Søren Wærenskjold Wins Fastest Road Stage in Tour de France History
Søren Wærenskjold powered to victory in Nevers on the fastest road stage ever recorded at the Tour de France, with the peloton covering the 161 km route from Vichy at an extraordinary average speed of 50.91 kph, breaking Mario Cipollini’s 27-year-old record from 1999.
The relatively short and flat run across central France delivered the expected bunch sprint, and the 26-year-old Norwegian from Uno-X Mobility proved the quickest, beating Olav Kooij, Milan Fretin, Jasper Philipsen and the rest of the sprinters after a tense and technical run-in.
The win was all the more remarkable given Wærenskjold had crashed heavily the previous day on the hilly stage to Le Lioran. He admitted he felt poor at the start, but adrenaline carried him through the finale. He called the victory “crazy” and said it was the biggest of his career, acknowledging that on most days he feels too tired to believe a Tour stage win is possible.
Tadej Pogacar finished safely in the bunch alongside Jonas Vingegaard, maintaining his overall lead of more than three and a half minutes after his dominant ride the day before. The GC remained unchanged as the favourites enjoyed a calmer day after a brutal opening half of the race.
Tim Merlier and Mads Pedersen were among the sprinters unable to match Wærenskjold’s acceleration when he launched his effort. The Norwegian had already shown his speed earlier in the race, finishing second in Bordeaux behind Merlier on Stage 7, but today he delivered the perfect sprint.
2026 Tour de France Stage 11 Top 10
1 Wærenskjold Søren Uno-X Mobility 210 03:10:06
2 Kooij Olav Decathlon CMA CGM Team 150 + 00
3 Fretin Milan Cofidis 110 + 00
4 Artz Huub Lotto-Intermarché 90 + 00
5 Girmay Biniam NSN Cycling Team 70 + 00
6 Turgis Anthony Team TotalEnergies 55 + 00
7 Russo Clément Groupama-FDJ United 45 + 00
8 Gaviria Fernando Caja Rural-Seguros RGA 40 + 00
9 Ackermann Pascal Team Jayco-AlUla 35 + 00
10 Pedersen Mads Lidl-Trek 30 + 00
2026 Tour de France GC after Stage 11 Top 10
1 Pogacar Tadej UAE Team Emirates-XRG 39:25:08
2 Vingegaard Jonas Team Visma | Lease a Bike + 03:36
3 Evenepoel Remco Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe + 04:06
4 Ayuso Juan Lidl-Trek + 04:22
5 Seixas Paul Decathlon CMA CGM Team + 04:35
6 Lipowitz Florian Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe + 04:44
7 del Toro Isaac UAE Team Emirates-XRG + 05:08
8 Skjelmose Mattias Lidl-Trek + 05:45
9 Martinez Lenny Bahrain Victorious + 06:34
10 Pidcock Tom Pinarello-Q36.5 Pro Cycling Team + 11:49