Follow live updates from stage 15 of the Tour de France, in a day that should be set for the sprinters after a gruelling week in the Alps and two transitional days for the breakaway. Michael Matthews earned his first stage win at the Tour de France in five years yesterday beating Alberto Bettiol and Thibaut Pinot up the steep Cote de la Croix Neuve in a perfect ride from the breakaway. He launched his attack 50km from the finish and almost lost the stage when Bettiol overtook him with 2km to go. Matthews dug deep in sweltering conditions to reach the peak first and glided over the final 1.5km to claim the victory.
Yellow jersey holder Jonas Vingegaard twice held of attacks from GC contender and Tour de France reigning champion Tadej Pogacar to keep his lead in tact but Geraint Thomas slipped further away from the lead despite holding onto third in the standings. A remarkable ride from South African Louis Meintjes propelled him into the GC top-10 as he finished over 10 minutes ahead of the other contenders.
Today, the likes of Fabio Jakobsen, Dylan Groenewegen and Jasper Philipsen will eyeing up a stage win here but one man stands in their way. Wout van Aert has already won two stages of this year’s race and will want to continue his dominance of the green jersey competition. Will anyone be able to beat him to Carcassonne?
Follow all the action from Stage 15 of the Tour de France:
