By winning the fourth stage, Tadej Pogacar took over the yellow jersey from the overall leader in the Paris-Nice long-distance race and proved his outstanding form.
After 164.7 kilometers from Saint-Amand-Montrond to the mountain finish at La Loge des Gardes, the 24-year-old Slovenian professional cyclist was able to assert himself ahead of Frenchman David Gaudu.
Swiss girls with a strong performance
Switzerland’s Gino Mäder was third, 34 seconds down on two-time Tour de France winner Pogacar. The reigning Tour winner Jonas Vingegaard, who had overtaken Pogacar in the overall standings in the team time trial the day before, finished 43 seconds behind his opponent at 1077 meters. The best German was the two-time overall winner Maximilian Schachmann, 82 seconds behind in 22nd place.
Pogacar: “It wasn’t my goal”
“It wasn’t actually my goal today to take the yellow jersey. But of course you don’t say no to that,” said Pogacar after his fourth win of the season. The UAE Team Emirates pro was able to get in the top three in mid-February at the Tour of Andalusia, which he ended up winning.
The fifth leg of the eight-day race on Thursday covers 212.4 kilometers from Saint-Symphorien-sur-Coise to Saint-Paul-Trois-Châteaux. The long-distance journey traditionally ends on Sunday in Nice on the Côte d’Azur.
