2023 Tour de France Stage 1-3 Highlights

The Tour de France is at full speed this summer as riders are set to cover over 3,400 kilometers of road beginning in Spain and ultimately ending in Paris. Defending champion Jonas Vingegaard will have his guard up with co-favorite Tadej Pogacar closing in on him. Nitrobetting covers stage updates, results, and highlights of each stage starting with the first three days of the Tour below.

Top Stage 1-3 Highlights of the 2023 Tour de France

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READ MORE: 2023 Tour de France Stage 4-6 Highlights

Stage 1

Adam Yates was the first rider to wear the Yellow Jersey in the 2023 Tour de France. The UAE team Emirates rider crossed the line first despite the unusually testing opening stage. The 30-year-old outpaced his twin brother, Simon Yates of Jayco-AlUla, as the pair broke free after the final climb of the stage.

The biggest winner of that day goes to the Yates brothers. There simply cannot be a better feeling for the veteran and their loved ones other than seeing the twins fight it out for a stage win, and more importantly, a right to wear the maillot jaune.

We’ve never seen a Grand Départ that tested the peloton this much. The fans roared in excitement as the tour steers away from the usual prologue or a short time trial. Instead, we got a full-length race that sparked jittery and nervous faces normally reserved for the mountains. With the prize of a guaranteed Yellow Jersey for the stage win at the end, loads of narratives came into play. The punchy hills of the Basque region of Spain, particularly the final kilometers, offered a terrific Stage One thrill.

Stage 2

Cofidis rider Victor Lafay took Stage 2 of the 2023 Tour. The French cyclist attacked the stage and broke free from the lead group that included many race favorites with a kilometer to go. He did all of this in the race’s longest stage (208.9 kilometers). It was a curveball for Lafay, who managed to defend against a quick Wout Van Aert (Jumbo-Visma) and Tadej Pogacar in the final meters to record his first-career stage victory.

The entire Vofidis team celebrated Lafay’s win. This is easily the team’s biggest achievement of the year as it’s been 15 years since the French outfit won a stage in the Tour de France. Lafay came through with guns blazing to get his team the win on the day. With Van Aert in the thinned-out peloton coming to the line, Lafay held on to his only chance of taking the stage with an early attack. He went full gas with a kilometer to go, and a slight misjudgment on Van Aert’s part played to the Frenchman’s advantage.

Stage 3

It’s not easy to forget Jasper Philipsen’s incident on the previous tour. He quickly redeemed himself with a pair of stage wins, including the final stage in Paris. This time, he opened his record books early and won Stage 3 of the 2023 Tour de France. The sprinter won over Bahrain Victorious rider Phil Bauhaus and Lotto-Dstny’s Caleb Ewan. The Belgian received an incredible lead-out from teammate Mathieu van der Poel and was in a great position to use his power to claim the stage win.

Alpecin-Deceuninck is the standout team in the final stage in Spain. They look dominant ahead of the first three stages. The team lineup is robust with Mathieu van der Poel providing the perfect leadout. Meanwhile, Philipsen’s acceleration and how he sustains speed are world-class. Between Philipsen and van der Poel, this is only the beginning for Alpecin on this Tour.

Jumbo-Visma’s Wout Van Aert is filled with disappointment after a miscalculation in Stage 2’s sprint finish. He missed out on another solid opportunity to document a stage win on Stage 3. This course was slightly different though. Van Aert looked like he ran out of space between Philipsen and the barriers, ultimately letting up to avoid a crash. Expect the 28-year-old Belgian racer from Jumbo-Visma to put pressure on the sprinters moving forward.

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