Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
Sport
Mike Walters

Wout Van Aert celebrates latest Tour de France trick as Yellow Jersey lead extended

Belgian Wout Van Aert celebrated his latest Tour de France trick by flapping arms as he crossed the line, claiming: “The Yellow Jersey gives you wings.”

After a mountain stage triumph on Mount Ventoux, a time trial and denying Mark Cavendish sprint immortality on the Champs Elysees, all-rounder Van Aert added a stunning solo breakaway to his repertoire by winning stage four on the Tour de France. He had been second in all three stages on the Grand Depart in Denmark, but a kick for home six miles out on the horseshoe-shaped ride from Dunkirk to Calais left a fractured peloton in Van Aert's wake.

Embarrassed compatriot Jasper Philipsen emerged from the pack to win a bunch sprint for second, celebrating animatedly until the penny dropped that Van Aert had already cruised home hundreds of yards up the road. Van Aert had lamented it was "not funny any more" after being pipped by Fabio Jakobsen and Dylan Groenewegen in back-to-back sprint finishes over the weekend – but he made no mistake this time.

Not funny: Van Aert (in yellow) pipped again (Getty Images)

After the 106.5-mile ride with the White Cliffs of Dover beckoning in the distance, he said: "I didn't want to take the risk again. These stages most likely end with a sprint in a bigger group, so it's one of the most difficult things to do to go it alone. I could only do it with the help of my team-mates.

"They did half the work and it was up to me to finish it off."

Van Aert extended his lead in the Yellow Jersey to 25 seconds, with defending champion Tadej Pogacar third, 32sec down, and Britain's Adam Yates (eighth) 48sec back.

Lurking: Defending champion Tadej Pogacar is only 32 seconds down in third (REUTERS)

Van Aert is not considered a threat to win the fabled maillot jaune in the long haul, 2018 winner Geraint Thomas (50 seconds down in 12th) was unmoved – especially with a potentially chaotic day over 11 miles of cobbles ahead on stage five.

The Welsh wonder said: "I think you can read too much into it. It was really only a one or two-minute blast and that doesn't necessarily win you the Tour. But that type of effort at least shows we're going all right."

Following Monday's transfer from Denmark, the stage began with riders taking part in a tribute to victims of Sunday's mass shooting at a shopping mall in Copenhagen, in which three people were killed.

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.