As Tim Merlier and his Soudal-QuickStep team celebrated their third sprint victory at the Tour de France, Jasper Philipsen could only roll past his rival's team bus, dismount and quickly disappear onto the Alpecin-Premier Tech bus to watch a replay of the sprint and try to understand why he again missed out on victory.
Alpecin-Premier Tech again set up Philipsen with a three-rider lead-out train in the final kilometre, avoiding the late crash, dragging him to the front, and with Mathieu van der Poel his last man. Philipsen kicked first but was soon matched by the other sprinters, with Merlier coming late off the wheel and through the middle to win.
Philipsen could only accept defeat yet again.
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"Of course we look at the images. I think we did a perfect job with the team. We did what was planned, and the sprint was good. Unfortunately, the others are better, we just have to accept that," Philipsen told NBC's Steve Porino and the Flemish media, when he later came off the bus to face the media."
Philipsen has contested all five sprint finishes of the 2026 Tour but each time has lacked the final burst of speed or clear line needed to win. He finished fifth in Pau and Bordeaux, fourth in Bergerac and third in Nevers and now third again in Chalon-sur-Saône.
He is fast but not fast enough to win sprints as he was in previous years. He has won ten stages across the last four editions of the Tour.
Philipsen's only consolation is that he is third in the green points jersey competition, only 46 points behind Mads Pedersen (Lidl-Trek).
"I think my level is good. I wasn't on my level early in the Tour, but in the last few days I was feeling really good. Today I was also feeling really good. If I get beaten, that's the way it is," Philipsen said.
Chalon-sur-Saône was probably the last chance for the sprinters, with the GC battle and breakaways likely to dominate the remaining stages.
Stage 21 to Paris is no longer a pure sprinters stage, with the peloton facing three climbs of the Côte de la Butte Montmartre, the last ending just 10km from the finish on the Champs Élysées.
"I already have 10 stage wins in the Tour, and I'm very happy with my palmares. We have worked super hard, and maybe the victory will come or maybe not. We'll see what the Tour brings," Philipsen said, confirming he prefers to suffer and lose at the Tour than be at home.
"I'd rather be in the Tour de France than at home on the sofa, so I'll go on until Paris and enjoy every moment of the Tour," he said.
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