Vingegaard celebrates second Tour de France title in Paris

Jonas Vingegaard won his second successive Tour de France on Sunday after Jordi Meeus claimed the final stage sprint on the Champs-Elysees in Paris

Denmark's Vingegaard of the Jumbo-Visma team crossed the finish line after the 21-day race, 7m 29s  ahead of Slovenia's Tadej Pogacar, the champion in 2020 and 2021 to win his second successive Tour de France title. Pogacar's UAE teammate Adam Yates rounded out the podium.

Vingegaard's winning margin was the largest since 2014 when Italian Vincenzo Nibali took the fabled champion's yellow jersey by 7m 39s. The champion strolled around the winner's paddock with his family smiling boardly before mounting the winner's podium singing along to the Danish national anthem.

But the runner up Pogacar too was shining and chatting unlike the mountain stage where he crumbled to lose the Tour, "Considering everything it's been a great Tour, I have to be happy with that," Pogacar said after picking up his best young rider jersey for the fourth time. We have two guys on the podium, and I won two stages and the white jersey. I love cycling," he said before greeting his family at the foot of the podium.!

The final stage was won by outsider Meeus of the Bora team, with Jasper Philipsen denied a fifth stage win on this Tour right at the line in a photo finish, "What a wonderful finish, it's been such a high level Tour," said the surprise stage winner.

The 2023 Tour provided a real sense drama with spectacular backdrops as Vingegaard and Pogacar remained separated by seconds until the Dane edged ahead with a sensational individual time trial last Tuesday.

The following day, on a 28km climb to the ski resort of Courchevel, Pogacar cracked, shouting "I'm gone, I'm dead" before Vingegaard killed off the race with a sensational final climb. The event had been billed as a showdown between the defending champion Vingegaard and Pogacar, who has won the Tour twice and now come second twice.

Giulio Ciccone won the Polka Dot Jersey and said it was his childhood dream, "This is one of the best days of my life. It’s really good for me and for my team that I got this KOM jersey. It’s one to enjoy. It inspires me the greatest emotions. I feel really proud of myself. This jersey has been a dream of mine ever since I was a kid and I first started riding a bike."

Jasper Philipsen won the Green Sprinters Jersey said afterwards, "Standing on the podium in the green jersey is such an amazing feeling. I’m proud of how well we worked together towards it. I wanted to win today, but also to enjoy what I have achieved so far. Besides, I’m happy that it was Jordi Meeus who took the victory. This has been my best Tour de France, and these will for sure be some of the best memoires of my sporting career. My next aim is the world championships road race."

VIDEO: 2023 Tour de France Stage 21 Highlights

2023 Tour de France Final Overall GC Top 5

1 Jonas Vingegaard (Jumbo-Visma)
2 Tadej Pogacar (UAE Team Emirates) +7:29
3 Adam Yates (UAE Team Emirates) +10:56
4 Simon Yates (Team Jayco Alula) +12:23
5 Carlos Rodriguez (Ineos Grenadiers) +13:17