Belgium's Remco Evenepoel won the individual time trial at Stage 16 of the Tour de France on Tuesday, July 21, beating overall race leader Tadej Pogacar of Slovenia by 28 seconds over the 26-kilometer course between Evian-les-Bains and Thonon-les-Bains in eastern France.
The result was one of the few times this season anyone has beaten Pogacar in a race against the clock, and it briefly reignited talk of a genuine time-trial rivalry between the two riders. But the stage win did little to change the bigger picture atop the general classification, where Pogacar, riding for UAE Team Emirates, retains a commanding overall lead heading into the Tour's final week. Evenepoel, who rides for Soudal Quick-Step, has built a reputation as one of the sport's premier time trialists, and Tuesday's win added another signature performance to that resume even as his overall title hopes remain a distant proposition behind Pogacar's dominant three-week campaign.
The stage carried additional weight after a crash involving Florian Lipowitz, a Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe rider and one of the names in the fight for the podium's remaining places. Lipowitz was able to continue, though the incident added an unwanted complication to a day that had been billed mainly as a showcase for the race's two strongest riders against the clock. Pogacar, for his part, said afterward he was disappointed not to add another stage win to his tally but credited Evenepoel's ride, a notable admission from a rider who has otherwise controlled most of this year's race.
Tuesday's result keeps the Tour's overall picture largely settled with Pogacar in firm control, but it gives Evenepoel a morale-boosting win to carry into the race's closing stages through the Alps, where climbing specialists will have their last real chances to disrupt the standings. Time trials have increasingly become a proving ground in men's cycling's current era, and Tuesday's head-to-head will likely fuel comparisons between the two riders through the rest of the season.
With the Tour moving into its final week, attention turns to the remaining mountain stages before the traditional processional finish on the Champs-Elysees in Paris. Pogacar's advantage in the general classification means he would need a significant misstep to lose the race outright, but Evenepoel and the rest of the chasing pack will look for opportunities in the high mountains to make one final push before the race is decided.
