and wet conditions could be a big factor in deciding who wins the race – particularly on the fast descent from the Jaizkibel climb.
Avoiding incident will be the order of the day for many.
150km to go - category three climb upcoming
12:48 , Ben Fleming
There’s a nice descent now before the first categorised climb of the day - the Col d’Udana. Powles in the breakaway three will be eyeing up more mountain points to extend his lead in the King of the Mountains standing.
The breakaway lead has levelled off at around 4mins 30 but that’s still a healthy one and bigger than we had at any point yesterday.
165km to go - Boasson Hagen takes maximum sprint points
12:30 , Ben Fleming
The TotalEnergies rider takes maximum points in the intermediate sprint after 40km as part of the breakaway group but there’s more intrigue in the peloton for the remaining points.
Jayco-Alula were near the front of the peloton and try to provide a platform for Dylan Groenewegan but he falls from contention and, in the end, it’s DSM-Firmenich’s Sam Welsford who looks to have taken fourth place behind the leading three in the sprint.
Or does he? Well, it appears that actually, it was Jasper Philipsen that claimed fourth for Alpecin-Deceuninck. And a photo finish confirms it, the Belgian just edged out Welsford to take 13 points.
170km to go - rain in the air
12:18 , Ben Fleming
Some signs that there could be a bit of rain today which would certainly add a different element to the action.
UAE Emirates are controlling the peloton with Jayco-Alula riders just behind them. Certainly not a fast pace being set thus far and the breakaway group have been allowed to extend their lead to around four and a half minutes.
185km - breakaway lengthens gap
12:01 , Ben Fleming
The three up front lead by over 3 minutes now as the peloton appears to have split into two further back.
Yesterday the peloton was quite happy to let the breakaway group go knowing that they could be caught later on. Early signs look similar today.
195km to go - breakaway trio forms
11:48 , Ben Fleming
Now we do have a break which sticks. It’s just three riders this time but it includes current King of the Mountains Neilson Powles (EF Education-EasyPost) alongside Edvald Boasson Hagen (TotalEnergies) and Remi Cavagna (Soudal-Quick Step).
They have a lead of about a minute now.
200km to go - lively start
11:41 , Ben Fleming
As soon as the flag is waved, there are attacks right from the off. Victor Campanaerts tries his luck but no gaps appear. A bigger group does begin to emerge including Pascal Eekhoorn, who was part of that breakaway five yesterday.
Sprinter Mads Pedersen joins the group who briefly move away from the peloton but they are soon swallowed back up into the pack as Jumbo-Vismo shut down the break.
And we’re off!
11:35 , Ben Fleming
A slight delay as Stan Dewulf makes his way back to the peloton after an early puncture but the yellow flag is waved and we are underway!
Two big withdrawals after stage one
11:34 , Ben Fleming
It’s worth noting that today’s stage will start without two riders - Enric Mas (Movistar) and Richard Carapaz (EF Education-EasyPost) - after the pair were involved in a crash yesterday.
Mas didn’t finish the race yesterday and immediately withdrew. Carapaz, meanwhile, did manage to finish the stage but withdrew this morning having suffered a fracture in his left kneecap.
Both were key riders for their teams and looking for top-ten finishes in the general classification so it’s a big blow for both teams.
Jumbo’s Death Star, Pidcock’s dog and Basque pride: Inside the Tour de France’s Grand Depart
11:25 , Ben Fleming
Lawrence Ostlere is the man on the ground in the Basque country for The Independent. He’ll have updates throughout the day but yesterday, he went behind-the-scenes to take a look at all the action from the Grand Depart in Bilbao.
Click below to read it in full:
Jumbo’s Death Star and Pidcock’s dog: Inside the Tour de France’s Grand Depart
Stage Two preview
11:20 , Ben Fleming
The 2023 Tour de France continues with another hilly day in the Basque Country as the peloton travels from Vitoria-Gasteiz to the picturesque city of San Sebastian, finishing on the beachfront.
This will be a taxing day for two reasons: firstly, it is the longest stage of this year’s Tour at 209km; and because the final hill – the Jaizkibel – is a draining 8.1km at an average gradient of 5.3%.
The Jaizkibel is a famous climb in these parts and often the decisive point of the Clasica de San Sebastian race. Riders in this year’s Tour to have won the Clasica include double world champion Julian Alaphilippe, America’s Neilson Powless, Ineos’s Michal Kwiatkowski and the man in the yellow jersey, Adam Yates.
For the full stage two preview, click below:
Stage 2 preview: Tour de France’s longest route with tough final climb
Stage one recap
11:15 , Ben Fleming
Adam Yates beat twin brother Simon to victory on the opening stage of the Tour de France to take the yellow jersey in Bilbao.
The pair, riding for rival teams, went clear from a select group at the top of the Cote de Pike towards the end of the lumpy opening 182km stage and opened up a gap on the descent back into town.
Having opened up a gap of 20 seconds on a chasing group, the brothers knew the fight was between themselves on the uphill sprint to the finish line and it was Adam who had the power to ride away at the very end, winning by four seconds to take yellow for the second time in his career.
If you missed yesterday’s action, check out the full recap:
Adam Yates beats twin brother Simon to opening stage win and yellow jersey
Welcome back
11:11 , Ben Fleming
After a dramatic and historic finish to the first stage of this year’s Tour de France, we are back for stage two in the Basque country.
The yellow jersey will begin the day on British shoulders after Adam Yates sensationally beat his twin brother Simon to the line in Bilbao on stage one. Whether he keeps it will depend on whether a breakaway can form and stay away to the finish line – if so, any number of fringe riders could win the day, but they will need climbing legs to get over the testing final ascent, the Jaizkibel – a draining 8.1km climb at an average gradient of 5.3%.
Tour de France 2023 LIVE
09:09 , Lawrence Ostlere
Latest build-up and updates from stage 2 of the Tour de France.
