Simon Yates claimed a triumphant win on stage 10 of the Tour de France on Bastille Day, marking his first stage victory in the race since 2019. The British rider broke away from a reduced leading group during the final climb of a grueling 165.3km route from Ennezat to Le Mont-Dore Puy de Sancy, which featured eight categorized climbs through the rugged terrain of the Massif Central.
Having recently secured victory in the Giro d’Italia, Yates timed his attack perfectly on the final ascent, pulling ahead of a select group that included Thymen Arensman, Ben Healy, Ben O’Connor, Michael Storer, and fellow Briton Joe Blackmore. His decisive move came just before the final climb, a tactical choice to gain a head start on his rivals in a race where early opportunities for personal glory were not expected.
While Yates celebrated his comeback to the top step, the day also saw a historic milestone for Irish cycling. Ben Healy finished third on the stage, which was enough to propel him into the overall lead, making him the first Irish rider to wear the yellow jersey in 38 years. Healy now leads the general classification by 29 seconds over defending champion Tadej Pogacar.
The effort to claim the yellow jersey was far from easy. Healy described the stage as a mental and physical battle, with support from his teammates playing a critical role in keeping him in contention. Determined not to waste the opportunity, he dug deep in the closing kilometers to secure both a podium finish and the overall lead. The last Irishman to don the leader’s jersey at the Tour was Stephen Roche in 1987, who also went on to win that edition.
Arensman secured second place on the stage, just nine seconds behind Yates. Healy crossed the line 31 seconds after the winner. Ben O’Connor and Michael Storer followed, while Joe Blackmore finished nearly four minutes back. Behind them, the group of general classification contenders remained largely intact, with Pogacar finishing alongside Jonas Vingegaard and others, but the Slovenian gained six crucial seconds on Remco Evenepoel, who lost ground in the final kilometers.
The overall standings now see Healy in the lead, followed by Pogacar, Evenepoel, and Vingegaard, with the gaps between them setting the stage for a fierce battle in the coming mountain stages. Matteo Jorgenson, Kevin Vauquelin, Oscar Onley, Florian Lipowitz, Primoz Roglic, and Anders Johannessen round out the top ten.
After this demanding stage, the riders will enjoy a rest day before the race resumes with a 156.8km flat stage around Toulouse, which is expected to favor the sprinters. The next major test for the general classification riders will come on Thursday, with a challenging stage finishing at the ski resort of Hautacam in the Pyrenees, where significant shifts in the standings are anticipated.
